Today’s essay is all about cynicism. By that, I mean a state of mind that is heavy on suspicion, that anticipates negative outcomes even before they have signaled themselves. The cynic has learned not to expect much from life, even when it appears to be offering good fortune. Casablanca (1942) The magic of cynicism is that i t is an easy position to take and defend. Life naturally offers a plentitude of opportunities to be disappointed. It could be said that cynicism is a response to being repeatedly let down in life, and further, that cynicism acts as a coping mechanism. Cyncism in healthy doses is not only valid, it's actually essential for having a proper understanding of reality. It helps to decenter oneself from artificial constructs perpetuated in common storytelling, such as ideas that just because one’s heart is true, one will succeed in all endeavors. Cynicism helps us to guard against the realities of life as well as the unrighteous designs of others...
“But isn’t it time we stopped accepting in film criticism an anti-emotional, phony rationalism which we know to be not just harmful, but absurd, in any other context? Isn’t it time we plucked up our courage and allowed our hearts as well as our heads to go the pictures?” Raymond Durgnat (Films and Feelings) 1971