Movie Review—Belle

In the anime movie Belle, a teenage girl name Suzu is very repressed. That’s actually a step up for her from elementary school, when she was constantly crying due to an early tragedy. But then she joins U, a virtual reality world with billions of members. Free to assume a new identity, she becomes the glamorous Bell (the meaning of Suzu, later modified to Belle). In her first moments there, she finds she is able to sing again for the first time since the tragedy. Her voice has a great lyric beauty to it, and her songs gain her over two hundred million followers.

As Belle, her fame increases, until she becomes the ultimate pop star. But then the Beast interrupts one of her concerts. Seething with anger, he is able to overcome any of the self-appointed police in U. His back is covered with bruises. Will Belle agree that he is an enemy to be hunted down, or will she reach out to him?

Belle is neither a cautionary tale of immersion into the internet, nor a tale of how virtual reality can solve our problems. The virtual world of U can be used as an escape, for users to revel in fantasy versions of themselves. But the escape is not ultimate, with all the decency and cruelty in the real world being mirrored in the virtual.

Having said that, Belle astonishes with its beauty. From the details on an individual rose to an overwhelming scene with floating whales that can only exist in virtual reality, this movie reaches new heights with its stunning visuals. This visual beauty is surpassed by the singing. I recommend the Japanese language version with subtitles, since the singing in the final concert almost brought this reviewer to tears.

Although rated PG, I do not recommend taking children to this movie, because of the brutality of real life that is portrayed unflinchingly. But teenagers should enjoy a few awkward teen moments that had people in the theater I was in laugh out loud. 

Worldcon—Lincoln Memorial

Here is my tourist photo of the Lincoln Memorial. It is bigger than the back of a penny.

This view of the steps shows how huge the pillars are.

The statue is gigantic. The detail is amazing, down to the folds of the coat and the fingernails.

I managed to get a closeup that shows how lifelike the eyes are.

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Not satisfied with the usual touristy photos, I tried for an unusual angle that no one else in the crowd seemed interested in. This shows Lincoln’s cloak draped over the side of his chair. Notice how much detail the sculptor added, in an area where most people would not look.

That picture and this one showed a detail I had been ignorant of. I had assumed the two hands would be about the same. But the left hand is in a fist.

My next post will be of the building I was most eager to see.

Worldcon—Library of Congress

Believe it or not, one of the two top buildings I wanted to see in my Washington, D.C. trip was the Library of Congress. Here’s a rather typical tourist shot of it.

Note the three alcoves at ground level. They contain bronze statues. Just to warn you, they have some nudity, which is typical of the city’s statues. So let’s take a look.

Wait, these aren’t the statues yet.

And here is the back.

Here is Poseidon. Don’t know who he is? Read a book.

To the left and right of him are sea nymphs, or nereids. A little nudity is okay, right?

Oh, the right one is really . . .

So going inside the Library itself, I was determined not to take pictures. (They prefer having visitors make appointments first.) The visit is different if one is thinking of taking pictures, instead of just experiencing the moment. But they recreated Thomas Jefferson’s library inside the library, including some of his original books.

This is his copy of The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith published in 1776. This was the historic book that argued for free market economics. These are the volumes Jefferson actually read.

The Library of Congress has a complete copy of the Gutenberg Bible. These were the first books ever printed on a printing press. The exact date varies, but the first copies could have been printed in 1454.

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They also have the first printed book on astronomy.

As a final shot, here is a view of the Washington Monument and the Capitol from the Library of Congress.

I was tempted to post that photo by itself and let you guess if I were floating in air, but nah.

I can’t begin to tell you what else was in the Library of Congress. It’s like an art museum. I encourage you to visit if you take a trip to Washington, D.C.