Why "Mono" is a comedy-horror film

Yesterday, I watched the very entertaining and aptly-titled film “Mono”. It brought back interesting memories of my time in a boarding high school. I remember those four years with mixed feelings. There were moments of comedy, joy, sadness, rebellion and always, always, the underlying feeling of “I want to go home”, which was the title of the very first poem I ever wrote, during my first weeks as a form one student -  a “mono”.

What makes "Mono" a comedy-horror film? The comedic elements are very clear. Upon reflection, I picked out the following horror elements:

TRAPPED: It’s right there in the name. Boarding. No going home. No escape.

MONSTERS: Two monsters are portrayed in the film: physical monsters (bullies) and psychological monsters. Psychological monsters are usually brought to life by the physical monsters and are outlined in the Psychology Today article by Karl Albrecht, The (Only) 5 Fears We All Share: “These fears include extinction, mutilation, loss of autonomy, separation, and ego death."

PSYCHOLOGICAL DEATH – Thankfully, there are no physical deaths in the film but the psychological deaths or ego deaths are many. Albrecht explains ego death as follows: “… humiliation, shame, or any other mechanism of profound self-disapproval that threatens the loss of integrity of the self; the fear of the shattering or disintegration of one's constructed sense of lovability, capability, and worthiness.”

The film’s TRAILER shows us some examples of ego deaths

“Whatever your parents taught you stays at home.”

Corporal punishment.

One's food being taken by the older students.

“Why are monos taking window seats?”

A concerned mother asks her son: “What happened to your face?”

Being insulted by those in authority: “Your head is full of porridge.”

I was in high school when the first ever radio station to play rock music was begun. Perhaps, my experiences in boarding school helped me to appreciate this music that I had never heard of before. Bands like U2 with their anthemic songs. Like “Pride (In the name of love):

“Originally Bono wanted to write a song about Ronald Reagan’s arrogant pride in his military power, which inevitably led to heightened nuclear tensions during the Cold War. However, after reading biographies on Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, he decided to focus on the pride ingrained in the causes of the African-American Civil Rights movement, and the comparison between the violent and nonviolent approaches each leader took.” (https://genius.com/U2-pride-in-the-name-of-love-lyrics)

Female rock stars like Alanis Morrissette who through songs like “You oughta know” (1995) made it okay to express dissatisfaction:

And I'm here, to remind you

Of the mess you left when you went away

It's not fair, to deny me

Of the cross I bear that you gave to me

You, you, you oughta know

Playful, fun yet thought-provoking pop-rock songs, reminders that life is complex but life is still good. Songs like Hanson’s “Mmbop” (1997) and Desree’s “You gotta be” (1994)

You have so many relationships in this life

Only one or two will last

You go through all the pain and strife

Then you turn your back and they're gone so fast

Oh, so hold on the ones who really care

In the end they'll be the only ones there

And when you get old and start losing your hair

Can you tell me who will still care?

Mmbop…

In “Mono” we get to see the beginnings of relationships that may last a lifetime. The beauty of this film is that it has potential for so many spin-offs: the main characters in their last year of high school, the main characters in their first year of university, the main characters as adults, the main characters as old men losing their hair, recalling their days as monos…J

One of the characters that stood out for me was the female literature teacher who positively impacted the monos. She challenged them without breaking them, chastised them without belittling them.

Listen as your day unfolds

Challenge what the future holds

Try and keep your head up to the sky

Lovers, they may cause you tears

Go ahead, release your fears

Stand up and be counted

Don't be ashamed to cry (Yes, there was a scene where two monos cried).

You gotta be

You gotta be bad, you gotta be bold, you gotta be wiser

You gotta be hard, you gotta be tough, you gotta be stronger

You gotta be cool, you gotta be calm, you gotta stay together

All I know, all I know, love will save the day

Herald what your mother said

Read the books your father read

Try to solve the puzzles in your own sweet time

Some may have more cash than you

Others take a different view

My oh my, eh, eh, eh

It’s no wonder that the monos respected this literature teacher so much that they…well, you have to watch the movie to find out! J

Satire in Horror Films: The Case of “Witchin” - directed by Christina Diamantara

“Both comedy and horror are often viewed by critics and the general public as “low brow” genres with little social relevance and few redeeming qualities.” - Dr. David Gillota, associate professor of English at University of Wisconsin - Platevlle. 2019.

On October 3rd, 2019, Dr. Gillota participated in a forum that examined “how satire in horror films exposes systemic societal issues.” He provided an analysis of Jordan Peele’s “Get Out” and argued that this film “straddles the line between humor and horror in order to critique systemic racism and expose the hypocrisy of white liberalism.”

