Having spent several hours reading excellent diaries today, I must say that Daily Kos is the best blog on the internet. It is a theater without the cost of admission. Political theater has become so predictable. I’ve decided there’s nothing I can add to the discussion. Please allow me a flight of fantasy.
My love of theater began in my high school years. I would walk 3 miles, each way, regardless of the season, to watch the latest flicks. While some of my generation considered the theater a place for a “make out session”, my weekly trips were an escape from boredom. I've had a job since the age of 16. My parents never gave me a penny to waste on a work of fiction.
I came to escape boredom. I stayed to learn about life outside my bubble. My bubble, your bubble, sometimes a whole society trapped in a bubble of dishonesty about reality. It is a journey that continues today. If a movie, or documentary, is boring, has no message, does not capture my mind, does not connect to my emotions, it deserves a fail rating.
It is not only possible, but desirable, to connect with an audience. I adore George Lukas. He was creative in communicating a morality paradigm, with the requisite villain and hero, both with flaws. Mr. Lukas did not make me cry. He reminded me of my upbringing, “stiff upper lip”, or “tears are a sign of weakness”.
Perhaps Mr. Lukas intended "Star Wars" as a fight for the soul of humanity. The biblical, philosophical, or metaphorical triumph of perceived good over evil. It's a guy movie.
In my family, there was no “male superiority meme”. This is probably a throw back to the days before, and during, the American Revolution when women were wives, mothers, caregivers, and crucial to the survival of a family. When men went off to war, it was a mother who must take on the responsibility of farming, hunting and care of the children.
Forgive me, I do digress. “V for Vendetta”, I watched it again today. As always, I was in tears during, and at the finis. It reminds me of so many tragedies that could be avoided.
The script, the directing, acting, and message are so creative. While I abhor all violence, the death of V breaks my heart. The transformation by fire (cruelty) that Evie is subjected to is well played by Natalie Portman, a great actor.
V was not the first movie to move me to tears. (This is significant as mentioned previously; I was raised in a “tough guys and girls don’t cry” generation.) The first was “Backstreet”, the female lead was Susan Hayward as Rae. Critics panned the movie, way past her time, over acting, poor remake of a classic, and weepy. I cried for the wife, and the mistress, not so much for the creepy husband. (Teenagers love the “Twilight” Series; it’s a phase of passage.)
It was 30 years later that another film brought me to tears, “Radio Flyer”. A story of child abuse that continues today, we must protect our most precious asset, our children.
Without comment, please add “Pan’s Labyrinth”, “Sophie’s Choice” and “Everything is Illuminated” to my trail of tears.
For balance, I will always remember the Hollywood that made me laugh. There are so many: Larry David, Steve Martin, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Stephen King (an odd choice?).
There are many reasons to say hurray to Hollywood.