"The Park is Mine" is a poor man's "Rambo" less the sympathetic character. Like Rambo, Mitch (Tommy Lee Jones) is a Vietnam vet who's adept at killing. Unlike Rambo, Mitch is tilting towards psychopathy and is far less commiserative as a character.
On the flimsiest of pretenses Mitch takes over Central Park. He went from attending a funeral, to reading the dead man's Central Park takeover plan, to acting out said plan. Most people, if they were to read a paper detailing how to takeover public property using bullets and bombs would probably throw it away considering the author is now dead. If they were to also find said ordnance, that's when they'd involve the police. Mitch involved the police; just not in the manner most people would.
Mitch, as we would find out throughout the movie, was equally fed up as his now deceased comrade. He didn't want to hurt anybody, but he wanted to get the world's attention. He certainly did that, but this was a clear case of the ends don't justify the means.
Mitch's message was simple enough: take care of one another. With such a simple and universal message he was able to garner wide support in spite of the methods he used. Sure, he took over the park using land mines and machine guns, but the explosions were just for show and the bullets were blanks. Not that anyone else knew that.
The city brass had a vested interest in stopping Mitch as well as driving him out of the park. The city saw his actions--rightly so--as setting a dangerous precedent. If they allowed him to continue unabated then who would be next and what landmark would be next? Does the next person take over the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Wall Street? And even though Mitch had no intention of harming anyone, the next extremist may not be so scrupulous. And what of the message of the next radical? Will it be as universally accepted?
The reasons for putting a lid on Mitch's crusade are numerous, yet he is the hero--or antihero--in this film. He says that he only wants the park until 9:00 p.m. on Veteran's Day at which time he will give himself up. You know who also said he'd give himself up if his demands were met? David Koresh. He said that if his manifesto was printed for the public, he'd turn himself in. Well, it was printed and we all saw that Waco, Texas compound burned to the ground after he reneged.
Mitch was no David Koresh and he was also no Rambo. Rambo was acting upon his American right to freely move about when he was backed into a corner by a smarmy sheriff. It was then he made the woods of Washington state a killing field. Mitch was just a burnt-out vet who was tired of how he was being treated and how people treated each other. That's very conscientious of you Mitch and it's something worth fighting for, but not all fights require guns.
On the flimsiest of pretenses Mitch takes over Central Park. He went from attending a funeral, to reading the dead man's Central Park takeover plan, to acting out said plan. Most people, if they were to read a paper detailing how to takeover public property using bullets and bombs would probably throw it away considering the author is now dead. If they were to also find said ordnance, that's when they'd involve the police. Mitch involved the police; just not in the manner most people would.
Mitch, as we would find out throughout the movie, was equally fed up as his now deceased comrade. He didn't want to hurt anybody, but he wanted to get the world's attention. He certainly did that, but this was a clear case of the ends don't justify the means.
Mitch's message was simple enough: take care of one another. With such a simple and universal message he was able to garner wide support in spite of the methods he used. Sure, he took over the park using land mines and machine guns, but the explosions were just for show and the bullets were blanks. Not that anyone else knew that.
The city brass had a vested interest in stopping Mitch as well as driving him out of the park. The city saw his actions--rightly so--as setting a dangerous precedent. If they allowed him to continue unabated then who would be next and what landmark would be next? Does the next person take over the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Wall Street? And even though Mitch had no intention of harming anyone, the next extremist may not be so scrupulous. And what of the message of the next radical? Will it be as universally accepted?
The reasons for putting a lid on Mitch's crusade are numerous, yet he is the hero--or antihero--in this film. He says that he only wants the park until 9:00 p.m. on Veteran's Day at which time he will give himself up. You know who also said he'd give himself up if his demands were met? David Koresh. He said that if his manifesto was printed for the public, he'd turn himself in. Well, it was printed and we all saw that Waco, Texas compound burned to the ground after he reneged.
Mitch was no David Koresh and he was also no Rambo. Rambo was acting upon his American right to freely move about when he was backed into a corner by a smarmy sheriff. It was then he made the woods of Washington state a killing field. Mitch was just a burnt-out vet who was tired of how he was being treated and how people treated each other. That's very conscientious of you Mitch and it's something worth fighting for, but not all fights require guns.