Film

The Lines Humans Draw The lines in a drawing made by human hands carry momentum, languor, suppleness, hesitation, sensuality. Some of these qualities are consciously sought; others emerge unconsciously. In a picture drawn by a person, such qualities are naturally adjusted and woven in. The word “sensuality” does not mean only sex appeal. We often speak of “mature allure,” but this is a complex thing, and eroticism is no simple matter either — because sex appeal has no pattern. ...

There is a work called The Congress (2013, directed by Ari Folman) that blends live-action film with animation. It is based on a novel by Stanisław Lem (born in Ukraine, raised in Poland), the author famous for Solaris. A producer approaches an actress whose prime is passing and asks her to sell her current likeness — her image rights. Struggling with a difficult illness and crushing medical bills, she agonizes but ultimately accepts the offer. She is then recorded from head to toe by a full-body 3D scanner — and so the story continues. ...

Lately, my memory for people’s names, dates, and numbers has been growing terribly hazy. Having eaten mainly fish since my youth, I wonder if acetylene-based microplastics have accumulated around my hippocampus and damaged the cells there. Reports say that the brains of severe dementia patients contain about two teaspoons of microplastics. It may already be too late, but I want to leave some notes as a personal record before things get any worse. ...