It's All Happening

So I was watching The Simpsons, and Lisa walked into the kitchen while Marge was squeezing ketchup out of packets and into a bottle. She said, “This is how I save money on ketchup and mustard.” Lisa asked, “Do you do it with relish?” and Marge responded, “No, I’m actually kind of embarrassed about it.” It was amazing, and I wanted to share it with you.

I also watched Amistad today. I love that movie. A lot of people complain about how it distorts the historical accuracy (my response: watch a documentary) or point out that the characters are a bit one-dimensional (my response: the characters are passionate – they are dealing with controversial issues about which they have strong opinions. How do you behave when you have a true passion? Are you not a little one-dimensional, seeking only your goal, to put your point across regardless of what anyone else may say, however reasoned or not they may be? Not one-dimensional. Impassioned.) I don’t wholly disagree with these arguments, I just don’t really care about them. Emotional reaction is far more important than depth, though I feel this movie has both. Anyway, all I really want to bring up is the scene when one of the African prisoners explains to Cinque, the sort of leader of the prisoners, about Jesus’ story based on pictures in a Bible. He explained that he was put on trial and put to death. Cinque said, “He must have done something.” But the one with the Bible asked, “Why? What have we done?” This is a good point given the circumstances, but this is what it made me think: Christ was innocent, but he lost his trial (as the prisoners’ lawyer, Baldwin, pointed out earlier in the film). We are guilty, but we win ours. He was punished for no reason; we are rewarded for no reason. It doesn’t make sense, but it’s true. Not a particularly original thought or realization, I know, but I like the legal imagery.

Anyway, while I’m talking about movies, I want to talk about some others. I watch Psycho for the first time last night. It was amazing. It takes just a few minutes to get into the movie, but once you’re in it, you can’t get out, and when the woman, Marion Crane, gets to the Bates Motel and we get to see Norman Bates, you just can’t take your eyes off him. He’s absolutely fascinating, as is Marion. The way his hand hesitates over the keys, wondering whether he should give her a normal cabin, or the one with the peephole from his office. The way she reacts so normally to his hobby – taxidermy. The way he smiles through his stuttering. The way she smiles when she steps into the shower. It’s all so utterly enthralling - brilliant performances, and a patience in the direction that keeps the tension building until you find yourself begging for some kind of release, something to tell us what’s going on (if you think Lost teases and taunts you, just wait until you see this). I won’t spoil the movie for you, because it is a Hitchcock thriller, and that means there are some twists involved. My only question is whether this film, given it’s thriller/mystery nature, will be as good the second time around. A movie’s watchability is a big deal to me – if it’s not as good the second or third time around, odds are it won’t remain a favorite of mine for long, and that is a major problem with thrillers. Once you know what’s going to happen, is it as good the next time it occurs. This is my problem with movies like The Usual Suspects, The Sixth Sense, Memento. Watch it once to see what happens, watch it again to see how it happened (and why you didn’t see it coming). Watch it a third time, and well, what’s the point? I have a feeling, though, that this one will stick with me for a good long while. I don’t know why I’ve waited this long to start watching Hitchcock, but I’m looking forward to whatever I see next (probably North by Northwest).

I love movies. Scratch that. I love good movies, captivating movies, enthralling movies, intriquing movies. Movies that demand something from you, some kind of personal investment, be it simply your eyes so that you can’t move them from the screen, or your mind, challenging your thoughts, forcing you to reason and form opinions about the actions, or perhaps even issues outside the realm of the film. Or be it your heart so that you want so sincerely and passionately for something good to happen to a character that, odd as it sounds, you come to love. I want to give you some more examples of movies that do this for me. (Note: I am not necessarily saying that these are the best films ever, or even that they would make a list of my favorite movies ever, only that they illicit strong emotions and reactions, at least from me.)

Cinderella Man – Okay, this movie is a little predictable. It’s about a boxer during the Great Depression who needs to make a comeback so that his family can eat. You know what is going to happen, you know what has to happen in order for the world to keep revolving. But for some reason, you convince yourself that it might not. I found myself cheering for the main character at least as hard as I cheer for our Tar Heels, though less vocally, because I wanted so much for him to win, for the bad guy to lose, and for his family to be alright. And the silence before the announcement was so unbearable I wanted to jump up and yell, “Just tell us already!” (Fortunately, I was able to restrain myself.) My point is that this movie is so delicately put together, and the performance by Russell Crowe so sincere, that I came to love him and his family and his trainer (Paul Giamatti, the guy who should have won George Clooney’s Oscar), and I simply couldn’t imagine what would happen if things didn’t turn out okay for them. Really powerful stuff.