It can be argued that Christina Diamantara’s short film “Witchin” does straddle this humor-horror line so as to critique systemic patriarchy and expose the hypocrisy of sexism and misogyn. Pallavi Prasad outlines the difference between these three intertwined concepts in her article “The Difference Between Sexism and Misogyny, and Why It Matters": “If patriarchy is the overarching social organization in which men hold the power, and from which women are largely excluded, then misogyny and sexism are the two drivers that uphold this system. If patriarchy is the state with a capital S, the sexism is the ideology, the legislative pillar….Misogyny, then, is the method. It is both the executive and the judiciary, in that it enforces the ideology and reprimands where there is a breach of law. It is the hostile policing of those women who violate patriarchal norms and expectations, thereby setting a precedent for the cost of feminist transgression.”

In her Director Statement, Christina Diamantar highlights the fact that her film is about “a young idealistic witch, on her quirky-spells-and-pink-glitter-filled quest to find the notorious and elusive Big Dick Energy ingredient…” Although the story is set in “the world of fantasy and make-believe” Christina insists that her short film “is deeply rooted in human reality, and more so by the current social context that first inspired it.”

The Instagram hashtag #bigdickenergy is one of the elements that inspired “Witchin”. Christina finds that “this idea - that your confidence is as big as the size of your penis - is not only perpetuating a toxic interpretation of masculinity, but is also inevitably suggesting that, yet again, confidence is a male thing. I thought it would be funny to use this term as a physical ingredient - and in a way create a satirical metaphor about women who do all the right things, in terms of working towards their goals, only to realize that the  most important step for their success is to find some way to capture the essence of male privilege.”

Christina Diamantar - Director of "Witchin"

In her article titled “Standing Up: What Men Can do to counter systemic sexism in the office”, Liz Elting writes: “With privilege comes power, and there are so many ways you can use that power for good: speak up and call out sexism and misogyny amongst your peers, stand up for and champion women, point out when a woman colleague came up with a great idea (especially when credit is misatrributed to a man), hire and promote women, and the big one I’ll focus on today, opt out of boys’ clubs and fratty workplace culture.”

Here is the trailer for “Witchin” plus two insightful interviews where Christina further expounds on “Witchin” and her overall filmmaking journey and explains more about the secret ingredient BDE.

60 Hour Challenge: A Chat with Cajetan Boy, Producer/Assistant Director of “Light Sleeper”

TEAM NAME: NA KADHALIKA
TITLE: Light Sleeper
LINE OF DIALOGUE: Can you smell that? I don't know what to do anymore.
LINE OF ACTION: A razor is cleaned in water...
DIRECTOR: Caroline Odongo
PRODUCER/ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: Cajetan Boy

ROFFEKE: What were the highlights of the 60 hour challenge?

CAJETAN: Highlights? Everything was a highlight!

ROFFEKE: How was it working with the USIU-A trainees?

CAJETAN: A few challenges here and there but they have come round now. Some really good workers too. Though we did not manage to cover every department.

ROFFEKE: What would you have done differently?

CAJETAN: Had more time and resources - equipment wise.

ROFFEKE: Advice for aspiring 60 hour challenge contestants?

CAJETAN: Teamwork. When you meet an obstacle - Improvise adapt and conquer (stolen motto/quote, but works.). Teamwork. Do your 1 job 100% - don't cross lines. Teamwork. Have fun. Teamwork.

Cajetan Boy is the director of “Banned Band”, the first short film in the 10-short-film series titled “Let it Be Rock”
Below is the link to the 60 hour challenge short film: “Light Sleeper”, directed by Caroline Odongo.

April Fool?

Four months to go...

Sunday was the first of April. And on Sunday I received my very first positive reply from a filmmaker. So I can be forgiven for thinking that Mr. David Hughens , the writer and director of Elvis' Grave , was making an April fool out of me.

It was too good to be true. And so I sent a reply, half-expecting that I would never hear from Mr. Hughens ever again. But surprise, surprise! I am not an April fool!

Afro-Punk?!

A documentary about African-American punks?! I never would have guessed! Thanks to Jack Abok - the guy who introduced me to Nirvana, the guy who came up with the name Kenya Rocks - I am now aware of the Afro-punk movie/movement.

FRUSTRATION!

Excerpt from the message I posted on Kenya Punk

"....Right now I'm busy chasing after American companies, asking for their permission to screen their films. A very frustrating exercise...."