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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The Truth About Remy

Posted by on Tue, Aug 11, 2009 at 11:45 AM

My last note on the wonderful movie Ratatouille:

2007_ratatouille_002-1.jpg

Remy The Great Self-hater: Because Remy the rat in Ratatouille loves humans, loves their religion of cleanliness, their sensitivity to beauty, their ability to prepare exquisite dishes—because he loves the things that humans most love about themselves, he hates what he is, a rat. And because he hates rats, he hates himself. What he wants to be is what hates him the most: a human being. And a rat that loves humans (the lovers of God’s cleanliness) is a rat that hates itself in the most radical way. This is the movie’s dark conclusion: Remy is only lovable because he does not love himself.

 

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You_Gotta_Be_Kidding_Me 1
That's how it is with the French... (at best).
Posted by You_Gotta_Be_Kidding_Me on August 11, 2009 at 11:33 AM
2
Sort of how gay men must hate themselves because they hate what most men love? And a gay man who must therefore hate himself in the most radical way because he wants to be what he is not, because all men are or should be attracted to women [as nature intended it]?
Or, maybe, there is such a thing as a clean rat, and Remy loves himself knowing what he is--it just isn't common. Remy is not loveable because he hates himself, he is loveable because he loves himself despite the odds.
Posted by try again on August 11, 2009 at 11:42 AM
Cato the Younger Younger 3
Charles you just explained yourself perfectly!
Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on August 11, 2009 at 11:44 AM
givesgoodemail 4
Psychoanalyzing an anthropomorphized cartoon character, Charles? C'mon. You can do better than that.

"Remy is not loveable because he hates himself, he is loveable because he loves himself despite the odds."
Yes.
Posted by givesgoodemail http://www.givesgoodemail.com on August 11, 2009 at 11:51 AM
5
because he loves the things that humans most love about themselves, he hates what he is, a rat.


Only if you take an essentialist view of what it means to be a rat. Once you accept that the rat is capable of speech and human-like reasoning that complicates a generalizable species tendency toward certain biological imperatives, he becomes simply an individual. So his "non-rat" behavior is just the behavior of an individual acting outside a standard deviation, rather than a form of actual self-hatred.
Posted by Judah http://www.suoxi.net on August 11, 2009 at 11:58 AM
6
Are you serious? Go have another drink, Mudede.
Posted by My Sphincter Says What? on August 11, 2009 at 12:07 PM
heywhatsit!? 7
I like rats.
Posted by heywhatsit!? on August 11, 2009 at 12:09 PM
darthvegan 8
Or maybe....he's a rat who wants to be more than a rat. You know, a frakking metaphor for the longing a lot of humans feel. We know there's more to life than the tedious day-to-day crap we encounter and the roles we are expected to play. Remy is all about stepping out from what's expected leaping up to something greater. It's not self-hatred, but being fearless because he thinks he can be anything he wants. He loves his rat family (who come to his aid at the end of the film) and he's enchanted by being among humans. This movie isn't about hatred, it's all about achieving your dreams...and that greatness can come from anywhere.

Jeez, I bet you're fun at parties, too, Charles.
Posted by darthvegan on August 11, 2009 at 12:11 PM
Roscoe 9
The only thing missing from RATATOUILLE was a plane crash. That would have made it really hilarious!
Posted by Roscoe on August 11, 2009 at 12:11 PM
Loveschild 10
For his own mental and emotional well being I hope this is not some form of introspective psychoanalysis on the part of Mr Mudede. Sadly given his latest posts I wouldn't doubt that it is.
Posted by Loveschild http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/articles/responding_to_haiti_earthquake/ on August 11, 2009 at 12:12 PM
11
Don't let Charles see Up. I don't think he could recover from the talking dogs.
Posted by keshmeshi on August 11, 2009 at 12:14 PM
reverend dr dj riz 12
well despite what some of think, charles really is fun at parties..he's git the greatest laugh. but you know what i'd bet to be a real drag ? chumming it up with loveschild at a vbs picnic...
Posted by reverend dr dj riz on August 11, 2009 at 12:18 PM
Dougsf 13
I really liked Charles' original review of Ratatouille. I hated the movie still, but for other reasons.
Posted by Dougsf on August 11, 2009 at 12:25 PM
14
Oddly, this reminds me of Johnathan Livingston Seagull.
Posted by Westside forever on August 11, 2009 at 12:34 PM
15
Vachement dit.
Posted by PC on August 11, 2009 at 12:47 PM
16
Also, we don't love Charles because he does love himself.
Posted by butterw on August 11, 2009 at 4:07 PM
17
Charles, I call over-analyzed bullshit that misses the point.

As shown in the film, food isn't just for people, it's for every being that has taste. There is nothing human-centric about food, any more than there is anything male centric about pants. Are we to say that women who don't love dresses hate being women, or are we to say that there is something about pants (the fit, the convenience, etc.) that certain women prefer over dresses?

Charles, you are the one kept in the straitjacket of conformity. Only one in thrall to conformity could fail to recognize things for what they are, and instead require them to be what society has made them.

Is a molotov cocktail a tool of revolt, a tool of the fascist government (for being an excuse to arrest people), or just a combination of fabric, gasoline and a bottle? Answer: It is what it is, and only blind people insist on making it something else.
Posted by spudbeach on August 11, 2009 at 6:00 PM
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