I was watching Margot at The Wedding, by Noah Baumbach, and it was exactly how I had been afraid The Squid and The Whale would be like (but wasn't): Unlikable people yelling and screaming, captured by handheld cameras in unlit rooms, and the film shows the truth of how people act and behave, but why would I want to watch this? At the same time I was reading / looking at the pictures in the third Flash Gordon collection by Titan Books, where Flash Gordon and Dale Arden dont quarrel, don't fuck or get drunk, or even scratch their noses; it's an idealized love affair that has nothing to do with reality. And I know those two things can't really be compared, but I woke up this morning thinking that if I had to choose between the two, between the truth and the lie in things I watch or read, in most cases I'd choose the lie.
I absolutely agree. And it happens in every art form, but especially in movies. I hate it when I go to the cinema and the only thing I see is life as it is, be it "good" or "bad". I already have life. I want movies! There always has to be that something else, the "lie", in them. For what would become of art if there were only life in it? I guess that's why I like Henri Rousseau so much.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post. And thanks to @librosfera again for the link to this page.
Nothing is simply black or white, and I can think of several exceptions: I'd rather read Raymond Carver than a James Bond novel. But in movies, do I want to watch Million Dollar Baby or do I want to watch Some Like It Hot? I want to watch Some Like It Hot!
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