The Talented Mr. Ripley – What a fascinating character portrait. Matt Damon, who never fails to impress me, play Tom Ripley, a sociopathic, (possibly homosexual?), identity-stealing murderer. But he’s kind of sweet. You know, in a kind of an endearing, albeit creepy, way. Conflicted emotions on the part of the viewer. You know he’s bad, possibly evil, probably mentally insane, and guilty. But when he’s almost caught, I didn’t want him to get caught. The movie sets him up as the protagonist (or at least not the antagonist). He’s the main character, and you can understand where he’s coming from. You can almost relate with him. Almost. Anyway, I won’t forget when I realized that I was pulling for him to get away with it and I stopped myself and said, “Wait, you fool! He’s not right in the head and he’s done bad things! He should get caught so that justice can be served!” But then I stopped myself again and retorted (to myself), “Aw, come on. He’s just lonely, he wanted to be somebody. Can’t we all comprehend that a little bit? He messed up, sure, but maybe now he’ll leave everyone alone.” It was totally bizarre. Check it out, it’s totally captivating.

Nashville – An 1975 Robert Altman movie that is basically about a bunch of people trying to make it big in Nashville. I doubt that many people in my generation would enjoy this movie, although it is widely considered to be among the greatest American films. I don’t think there are many aspects of American life that are not represented here. There is one scene that totally messes with my mind. A singer, Tom, is performing a song in a club. There are three women in the club who all think he is singing specifically to her. One, Mary, is in a music group with him (except he recently quit the band without notice). Another, Opal, is a strange bird from the BBC doing a piece on Nashville who shared a night with Tom and thinks he may be “the one.” The third is Linnea (magnificent nuance from Lily Tomlin). This is the woman he is actually singing to (or so we are led to believe). She is married, and against better judgment decided to come to see him at the club after he called her house a few times. It is implied, but never made certain that they have a history. Before she goes to see him, and before he starts singing, she is unsure of why she is there, why she is giving in, perhaps doesn’t even truly want to be there. But then he starts his song, and she gives in (this would be the nuance I mentioned). Her face, her eyes, her breathing, it all changes, but only slightly, and she prepares herself to enter his world, however sinful, however much she may regret it.

Watching this scene creates more of the conflicting emotions I mentioned in The Talented Mr. Ripley. You know that everything about Tom is wrong – his lifestyle, the way he is using these women, the way he ignores people – he’s totally selfish. But man, his music and his passion, it’s not hard to see why the women are after him, why they want to believe he loves only them. And as a guy, honestly, it’s hard not to feel just a tinge of jealousy and awe. I mean, it’s kind of impressive to be able to do that to women without really even trying. So yeah. Why do I like this movie? Part of it is the whole movie, and I can’t really explain that. Part of it is in the scenes like this, where there is just so much more going on than a guy on stage singing a song and people in seats listening. So much more.

Almost Famous – This one would go on a list of my favorite movies ever because it is my favorite movie ever. I’m not sure why, but it is. It never bores you – it is constantly entertaining. In case you don’t know, it’s about a 15-year-old kid who gets a job writing for Rolling Stone magazine (by lying to them over the phone about his age) – his assignment is to write about his favorite band, Stillwater (modeled primarily after The Allman Brothers Band). He’s basically just a sweet kid who is in no way prepared to enter the rock and roll world of “compromised values and diminished brain cells.” But he makes it work with the help of some good folks along the way, namely Penny Lane (Kate Hudson, who finds a way to be freaking hot and stunningly beautiful at the same time – not an easy task). Something about the music, the relationships, the band antics, it’s all so cool! And watching the kid find a way to stay objective in his writing about people he grows to love is at times heart-warming and at other times heart-breaking. It’s a crazy cool fun wild ride, and they take you right along with them. It’s a great adventure.

Anyway, I’m not sure why these particular movies have been on my mind lately, but I love them and many more. Please let me know what you think of them, any of the ones I mentioned. I am hoping to have a few mass screening of some movies next year, though not necessarily the ones I mentioned. At least Almost Famous, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, Schindler’s List, and Gandhi (these other four are equally, and truthfully even more amazing, and even more impressive due to their epic nature) will be among them, I hope.

That’s it for now.

(Thanks Jonathan.)

Peace. Much love. It’s all happening.