18 / The Merchant of Venice, Shylock & Malcolm Turnbull
I had spent quite some time on Sunday reading about Malcolm Turnbull and his efforts to self-destruct (quite possibly successfully too). Then I interrupted and went to see The Merchant of Venice, easily the best movie I’ve seen all year. Al Pacino as Shylock needs to be seen to be believed, words don’t do his performance justice. Anyway, when I got back I returned to Mr Turnbull.
It struck me just how many similarities there were between Shylock and Turnbull. Both rich, both brilliant, both unrelenting in demanding their pound of flesh from their adversary, both insisting they just wanted the law upheld, both showing no mercy, both falling on their sword when the very same law was turned against them … well, Turnbull hasn’t fallen yet, but he will. He’ll be opposition leader until someone better is found, someone with judgment and principles. He will never take the coalition to an election, let alone win it.
David Marr, Phillip Coorey, Annabel Crabb, Peter Hartcher and William Shakespeare … it was a good Sunday.