Dark Discussions heads to the high seas with
one of the greatest yet dark adventure films of all time, John Huston’s
1956’s Moby Dick. The film starring Gregory Peck has a screenplay
written by one of America’s greatest authors and was based on the novel
written by yet another one of America’s greatest novelists. Ray
Bradbury, the science fiction author, weaves an adaption faithful to
Herman Melville’s original tale, taking dialogue straight from the
source material and not only highlighting the novel’s strengths but
bringing a foreboding supernatural sense to a doomed journey lead by a
man set out for vengeance against a beast that may be more than just an
animal.
The saga of Captain Ahab, a man who but a
few years earlier lost not only part of his soul but also his leg during
an encounter with the white whale, delves into the depths of such high
concept themes as good versus evil, mental illness, the cult of
personality, the class system, and man’s place in the universe and
whether God exists. John Huston’s screen direction takes a mystical
turn in regards to an animal that should not exist never mind the
superstition that plays upon the minds of the sailors through such
phenomena as St. Elmo’s fire and an animal that appears as a thinking
and intelligent monster.
Co-hosts Eric and Philip discuss such
topics as megalomania, monomania, anthropomorphism, sociopathology,
personality cults, and mental illness as it applies to the two main
antagonists, Moby Dick and Captain Ahab. Going through the film and
analyzing its themes, Dark Discussions brings to the listeners a view
filled with the main elements of any great thriller yet encompassing the
plot points of a tale that draws upon Biblical, literary, and classical
sources which are filled with existential theories. Once again, Dark
Discussions welcomes you listener as we partake in our search of the
White Whale!
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