I hate 91% of people who discuss things on online forums, mainly on imdb. But I always read them when I look up a movie, even when I know someone's comments will be really, really dumb. Actually, especially when I know that. But once in a while a thread will start rolling when some anonymous person asks a legitimately stupid question, and people follow up with some great put-downs.
This made me ell oh ell last night:
I love hearing people swear and then apologizing for it immediately afterwards.
Especially when it's a 'hardcore gangsta rapper':
"I'm right here, straight out the hood just like an alley cat
Since everyone's a king, where the fuck your palace at?
Me, I got callus on my hand, I can handle dat
It's no problem, baby, I so got 'em
It's just a victory lap, baby, I'm just joggin'
And I ain't even out of breathe - the motherfuckin' best yet.
Sorry for cussing."
With age we're told more and more how we need to erase high dreams from our radars, or at least compromise what we're dreaming of. They begin with encouragement and end with discouragement. Dreams are one of the few things that are really out of your hands, dependent on yourself and others.
They're something that idealists have in abundance, and 'realists' have in scarcity.
But at either spectrum and every point in between they're something that everyone can connect upon having, as much as one may deny or simplify.
I saw Man On Wire tonight with my girlfriend at Park Lane, and it was incredibly inspiring. Inspiring in a way that isn't specific to any sort of interest, but in just a 'get up and do it' way.
The movie tells the story of Philippe Petit, probably the most famous tightrope walker. At the age of 17 he opened a magazine and stumbled upon the concept art of the World Trade Center. The buildings hadn't been built yet, but his vision was set; his dream was born. He needed to walk between these two buildings.
Why this would enter someone's mind immediately and so positively is a bit puzzling, but the fact that it did with such prominence is something to bat an eye at. Dreams fill up in kids' minds and they're hard to shake off for some; ideas of rock stardom and film directing still latch onto my calves like kids pretending to be koalas. I'm proud of that analogy. What's hardest about dreams like these is that they're so intangible until you actually obtain them, and the only way to obtain them is through believing that they're tangible.
I'm 18 now, a year older than Philippe when his dream hit him, and it still hasn't hit me. I'm waiting and waiting, filling my brain up with more and more glittering dreams, but I'm still not fully inspired. I'm becoming more open to the 'realistic' dreams floating around, but still can't find a fitting one to grab onto.
'til then I'll be waiting for the day to open that magazine and find my World Trade Center.
I hate getting really into an artist and then finding out they died young in such saddening ways. There are so many examples of these people, but I keep stumbling upon three cases which are just depressing.
Marvin Gaye had an incomparable voice, sounded like he couldn't possibly go out of tune. He wrote about love, with love, for love. He was shot at the age of 44 by his father when he tried to stop his parents from fighting.
Marvin Gaye - What's Goin' On/What's Happenin' Brother
Sam Cooke had amazing confidence as a singer because he really had soul. Watch the way he comes up to the mic already singing and then just bursts into the words "I love you" without hesitation. He was shot when he was only 33 by a motel manager.
Sam Cooke - I Love You For Sentimental Reasons
Dennis Wilson was the drummer of The Beach Boys. He brought great energy to every performance and always had a smile when he played live. But not unlike the other Wilson brothers, he had his problems. He became an alcoholic early on and after many years with the band his will to live broke down. In 1983, age 39, he drowned. That day he was quoted as saying "I'm lonesome. I'm lonesome all the time".
Dennis Wilson - Thoughts of You
Yet people like Ozzy Osbourne and Axl Rose still manage to keep themselves alive. Siiigh.
Time for a classic.
David Bowie is an all-around amazing guy. This is obvious. He really deserves a full on, well made biopic on him, and not just this horrible, horrible movie.
Earlier tonight his song China Girl appeared in my head and wouldn't stop playing. So I listened, and it's still stuck there. I found out though, that originally it was released by Iggy Pop years prior, but just wasn't really anything special.
What warms my heart about the whole thing behind this song, the reason for this post, is that years after Iggy Pop's release, he was bad into drugs, his career was disintegrating (more than it was before), and he was close to bankruptcy. His life was so much in the gutter that his chum, David Bowie, couldn't stand around and watch. He basically told him to clean up, and to help Iggy out he'd record China Girl and give him the royalties to that song. What a strangely hospitable act for a rock 'n' roll star. Only Bowie...
It's especially messed up when you've got Ziggy Stardust telling you your life is getting out of control.
David Bowie - China Girl
