North Korea is truly a step into another world. Anyone can step into that world, too. I found that out in my four years at Camp Casey, home (for now) of the ground combat element of the 2nd Infantry Division, just several miles as the crow flies from the Korean Demilitarized Zone. But you can get closer. Take a tour to the Joint Security Area and you can go see that meeting area set up for the two Koreas to talk to each other, though it has been quite awhile since they have on an official basis. You just have South Korean MPs in their Taekwondo stances and aviator glasses staring down NK soldiers there. You can even go into the Blue Buildings and actually stand on North Korean territory. Just looking around, you can get a sensation of tragic history and a feel of the surreal.
So, watching The Interview, for me, was a step back into familiar territory. Dealing with North Korea is like watching the gyrations of a wonderland from the darkest hell, with a sense of theater. So when this hacker shenanigans busted out around this movie, I was like, what the hell? A silly Seth Rogen/James Franco apparently causing this much fuss with them? I don't remember the father of Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong Il, losing his silly glasses over this. I mean, there was probably some of their usual saber rattling at the time, but that was them usually trying to angle for something. Un of the strange hair cut...
...seems to do things at random. At first, you can go for the "crazy like a fox" angle that lots of dictators play, seemingly, to keep the world on edge and guessing. Then...you have to wonder if the guy really knows what he is doing, or perhaps he is just out of his league and not up to the task of being the boy-god of a totalitarian, nay, Orwellian dictatorship.
But then, we, the USA, the fortress of freedom, the bastion of liberty, the defender of free thought and speech, knuckle under. The mainstream theater chains, mid-December, knuckled under to the threats of these hackers and declared that they were not running the film, scheduled to be released Christmas Day. Then even stranger, Sony Pictures said they weren't going to release it, in theaters or in any medium. The public outcry, thankfully, was cacophonous. Americans of most stripes were incensed that elements of our society and our expression could be cowed by anyone, much less a tin pot dictatorship. Seemingly, Sony was shamed into action, and agreed to release the film both online and into the waiting hands of eager independent theaters on Christmas Day. They have also said the film will be released in other mediums later.
So, yeah for freedom, good to see the spine was still there, even though some of us had to fumble around in the dark for it. They forgot where they had left it last.
Anyway, the film is out, you can see it. Please do. Because it is awesome. Though the trailers sold the film on its dick and poop jokes, believe me, there is much more to the movie than that. The Interview has multiple targets and points to make. It doesn't extensively dwell on most of them, merely making the point and moving on with the story (this isn't a documentary or a college lecture, it is a comedy, but one with a point of view). David Skylark (James Franco) hosts a TV interview show that is popular and makes bank, but is pop culture pap. Seth Rogen (Aaron Rappaport) is his producer, who enjoys the money and trappings, but dreams of doing real journalism. Then, one day, they find out that Kim Jong Un, dictator of North Korea, is a fan of Skylark's show and wants to be interviewed. In Pyongyang, the capital of NK. When Skylark goes public with this, the CIA comes knocking...
...with Agent Lizzy Caplan (and her breasts) with an proposal. Could you guys whack Kim Jong Un for us? Please?
Operation Honey Pot begins.
And away we go to the races. The film heads off to North Korea, where Skylark hangs with Un and at first starts to think that the NK dictator might be an ok guy and starts to get cold feet about their mission. He finds out otherwise later, but one of the key things that impressed me about this film, alongside observations about the failings of the US news media and the stumblings of US foreign policy, is their humanizing of Kim Jong Un.
...yes, in the end he is revealed to be a not so nice guy, but...it is more complicated than that. For a Hollywood pic, especially a comedy, this Un is a very human one, and if you don't feel sympathy for him, you at least understand a bit more about the situation he finds himself in, thinking, brother, sucks to be you. By the way, hats off to actor-comedian Randall Park in his portrayal of Un. A great job, sir. You were fantastic.
The Interview is a fantastic time at the movies. But not just a romp in celluloid. It has some actual points to make, but won't beat you over the head about it.
Go see it.
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