Now Voyager
A classic Ugly Duckling/Cinderella story starring Bette Davis. Some fun facts from TCM: when Warner Bros first got rights to make the movie, they announced some other actress to play the lead; but Davis, who was Warner Bros' biggest star at the time, made hell on earth until they gave the part to her. She also wanted them to throw out the musical score when she saw the first screening, because she felt it upstaged her performance. However, the director resisted, and the music went on to win an Oscar.
I admire Davis' total non-toolishness. There once was a time, a very long time ago, when I also had a bit of a knack for getting my way, by throwing fits and/or diregarding everyone else, but those days are long gone. I was thinking that I should try to cultivate that ability again. It's the only way I'll ever get anywhere in life and enjoy any kind of success...well, that or act like a tool, but I already know I don't have the stomach for the latter. For the last ten years or so, my method was to work hard and be obedient and deliver quiet quality and treat everyone with fairness and respect, but I suspect that doesn't work anymore. The adult world is more laissez faire than the well-ordered school world, so it's more of a dog-eat-dog thing. You can't get your way unless you raise hell or lick buttholes.
Anyways. I wish I could say more about Now Voyager, but I missed about an hour of it because I had to go pick up my phone which I lost. But I watched the last 20 minutes, and it made me think that I didn't miss much. Bette Davis plays Charlotte, a frumpy spinster who gets therapied into a beautiful swan, then she goes on a cruise to reacclimatize herself with the world. Naturally she falls in love on that cruise. Too bad the man is married, with two daughters. But it turns out his wife is a beast, and her cruelty to the daughter Tina is a lot like Charlotte's mother's cruelty to Charlotte. Yada yada yada, Charlotte loves Tina like a daughter, which makes her romance with the dad a picturesque love story.
When I saw that I thought, "Hm. Not buying it." I don't care how much Hollywood whitewashes it, or how beautiful the people are who play these characters. I feel I will never find it romantic to fall in love with either man or woman who's been knocked up before. By the time you have a kid, it's time to grow up and stop acting like a teenager.
I admire Davis' total non-toolishness. There once was a time, a very long time ago, when I also had a bit of a knack for getting my way, by throwing fits and/or diregarding everyone else, but those days are long gone. I was thinking that I should try to cultivate that ability again. It's the only way I'll ever get anywhere in life and enjoy any kind of success...well, that or act like a tool, but I already know I don't have the stomach for the latter. For the last ten years or so, my method was to work hard and be obedient and deliver quiet quality and treat everyone with fairness and respect, but I suspect that doesn't work anymore. The adult world is more laissez faire than the well-ordered school world, so it's more of a dog-eat-dog thing. You can't get your way unless you raise hell or lick buttholes.
Anyways. I wish I could say more about Now Voyager, but I missed about an hour of it because I had to go pick up my phone which I lost. But I watched the last 20 minutes, and it made me think that I didn't miss much. Bette Davis plays Charlotte, a frumpy spinster who gets therapied into a beautiful swan, then she goes on a cruise to reacclimatize herself with the world. Naturally she falls in love on that cruise. Too bad the man is married, with two daughters. But it turns out his wife is a beast, and her cruelty to the daughter Tina is a lot like Charlotte's mother's cruelty to Charlotte. Yada yada yada, Charlotte loves Tina like a daughter, which makes her romance with the dad a picturesque love story.
When I saw that I thought, "Hm. Not buying it." I don't care how much Hollywood whitewashes it, or how beautiful the people are who play these characters. I feel I will never find it romantic to fall in love with either man or woman who's been knocked up before. By the time you have a kid, it's time to grow up and stop acting like a teenager.
posted by Rex at 5:16 PM
1 Comments:
hey rex, i wanted to chat with you on AIM, but my internet is being a tool - a useless, grumpy, finicky tool. i'll be back in two weeks.
-HDG
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