Haruki Murakami
The intimate and personal
folded, nestled, and hidden within an ambitious, otherworldly, and strange
vision: this is a trend that has become increasingly prominent across the arts
recently, manifested in certain special, often divisive works. Among them I’d
count, from cinema, Terrence Malick’s TheTree of Life and the upcoming cult classics-in-the-making Cloud Atlas and Leos Carax’s Holy Motors, and from literature the
novels of David Mitchell and Mark Z. Danielewski. Within this unique category,
Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84 must surely
stand out as nothing short of emblematic, so frequently does it threaten to
throw off readers not used to his cool, perfected fusion of mundane
everydayness with bizarre wonders.
But those who cling on tight
and enjoy the ride through a parallel universe containing two moons, a
secretive cult, and tiny magical beings called the Little People will probably
be surprised to discover at its core a deeply moving story of two searching souls
trying to find one another after a twenty-year gap. It is this unabashedly
romantic narrative thread, so beautifully presented and explored by the author,
that justifies and enhances all the puzzling oddities that surround and, in
their discordant manner, compliment it. Relatability and emotional resonance
will continue to be the crucial elements within wild and daunting epics like 1Q84 and Cloud Atlas; where the adventure lies for audiences is in the
heights that brave artists like Murakami, Mitchell, and Carax will continue to
strive for and the refreshing new directions from which they will approach
simple human truths and experiences.
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