A Mirror Has Two Faces

Hey again, folks. Just finished a long-missed tube watching session, and I must say that the programming on Astro has improved by leaps and bounds. I guess by now almost everyone who reads me knows just how much I like to indulge in the telly every once in awhile, and last night and tonight has been very good for me. I managed to catch new episodes of CSI: Miami and Boomtown, and it was time well spent.

I remember watching 12 Angry Men when I was 10, and that particular movie (albeit in black and white) remains in my opinion as one of the best non-action movies ever made. It's biggest strength was the story, and how a good script can always shine over anything else. Even the 1997 remake (starring my favourite CSI William Petersen) maintained that aura of tension and intelligence, so good that by the time it was over, I was literally sweating bullets. When I was 20, I heard of this movie called Rashomon, by Akira Kurosawa, and finally I managed to hunt it down on a very ugly bootleg disc (which has now disappeared, thank God). For those of you familiar with the story, it's a simple tale of a murder, seen through the eyes of several people. Every retelling of the tale would show a unique perspective, depending on the teller. Ever since then, I have been extremely hooked on different ways of telling a single tale (before I continue, let me add The Usual Suspects to the list of movies I deem very worthy indeed).

So why am I spouting all this? The answer is simple: tonight's episode of Boomtown moved me, in a way I didn't expect. In essence, Boomtown is similar to Rashomon, in that every episode shows a crime/event from the viewpoints of not only the principal players, but sometimes also the victim or perpetrator, or anyone else whose life was touched by it. One of the major characters is an Deputy District Attorney, David Mcnorris (played to perfection by Neal Mcdonough). He's a person you either love or hate. Haunted by his past (father was a gangster, or a "fixer") he struggles to maintain his legal integrity while at the same time trying to avoid turning out like his father. His character cheats on his wife with reporter Angela (Nina Garbiras), makes shady deals with powerful public figures in order to further his own career, and generally plays everyone off one another.

Right bastard, you may say. So I thought. But in every episode, the cracks in his psyche become apparent, as the viewer sees just how much he loathes himself, how he is (in his own words) "..becoming everything I have ever abhorred in my life, my father.." and finally, in an excellent episode, he comes clean. Here's the synopsis, thanks to NBC.com:

McNORRIS SUFFERS A MORAL CRISIS -- Deputy District Attorney David McNorris (Neal McDonough) comes dangerously close to selling his soul when he obstructs justice in order to protect a murder suspect -- the teenage son of a wealthy Hollywood producer who can help further McNorris’ political career. Detectives Stevens (Donnie Wahlberg) and Smith (Mykelti Williamson) pursue the investigation, while the prime suspect appears to skip town on the family Lear jet before officers Turcotte (Jason Gedrick) and Hechler (Gary Basaraba) can detain him. Nina Garbiras and Lana Parrilla also star.

At the end of the episode, David is a broken man as he leaves his mistress, tells his wife the truth then proceeds to beat the crap out of the Hollywood producer, all the while proclaiming that kids don't necessarily need to turn out like their fathers (his wife leaves him, by the way). Some may say that I'm reading a bit too much into the whole show. Perhaps. But what actually made me sit up straight was how familiar some of him is to me. In a way, I've always admired David (or people like him). Good looking, powerful, intelligent, physically imposing, and never flinching from his objectives. In the past year, I've changed. I used to have a very powerful conscience (I call him Jiminy Cricket, or JC). I've found that lately I'm prepared to do anything in order to move ahead..and that JC is shrinking. Often at work, I find myself categorising people according to their usefulness. And it's a trend that's been growing steadily.

I hate myself sometimes, for letting JC shrink. And I know that (in my department, at least) I may have a better chance of making it to Head of Department than anyone else, if I play my cards right..what scares me is I can see myself grinning as I step over anyone in my way. Maybe it's just an irrational fear..or is it? Check back with me in 5 years. I mean it.

'Night, world.