But another thought:
Strolling through LAX and JFK with crisp efficiency (I always travel carry-on, even on month-long trips), I also got to thinking about Up in the Air, which I watched last week. It surprised me by how much it captured this moment in time--the anxieties of the recession, our culture of false intimacy--, and for the non-megastar vulnerability George Clooney brought to his character.
As technology is always on my mind, I couldn't help but see the story as a critique of the technologies that are meant to bring us closer. Commercial airlines, frequent flyer cards, hotel amenities, mobile phones, video chats. I've been traveling regularly almost literally since I was born, and I started to see my life in Clooney's life, lived in airports and flying over blurry cities, everything I need in a rolling suitcase. All the little things I do to keep grounded and sane as I've crisscrossed the country.
All the little things. They bring us the comforts of home without actually being home. As we march forward with all these new technologies (and I love watching every new development), it's important to remember to look back and critique them too. Which technologies bring us closer together and which only seem to? When we do use technology as a shield against intimacy, and when is it a bridge?
Labels: culture, film, review, technology
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