Nostalgia and its Opposite - Memories of the Rainbow Nation
marhobane.substack.com
The first time I saw Magnolia, I didn't understand it. I felt that it was powerful, and that some strange logic tied all the characters together despite their mutual distrust and unfinished grudges, but I could never put my finger on it. Now, having seen it a few times, several years apart, I think I can see the thread running through, something that, as a South African, brings me back to our long list of national questions. Like many of the characters in Magnolia, we rested on our laurels and let our sins blossom, forgetting the crimes of yesterday, ignorant of the waiting moment when fate would ask, "what can be forgiven?" My first political thought came when I was no more than 8, when it was announced that Nelson Mandela would be handing over the presidency to Thabo Mbeki. I was vaguely indignant.
Nostalgia and its Opposite - Memories of the Rainbow Nation
Nostalgia and its Opposite - Memories of the…
Nostalgia and its Opposite - Memories of the Rainbow Nation
The first time I saw Magnolia, I didn't understand it. I felt that it was powerful, and that some strange logic tied all the characters together despite their mutual distrust and unfinished grudges, but I could never put my finger on it. Now, having seen it a few times, several years apart, I think I can see the thread running through, something that, as a South African, brings me back to our long list of national questions. Like many of the characters in Magnolia, we rested on our laurels and let our sins blossom, forgetting the crimes of yesterday, ignorant of the waiting moment when fate would ask, "what can be forgiven?" My first political thought came when I was no more than 8, when it was announced that Nelson Mandela would be handing over the presidency to Thabo Mbeki. I was vaguely indignant.