Seasons Greetings
profound here you aint gonna find it (skip jail, go
straight to PBS). During the last year, I've had my
It is a melancholy of mine own, compounded of many trials and tribulations, near hits, near misses,
simples, extracted from many objects, and indeed the agonies and ecstasies, and bad hair days. Despite
sundry contemplation of my travels, which, by often the glittering doom, on most days I managed to
rumination, wraps me in a most humorous sadness. get out of bed, shake off the shards of outrageous
fortunes, and boldly venture to I know where not.
Shakespeare As Woody Allen sagely observed, eighty percent of
life is just showing up. Amen.
...Rosebud A New Career: Part II
A
s the years pile upon the years, we find
L
ast year, I reported on my lack of success in
ourselves searching for the hidden narra- finding a job in computer graphics. Alas,
tive of our lives. We assume our lives pre- consistency is the hobgoblin of my tortured
destined, following an arc that has a beginning, career. Last spring, I expected that a temporary
middle, and end. And, if we search deep enough, job as a desktop publisher at Lesley College
long enough, we will find a divine purpose, an would lead to a permanent position. It did not. I
inherent logic that naturally underlies the seem- did, however, realize my life ambition by making
ingly anarchic quality of our it to the Ivy League. My next
daily lives. Ah! There was a rea- temp job brought me to
son that my lover dumped me Harvard University where I
back in 1982 or why my boss
spent the next four months
fired me back in 1989. If it was-
catching up on long neglected
n't for this cosmic chain reac-
correspondence and beginning
tion I wouldn't be here, where I
work on a screenplay. There is
am right now, in this, the best
a saying among us temps:
of all possible worlds! I call this
they pretend to pay and we
the It's A Wonderful Life syn- pretend to work. I eventually
drome, a condition brought on graduated from Harvard. Last
by the one to many viewings of
month, I was hired as a sub-
that perennial holiday classic.
stitute teacher in an Adult
The truth of the matter is less
Education program in a com-
flattering to our egos which munity center at a public
pretty much assumes that the housing project. I am teaching
world was created in our divine welfare mothers who are work-
image. This is confirmed by the ing towards obtaining their
fact that no one really thinks G.E.D.s. As I write this, it is
they are going to die. Everyone not clear if this will turn into
thinks they are the one excep- a permanent position. I have
tion to this cosmic reality, which
mixed feelings about the work
is, of course, nature's ultimate
and whether or not I am best suited to it. Time
bad joke to man's vanity. Despite our blabbering will tell.
to the contrary, we really don't control our des-
tinies (ask that of any poor sob caught under the Hair Lies
relentless guillotine of nature, standing at ground
V
zero Hiroshima, or simply born in the wrong zip icious rumors have been circulating by various
code). As the oft quoted Thomas Hobbes noted, members of my immediate family that I am fol-
life is nasty, brutish and short. lickly challenged. My lawyers have advised me to
urge all such rumor mongers to desist and decease or I
As for myself, I subscribe to the chaos theory of will initiate prompt legal action. It is true an unflattering
life. Or to quote the other worldly philosopher light will tend to highlight my blond hair giving it a visi-
Forest Gump: Shit Happens. This long winded ble shine not unlike a bald palette. Hear me today,
prelude to this, my fourth annual Holiday letter, believe me tomorrow: all hairs are firmly entrenched.
is to simply say if you are looking for something They will not retreat, they will not surrender.
night stared upwards in amazement at the brilliant zenith
of a million stars normally obscured to us city dwellers by
Dead Cat Walking the lights of Boston. In October, my good friend Prabakar
and I made a pilgrimage to western Massachusetts to
admire the magnificent splendor of the fall foliage in it's
final death throes. Winter approaches. I go into hiberna-
tion.
Clinton's Troubles: An Editorial
W
hile Northern Ireland has had it's "troubles" they
pale in comparison to the troubles of Bill Clinton
in 1998. Where is H.L. Mencken when we need
him? The American booboisie and their brethren of right
wing fundamentalists, sexual hypocrites, and disgruntled
Clinton-haters were in full display this past year aiming to
dethrone the usurper through charges of sexual malfea-
T
wo months ago I thought I would be writing an obituary
to my longtime companion of sixteen years, or, as other sance. While Clinton undoubtedly exhibits the emotional
know him, Theo the cat (a/k/a Thelonious Monk). Last maturity of a sixteen year old adolescent boy in heat and
October, I could tell something was seriously wrong with Mr. certainly has stained (uh-hem) his office, he has hurt no
T. A visit to the vet (and a $1,000 hospital stay-over) indicated one but himself. High crimes and misdemeanors? Perhaps
his kidneys were shot, that is, they could no longer properly we should better reserve our righteous indignation to
filter his waste products. There was a cure but the cure was crimes against humanity - the napalming of civilians dur-
possibly worse than the disease. The prescribed treatment was ing the Viet Nam War (Johnson); the illegal war against
a daily administration of saline solution, subcutaneously the Nicaraguan people in the 1980s (Reagan); the subver-
(under the skin). After two weeks of wrestling Theo to the sion of democracy by Richard Nixon in the 1972 presiden-
ground to administer this treatment, I was ready to throw in tial elections. What the Washington pontificators and belt-
the towel. Theo's condition worsened. And then, a guardian way hacks didn't count on in their holy crusade against
angel stepped in. Laura, a friend of a friend, a friend to all Clinton was the common sense of the American public.
creatures great and small, and probable vet student this fall, The tail may wag the dog from time to time but this time
stepped in to lend a hand. Theo recovered his health. The the dog bit back on the tail mighty hard sending
patient is doing well and treatment has reverted to several Congressional Republicans fleeing for their political lives
times a week. Theo's disease is ultimately terminal (but so is in 1998 (see Brer Rabbit).
life) but we hope that we may enjoy his company for several
more years.
