The foremost understanding of beauty is the physical beauty attached to the fairer sex, to the fairer;natural composition is often accentuated and the person takes on an attractive allure. Beauty does lies deeper than the folds of the skin and the depth or lack of substance has been a topic of debate when it comes to having qualities that would endure the test of time, qualities that could set an example for others to learn what it is to be an integral part of society. So many wait for the next day to see through the sham of superficial beauty only to find that the things they held as beautiful have lost their meaning. There is change in the way we see the world too.

The beauty of an unspoken word is still something of an anomaly in the west, I think. Granted books on Eastern thought processes have been around on the market for decades, people still worship the material world more on the west  and spend little time thinking about living in the moment. How beautiful that would be if one could be the author of his own life by being successful at shutting out the static of unproductive discourse and abrasive conversationalists. If one could also appreciate his own being without having to look for external comforts all the time, wouldn’t that be beautiful too.

Beauty thrives in places that are overlooked, in the blade of grass that is a welcome site on a torrid plain where rain comes rarely or when a barren woman smiles because she can now conceive there are events that please to such an extent that we feel complemented, that the ordinary or worn face takes on a fresh glow. This could  inspire the poet or painter to write on or paint  the contrasts between the ugly and pleasant. If the smile could remain perhaps the beauty of its sponataneity would be lost so there is a special appeal to the fleeting moment of attracting attention.

Image via Wikipedia (Colin Firth at the IIFA awards in 2007 where he was an MD for Oxfam)

Ben Chaplin’s Basil Hallward is the man charged with capturing Dorian’s good looks in a portrait which will be the central piece of artistic work at the young man’s expansive London home. This is where things become more intriguing. It soon becomes apparent that the painting is much more than just a pictorial representations of our ‘hero’ and, when Dorian abandons his good morals in favour of a more decadent existence, it appears on the face of it (his face anyway) that he has found the key to unlocking the fountain of youth and agelessness. Dorian, operating as Lord Henry’s existential protégé, proceeds to take advantage of his own explosive sex appeal, leaving a trail of destruction and broken hearts in his wake. His actions bring to mind the words of another legendary writer (Michael Jackson): “People always told me, be careful what you do, don’t go around breaking young girls’ hearts” (from Billie Jean). A morality tale which lacks real spark but is occasionally enjoyable. The acting is passable.

Image via Wikipedia (The Picture of Dorian Gray by Ivan Albright, 1943)

4/10