September 2007 - Posts
Last night was a special night as I had the good fortune of being a part of the lucky few to get a sneak preview of the new documentary,
In the Shadow of the Moon to be released later this week. I first became aware of this film when (excitedly) reading Stephen Holden's
review in the Times last Friday and was pleasantly surprised when I found out that both the director (David Sington) and co-producer (Christopher Riley) would be on hand
Monday night to present it to the MIT community. The documentary was screened in a large lecture hall and the room was at capacity 10 minutes before it was scheduled to start and this being MIT, people(/nerds) crammed in along the aisles and some stood along the back walls eager to get a glimpse of this much anticipated film that chronicles the experiences of the men who had been a part of the Apollo manned missions to the moon in the 1960s. Among those in attendance were some of the engineers, now greying, from the original mission who had worked at the MIT Draper Laboratory who duly received a resounding standing ovation when introduced before the film commenced. The film begins with JFK's famous speech to Congress in 1961 where he lays out his bold vision of sending a man to the moon and returning him to Earth by the end of the decade, coming just weeks after the Soviet Union had made
Yuri Gagarin the first man ever to venture into space. This marked the start of the space race and set the United States to feverishly devote the needed resources to accomplishing this ambitious science fiction fantasy in order to show the world, to quote David Sington in his post-film talk, "what a free and democratic people are capable of." In this ideological war pitting two superpowers, great feats of scientific achievement were seen to be just as important as military superiority, a crucial point obscured in the hair-trigger nuclear-alert arms race of those heady days. The filmmakers, in a post film talk, revealed that they had scoured NASA archives to find never-before-seen footage of the Apollo missions which to date have been extensively chronicled. Several clips of the
Apollo 11 mission in particular are simply breahtaking to behold on the big screen: especially a stirring montage taken from the Columbia command module showing the Eagle lunar module disengaging as it begins its voyage to the lunar surface. Though there is little mention of the engineering accomplishments that pushed the frontier of aeronautic research (the producers hinted that this may form the subject of another upcoming documentary) -- particularly that of designing a rocket propulsion system able to escape the Earth's immense graviational pull and venture some 300000km to the moon -- the emphasis is on the personal anecdotes of the individuals who had the privilege of being the first human beings to set foot on another world. I am still awestruck when I think just what an accomplishment that we as a human race were able to achieve, a point that resonates throughout the film; as Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Mike Collins realized on their 25 country tour upon their return. People all over the world came up to the them on their visit and congratulated them, rejoicing that "
we had done it." Noticeably absent in the film is Armstrong, utterer of the now famously witty phrase "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" upon being the first man to set foot on the surface of another heavenly body, who to this day remains extremely reclusive and has never made public statements about his experiences. When asked to explain Armstrong's reticence, Sington stated that Armstrong viewed the Apollo 11 mission as humanity's accomplishment, not to be personalized by the individual men who went there. In fact Sington pointed out that the Apollo 11
mission badge was the only badge of the Apollo missions that omitted the names of the crew to underscore this point. Armstrong is believed, comically, not to have even discussed his experiences with his own wife. In a time when the world was polarized by deep ideological struggle, when American culture was undergoing radical changes owing to the civil rights movement, the Vietnam war, and widespread disenfranchisement the Apollo missions brought a sense of optimism and light in those dark days. The filmmakers have done a beautiful, moving job of capturing all the different aspects of what made these missions so profound. I beseech everyone to see this film if you have the chance, it will touch you.
When I read this
story at the office today, I was balling my eyes out and thought I should share it with everyone. Now we all now that how gaffe prone the President of the United States of America is, we know this all too well from the many classic one liners through the past 7 years. His most recent blunder is sobering only because it illustrates yet again the utter disregard and disinterest Mr. Bush has for the rest of the world. While attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC)
meeting recently in Australia, a group of Pacific rim countries that meets biannually to discuss issues of trade, security and cooperation, Mr. Bush began his speech to business leaders on Friday addressing Prime Minister John Howard with: "Thank you for being such a fine host for the OPEC summit".
OPEC, we all know, is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries a group that consists of America's arch foes Venezuela and Iran. But if that wasn't embarrassing enough for PM Howard, Mr. Bush went one further when thanking him for Australia's commitment to send troops to Iraq -- only problem was that he referred to them as "Austrian troops." Yet it seems to me that our amusement at the expense of the most powerful person in the world is, in its own right, illustrative of how disparaging our view of him is -- an out-of-touch, incompetent (I'll stop myself there) figurehead who has endangered global order by indelibly altering the course of world history. Laughter though may be
our best recourse for coming to grips with such a tragedy.
The contemporary music of Iran, now under the ascetic guidance of the Islamic Republic for the last thirty years, has been tightly curtailed: content deemed unislamic has been banned, western influences expunged and artists screened for their moral and spiritual purity. In this inhospitably restrictive environment there has emerged some astounding musicians whose boundless creativity have superseded all such attempts by the authorities to contain them. One such artist is the nascent
Mohsen Namjoo, who was recently featured in an
NYT piece. Such pieces, routinely penned by the Iranian journalist Nazila Fathi, serve to grant western eyes a glimpse behind the iron wall that the Iranian regime has barricaded around its borders and offer much needed insight into the paradoxically thriving arts culture that lies within. I was introduced to Namjoo by a musically inclined Persian physicist friend of mine here a few months ago and have, like many others, felt a deep attachment to it. The music of Namjoo is a blend of ancient Persian poetry, particularly that of the revered
Hafez and
Rumi, with his soothing Bob Dylanesque voice and warm Persian lute playing. Elements of Persian classical music and contemporary Western melodies are fused in a rich aural mélange that is simply enchanting to behold (I have posted two of his works
here). His ability to speak to the modern Iranian way of life and distill its oppression and heartache resonates with the many young people whose voice has been utterly and emphatically choked in this vexing political climate. His marriage of the masterpieces of Persian poetry with the modern western musical tradition is a beautiful testament to the complex struggle for the soul of Iran. Let me illustrate this with an example instead: one of my favorite Namjoo pieces titled
"Zolf bar baad"("tresses in the wind") is based on the following poem by Hafez:
Let not the wind into your tresses or I will go into the wind
Let not seduction be your way or I will lose mine
Drink not with any old contender or I will drown in pain
Savor not your wine or I will turn red in sobriety
Lock not your hair or I will be locked in remorse
Twist not your hair or I will get twisted
Become not the rival's friend or I will become mad with rivalry
Feel not for others or I will cease to feel
Open your face and I won't need a flower
Stand tall and I won't need the air of heights
Paint not the town red or I will shed blood for tears
Cherish not the other's company or I will perish
Steal not the limelight or all light will leave me
Ogle not or I will melt beneath your gaze
Be kind to this poor suitor and come to my aid
For me not to appeal to the Messenger
Hafez will never turn away from you
For he became free the day he was entrapped by you.
The sheer beauty of this magnificent piece transcends culture, language and country. The ability of music to do all these things is truly wondrous.