Choking on soap and receiving postcards from the future.
It’s hard to believe that ten years have passed since the release of Fight Club. One of the most intense, visceral and acerbic releases of ‘99, it became the defining film of the decade. The performances were more than memorable, the soundtrack was fantastic and the overall look of the film made us all think that David Fincher was going to make amazing movies forever. I don’t want to be one of those people but it is true to say that I had read the book several times beforehand and was instantly drawn into the world of Chuck Palahniuk. In the last decade, I have eagerly awaited the release of each of his books and there are very few authors who I can claim to follow with such undying enthusiasm.
What occurred to me during a recent viewing of Fight Club was just how subversive it was, I find it difficult to imagine a film being released today that explains how easy it is to manufacture home made explosives and attack multinational companies. Nor can I imagine one that encapsulates the feelings of impotence and disillusionment of an entire generation so well, for that matter. Beneath the surface, there is far more to Fight Club than bared knuckles and bitch tits. Palahniuk handles his agendas like very few writers can, he weaves them evenly across his novels and presents them for little more than your consideration. His message is never to tell you what to think, but to entice you to think for yourselves. He is a man who has a lot to say, but realises the pitfalls of standing on a soapbox for too long. If you discuss the socio political elements of fight club when removed from the context of the movie, it’s a bit like being stuck in an elevator with Zach De La Rocha while he reads to you from The Anarchists Cookbook. It is the humour and observations of Palahniuk which disassociate him from the rhetoric and mantras of the radicals. He does little more than place the ideas within his pages.
It has been widely publicised that Palahniuk is a nihilistic misanthrope, which couldn’t be further from the truth. This is highlighted in the documentary Postcards from the Future, which was made by Palahniuk’s endorsed fan site The Cult. Unfortunately, it is little more than a giddy student film, peppered with unnecessary interviews with the filmmakers buddies (who are screen smashingly irritating). The footage of the interviews, Q&A sessions and seminars more than make up for this though. He comes across as a man who knows how fortunate he is to tell his stories to people, and openly encourages people to do the same and better. He refuses to sign people’s body parts after it transpired that fans were getting his signature tattooed. When asked about this, he commented that he ‘Wanted to move people away from this form of music video hero worship, that if people wanted to show their appreciation that the greatest thing they could do is to create something unique.’ You can’t really disapprove of such a viewpoint. Chuck wants us all to regain control of our lives, to do something with them.
I also got to see Choke for the first time, which I am very pleased to say is a fantastic adaptation, bleakly funny and insightful all the way through. Again it is the stories effect to make us laugh, to entertain, whilst ultimately leaving some form of resonance with us. This is why as part of this overall recommendation, I am suggesting to you to seek out the books of Fight Club and Choke before you can see the movies if at all possible. Actually, seek out any of his books, because you will be rewarded with how accessible, thought provoking and well constructed they are. So much of his material wouldn’t transpire as well to film, his use of repetitive dialogue and the subtle connections between characters that exist within the novels is best left on the page. He can do everything from the gritty social commentary to the romantic gothic novel, often in the space of a few chapters.
In an age of perpetual cynicism, where we are all such wonderful critics and fit to judge everything so freely, it is refreshing to find someone who continually gives the message that if you’re not happy, you can change things yourself. That it’s no point complaining to a world that doesn’t care to listen, that if you really want to make a difference; you have to find a better way. This way is not incidentally, forming underground fight clubs and forming your own Project Mayhem. It comes from thought, from creation and from you being honest enough to ask yourself ‘What is the one thing you want to do before you die?’. I’d tell you mine, but I’m not supposed to talk about it.
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