Saturday, June 29, 2013
Canadian Apocalypse
Seth Rogan, Jay Baruchel, and Michael Cera all figure prominently in the new film This Is The End. Aside from being Hollywood stars, all three are also Canadians. The film is mad, bad, and dangerous to know, in the best Byronian sense. Ostensibly, it is about the apocalypse and the end of days. However, the film is actually about something much more mundane. This Is The End is a parable about the cultural dangers that befall Canadians who venture south seeking fame, fortune, and the Beverly Hills lifestyle. In the film, Baruchel represents resistance to assimilation into the Hollywood Borg, Michael Cera plays a Canadian who has been completely absorbed into the stereotypical lifestyle Baruchel resists, and Rogan is situated between the two extremes, though, much to Baruchel's consternation, he is clearly heading towards full Yankification. Canadians Jim Carrey, Mike Myers, Ellen Page, Shenae Grimes, Ryan Reynolds, Will Arnett, Dan Ackroyd, Kim Cattrall, Elisha Cuthbert, Corey Haim, Rick Moranis, and Ryan Gosling may understand this better than most.