That what's remembered; first chapter

1. That what’s remembered

“It’s not important that we remember the exact events of our history, but learn not to make the mistakes over and over again!” Itaka Kidara, Historian and philosopher 564 NC

In the beginning there was nothing, yet nothing implies something. A thought was formed and given shape, Light and Dark where born and with it the beginning of the universe. They were the One that are Two, and they gave shape to all, so did they, in time, create our world; Earth. It took millions and millions of years for our world to evolve, to grow, to change and to bring forth the human race. But we learned and became the most powerful species of our planet, dominating all. The old people tell stories of how we had machines that could bring us from one place to another by flying trough the sky, machines that did the work of man. But domination wasn’t enough, we wanted to master all, even the powers of creation itself, and in trying to do so, we wrought our own destruction. We broke the very fabric of creation, the weave that holds all in balance and the earth shook and heaved, continents broke, sea became land, land became sea, water became fire, fire became mountains, mountains became lakes and nearly all was lost.

It is said that the breaking and reshaping of the earth took centuries and when she finally came to rest again, there was only one continent left. Remnants of the old earth or a newly formed earth, we do not know. It is estimated that only a few thousand people, perhaps less, remained from the billions that ones inhabited the earth. Nothing remained of the ones great nations, sophisticated cultures and the high level of technology, but dust and fainted memories.

The remnant of people that remained struggled for survival, forming little groups that worked together to stay alive. Nothing would ever be the same again, but life still remained and with it hope! Yet little did we now of the far-reaching impact of the destruction that was wrought when we tried to master the powers of creation. We had torn up the very fabric of creation, the One that is Two, was no longer one, but two separate forces of Light and Dark, not working as one to create, but being two and opposing, fighting each other, seeking to destroy the other. The earth as the source of the breaking became a reflection of this War; one half of the continent stands in the light the other half is under the dominion of the Dark.

Under their influence, societies where formed; diverse, free, compassionated under the guidance of the Light, strict, severe and merciless under the dominion of the Dark. We had become the battlefield of the forces of creation and creation stopped. And so wars are fought again and again till one side will finally win and all be lost, or we find a way to mend that which we broke.

From the Book of Remembrance as written down by A’lanne D’mon, founder of the city of the watch, first keeper in the year 11 of the New Count after the last Great War.

Of actors and things past!

Before I start, I want you to know that I do love movies, tv-shows and other visual entertainments. What I don't like is the need for people to know the ins and outs of their personal life's. The need to place that above their skills as an actor. To me it seems that it's not their skills that build their fame but their personal life.

Personally I rather go to a nice and quiet dentist, than to one that party's around; You never know if his hand is stable enough in the morning to give you a painless root-canal. It seems that there're to many actors and actresses cast for the fame of their personal life's and not for their talents. What do I care about their personal life's, when I watch them act I want to believe that they're really that character they're playing, that they're Burt and not Bruce. But to often I see a part of the face they're showing in public. Don't get me wrong, a good actor will dive into his own experiences, feelings, to create a true and believable character, but a lot of that seems to be missing in acting today. They put on different clothes and make-up, say different lines but their character remains more or less the same as the one they played before. Are we so infatuated with their life's that we want/need to see more of that on the screen? Are we so numb that we stop to wonder if they really have any talent at all? So many new names and faces come and go, one much the same as the other, all pretty and perfect, but I don't want perfection, I want character.

Now this is my first blog, so I've no idea where this will go (might also be my last), but I do know who to blame for it.  
VINCENT D'ONOFRIO



For those who don't know him, he's the actor that plays the character of Robert Goren in: Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Now I don't like to watch series on TV, I don't have the time and patience to stay home and watch on a specific day and time, but I'll watch series on the internet when I've time(which is probably years after they first aired), and only series that tell a story in 1 (or 2) episodes. I truly hate series like; desperate housewife's, sex in the city, 24 hours etc. there needs to be a beginning and an end to a story.
Anyway I started to watch that serie (season 1 aired in 2001) a few weeks ago and I was impressed by the character played by Vincent D'Onofrio. The thing is, that when you watch a whole serie like that, you can see the character grow, develop, gain more depth, come a live. I also got stuck on the next problem; the character of Robert Goren is complex, he looks at the world with the eyes of a lost puppy, a big teddy-bear with all the hurt hidden that life can trough at you. So where is the line between Vincent and Robert?
So I googled him and they call him an actors actor, an actor with a classical education, an actor who knows how to prepare for a part; the why, where, whom, when, what etc. questions you need to ask to dive into en get to know the character you're playing (leftovers of my own classical drama education). I now know that I saw him before and the fact that I didn't realise that, tells me (did like the movies) that he played different characters and wasn't typecast. Still after so many years of playing Robert Goren I can't help and wonder if the line between Vincent and Robert hasn't blurred!

There aren't many all-round actors left, actors that can play any role you trough at them and make you believe they're that part. Jeff Goldblum played a part in the last seasons of Law and Order: Criminal Intent, an actor I like very much, but he is also to often typecast. Nearly all the characters that he plays are witty, charming and a bit off, no quite normal, a bit eccentric. So the question is: "Is that the only sort of character he can play?" "Or is he just showing us a true part of himself and not playing a character." I can't help but see Jeff Goldblum when I watch him and not the character he plays. What I mean to say is, that I don't get lost in the character he plays, don't laugh and cry with him, feel happy or sad for him, want to kiss or kick him, the make-believe is not real enough for me.

I'll leave it up to whomever is willing to read this to make up their minds about today's actors and the line between reality and fantasy, but perhaps before you do that you should have a look at the great actors of the past. Names like; Burt Lancaster, Greta Garbo, Errol Flynn, Lauren Bacall, Dean Martin, Audrey Hepburn, Humphry Bogart, Bette Davis, James Dean, Elisabeth Taylor, Kirk Douglas, Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracey, Sidney Poitier and Rock Hudson to name a few.