What a difference a day makes...yesterday we enjoyed delightful sunshine...
Ok, so it wasn't my idea; Karen pointed that out to me.
She: "Look, isn't that pretty? You should get a shot of that for your blog."
Me: "What for?"
She: "It's beautiful!"
Me: "What is?"
She: "The tree of course!"
Me: "C'mon, it's just a tree..."
She: "So much more!
"See how the shadow of the trunk makes a path through the snow running up the wall illustrating the concept of perspective?
"Then all the branches spread out gracefully across the wall creating depth.
"And finally the real trees from the woods blend together with the shadow tree on the wall forming the top and signifying the illusory union of opposites."
Me: "I knew that."
She: "Then what are you waiting for?"
Me: "Um...I'm waiting for the viscosity of the diffused light to segue more definitively from daytime to evening so the -"
She: "Just do it!"
Me, mumbling: "'Go do this, go do that!' I'm telling you, one of these days..."
She: "What are you mumbling?"
Me: "Nothing, dear! Just on my way to take a picture..."
Did something we don't normally do, and that's watch a movie by bona fide nut case Quentin Tarantino.
It's not only a political thing; I just don't find his subject matter nor his devotion to profanity and cartoon violence in prodigious proportion appealing.
But last night we broke with tradition and cued up...
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| currently burning in hell... |
There's some truth there I believe...the shocking barbarity and perverse evil of those crimes served as an exclamation point at the end of a decade filled to overflowing with rapid and often violent change on many fronts.
As society continued to devolve through the 70's and beyond, it's appropriate in many ways to see that seminal event as the kickoff to much of what followed.
And the movie itself is ok...high production values of course - with a budget of $95 million you oughta be able to pull off a few whizbangs here and there - and many tips o' the hat to iconic music, movies, people and events from that bygone era.
I thought Brad Pitt was especially good as the oxymoronic low key / adrenaline junkie drifting through life, existing simply amidst excess and welcoming danger with nary an uptick in heart rate...
Even DiCaprio -
(taking a much needed break from his climate change preaching tour where he flies around the world in his private jet, massive carbon footprint in tow, instructing the faithful in his "good for thee but not for me" gospel)
- gave a credible turn as a one time star descending into "has been" status at a pace that both befuddles and ages him far too quickly.
And the alternate ending for the Tate-LaBianca murders was a rewarding piece of fiction...it's what we all wished had happened to the despicable Tex Watson...
Watching the Tarantino version of his ending, being ripped to shreds by a pit bull and dispatched by an acid tripping Brad Pitt, is far preferable to the sad reality of the truth.
Why this scum sucking piece of scat - or any of the so called Manson family members for that matter - is still drawing breath today is incomprehensible.
One of the few times I've found myself in wholehearted agreement with QT.
So...final analysis...is this worth 2 hours and 41 minutes of your life?
Meh...probably not.
If you're a history buff and care about seeing Hollywood magic that substitutes DiCaprio in place of McQueen in a scene from "The Great Escape"...
...or seeing Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate watching herself on screen in "The Wrecking Crew" with Dean Martin...
...well then...maybe.
Otherwise, go outside, look all around you at God's creation, and give thanks for the precious, fleeting gift of life.
You'll be happier at the end of that exercise than you will be having spent almost 3 hours knocking around inside QT's skewed vision of the world.
Warning: if you do opt to watch this movie, try not to get any on you. It's messy and it stains.
Currently tip toeing through the tulips as I try to put the final bow on...
I'm at 31,000 words and probably going to bring it in at 35,000 when all the shouting's done.
A little mixed on this one...a lot of it I like...or at least I've enjoyed writing it...but since I've never attempted a coming of age story before I'm still trying to decide how I feel about it.
I think a lot will depend on the ending because in writing as in life, endings truly do matter.
More to come.
And speaking of endings, behold the time draweth nigh.
later, mcm fans...
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