The Gravity of the Situation

Today, I would like to talk to you about a very serious problem: gravity. The fact of the matter is that it sucks. It causes people to trip, objects to fall and furniture to be too heavy to move. As a clumsy person, gravity and I have long been enemies. I have a tendency to stumble over tree roots, curbs, my own feet, etc as well as drop things if I'm not paying attention. Now, I'm sure that some of it is due to my own nature, but most of the problem lies with the existence of gravity. If it weren't for gravity, I would not have this problem, at least not as severely.
I bring this up now primarily because of an incident this morning. After several injuries, my left ankle is a bit fragile. So when I mis-stepped on the stairs on my way to class, gravity pulled me all the way down. Thankfully, there were only 2 or 3 steps left, so I didn't have far to fall. However, my ankle has been angry at me all day and I've been gimping around a bit. I mean to ice my ankle when I finish writing this, but in the meantime, I would like to propose that we abolish gravity. It is dangerous and problematic and should simply cease to exist.

Repo! The Genetic Opera

In the not too distant future, society is floundering, on the brink of collapse. Health problems abound, organs failing left and right. The situation seems hopeless until Rotti Largo and the GeneCo corporation emerge. GeneCo provides organ transplants to those in need and even offers payment plans to those who can’t afford the surgery. Soon, elective cosmetic surgery is commonplace. Designer faces and organs are a must, all courtesy of Rotti and GeneCo. But what happens if costs become too much? What if you can’t keep up with your payments? Thanks to Rotti, organ repossession is now legal. Those who can’t pay live in fear of the Repo ma, a shadowy figure who strikes in the dark, repossessing organs in GeneCo’s name. To escape the pain, many turn to Zydrate, a highly addictive painkiller, extracted from the dead. 

And that is just the first few minutes, establishing the world of the film. The actual story follows Shilo, a victim of a non-specific blood disease. Her overprotective, overbearing father keeps her constantly inside and away from people. However, Shilo is growing up and when Rotti contacts her, tempting Shilo with the promise of a cure, she can’t resist being drawn into the sinister, twisted world outside of her bedroom. 

Now is the point that we get into spoilers, which I do my best to avoid. While I won’t say much else about the overall plot, I will say that this musical is a new obsession of mine. Much like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Repo! is a cult classic and most people either love or loathe it. It is far from a classic, typical musical. The actor’s voices are not all perfect (though Sarah Brightman’s is pretty damn close), the music has more a twisted rock and roll feel to it and the entire film is nearly devoid of choreographed, synchronized, dance numbers. I won’t deny that certain aspects of the film are downright disturbing. The organ repossession scene are brutal and graphic, the drug scenes are fully charged with prostitution and one of Rotti’s sons has a habit of ‘borrowing’ other people’s faces to wear over his own.

Surprisingly, Paris Hilton’s performance is not one of the most disturbing aspects of Repo!. Then again, she plays a spoiled, plastic surgery and drug addict who gets everything she wants from her father. But still... 

I discovered Repo! a few weeks ago and since then have been unable to stop listening to the music and have re-watched it at least 4 times (one of them was this morning). 

Now I know that this film is not for everyone - I told my boyfriend about it and he refuses to even watch it with me - but you’re into odd, twisted musicals like Rocky Horror and Hedwig and the Angry Inch, I suggest that you give Repo! a shot. This particularly holds true if you, like me, think that Giles did not get enough singing time in the musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.