![]() The assumption that the weapon was wielded by an Aboriginal law enforcement recruit is an economical early nod by Thornton to the one-sided bargain of co-existence. As Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ majestic score intensifies, the kid chokes a horseback police officer and takes off across a vast empty plain before being felled by a boomerang. The movie opens with an attention-grabbing demonstration of the disproportionate strength packed into the small body of the protagonist - played by 11-year-old discovery Aswan Reid with the inbuilt tenacity of a wild survivalist. There’s a nagging sense that the unnamed boy’s struggle, along with the theme of religious colonization and the monolithic force of Christianity imposed on Indigenous cultures, would work just as well with a white authority figure whose sanity wasn’t hanging in the balance. Thornton’s script is as much at fault in this as anything Blanchett is doing in the role. But the spiral of Sister Eileen as the action progresses and she starts hitting the red wine, fearing the title character’s special magic and perhaps even questioning her faith, becomes almost a distraction from the more moving part of the story - the boy’s navigation of this unfamiliar world and its rules, attempting to find a place in it without surrendering his sense of himself. Its flaws, strangely enough, lie chiefly around the space given to Cate Blanchett (who’s also a producer, along with her husband, Andrew Upton) to dial up the feverish intensity as a renegade nun, who has kept quiet to authorities about the death of the elderly monk in charge and taken over running of the remote orphanage in 1940s regional Australia.įresh off her mercurial performance in Tár, Blanchett as always is a compelling, full-tilt performer and many audiences will want nothing less from her. The reward is beyond measure! Miller clearly explains that none of the outside fixes we use to try to make ourselves feel better work.Venue: Cannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard)Ĭast: Aswan Reid, Deborah Mailman, Wayne Blair, Cate Blanchett I recommend this book to anyone who is willing to look deep into their past and find all of the dark secrets that may be lurking there. Miller believes that we must go back and acknowledge our original wounds as the source of our pain in order to heal and experience any sort of true happiness and joy in our lives. This original wounding poisons our relationships, debilitates us, and prevents us from ever being able to achieve true happiness, peace within ourselves, or any sort of true fulfillment in life. We carry these scars into all of our relationships throughout our lives, most of us never realizing the true source of our pain. Evil is something that comes from childhood hurts, wounds, abuse, etc.Īlthough our parents may have done the very best that they could, most of us still become wounded and scarred at va rying degrees of severity. In "The Drama of The Gifted Child", Alice Miller explains her theory of human nature, and her belief, based on her continuing studies and the endless studies of so many others, that human beings are all born good. ![]() ![]() It was the heaviest and most thought provoking book I have ever read! I have read others, however, so far, this one has had the most profound effect on me, and has changed my whole way of thinking about life. This was the most incredible book I have ever read! Alice Miller is brilliant!Īfter reading "The Drama of the Gifted Child", I purchased nearly every other book that Alice Miller wrote. The Drama of the Gifted Child by Alice Miller The Drama of the Gifted Child helps us to reclaim our life by discovering our own crucial needs and our own truth. Without this 'gift' offered us by nature, we would not have survived." But merely surviving is not enough. I simply meant all of us who have survived an abusive childhood thanks to an ability to adapt even to unspeakable cruelty by becoming numb. ![]() Far too many of us had to learn as children to hide our own feelings, needs, and memories skillfully in order to meet our parents' expectations and win their "love." Alice Miller writes, "When I used the word 'gifted' in the title, I had in mind neither children who receive high grades in school nor children talented in a special way. Why are many of the most successful people plagued by feelings of emptiness and alienation? This wise and profound book has provided millions of readers with an answer-and has helped them to apply it to their own lives. This bestselling book examines childhood trauma and the enduring effects of repressed anger and pain. ![]()
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