Millennium Notes
Abroad At Home • As we approach the millennium, I pose a few ques-
tions.
I
t was a quiet year. As in previous years my sallies from
home were to the near New England hinterlands. • Do we party like its 1999?
However, the concept of traveling became more feasible
with the purchase of a used Toyota Celica. My good friend • If Christ was born in 4 B.C. (as scholars now common-
Art sold me his Celica. He made me an offer I couldn't ly believe) did the Armageddon pass us by unnoticed?
refuse. At a 160,000 miles its anyone's guess how long How can Christ be born before Christ? Do we need to
these wheels will last but I plan to enjoy the ride while I rewind our clocks?
can. In July, I traveled to Vermont's Bread and Puppet
Resurrection Circus, where over 100,000 hippies and neo- • When does the millennium begin: New Years Eve 1999
hippies converged for one weekend in a rural facsimile of or New Years Eve 2000?
1960s Haight- Ashbury. There, audiences were treated to
beautifully realized puppet theater and spectacular • What's Y2K? A millennium bug or a sexual lubricant?
pageantry that would have made Barnum and Bailey
proud. While much of the theater was grounded in leftist • How do you spell millennium:
politics (fine) and new age sentimentality (ugh) the large a) millenium
scale pageants reminded me of some bizarre combination b) milennium
of Hitler youth rallies and pagan tribal rites rife with c) millineum
Jungian undertones. d) millennyum
e) I don't care
In August, I made a quick sortie up to Portland, Maine, a
small gem of a city two hours north of Boston. The follow-
ing September, I returned to Nantucket to bicycle with the
Appalachian Mountain Club. By late September the
crowds clear Nantucket and leave the besotted beaches to
the assorted Doppelgangers and elderly matrons (eh
what?). By day we circumnavigated the island and by
Cinemania
I must confess my one true obsession in life: the cinema. Old films, new films, American,
foreign, comedies, dramas, science fiction, horror. Even bad films (so bad they're good).
Tarrantino, Fellini, Hitchcock, Welles, Kubrick, even Ed Wood (Plan 9 From Outer Space).
I'm an addict. I can't help myself. I go to the movies almost every week. I read the film sec-
tion of the newspaper like other men read the sports pages. I eagerly anticipate the open-
ing of a film six months prior to its release. I love conversing about film, and so, to satisfy
my itch, I created my own film discussion group this past year. I even hosted an Academy
Awards party. I've finally taken my obsession to the ultimate end. I'm now writing a film
script (either the ultimate vanity or insanity - take your pick). Call me mad if you will, call
me crazy (like a fox) but please call me if you'd like to go out to the movies (617-522-
5852).
Several friends suggested I should write movie reviews. Since the New York Times and the
Boston Globe already have those positions filled, I thought I'd do the next best thing -
write capsule reviews of my top ten list, in this, my holiday letter. First an addendum to
my 1997 list. Because I compose this letter in early December, I am unable to comment
on films released in the latter half of December. This is a serious omission because some
quality films are released during the Christmas season; the reason being that studios are
positioning their best films for maximum exposure in anticipation of Oscar nominations.
Here are three worthy films I was unable to include in my 1997 list that should be noted.
Titanic
Titanic was a titanic at Oscar time and deservedly so (although I dissent at its award for
Best Picture). While it easy to make fun of it's overblown budget, trite dialogue, and direc-
tor James Cameron's ego, here was a film with a grand vision and bold passions. It
achieved the one thing that every great film aspires to: envelop the movie audience in it's
own vivid and continuous dream. (Available in video).
Good Will Hunting
A film with a real life Cinderfella ending as it co-stars, Cambridge boyhood friends Matt
Damon and Ben Affleck, walk away with an Oscar for original screenplay. Good Will
Hunting traces the life of Will Hunting, boy genius, as he overcomes the ghosts of his past
and his own troubled life in the Irish ghetto of South Boston. Good Will Hunting is a film
with a big heart, an astute political sensibility and a wonderful supporting performance by
Robin Williams (Best Actor). (Available in Video).
The Sweet Hereafter
Hands down the best film of 1997, the film that should have won the Oscar for Best
Picture. Alas, the film had the misfortune to dwell on a subject matter movie audiences
would rather avoid. Based on the novel by Richard Banks and directed by Atom Egoyan,
The Sweet Hereafter traces the aftereffects of a school bus accident that kills 14 children
in a small town in rural British Columbia. Lyrical, introspective, compassionate, this film
has lingered in my imagination ever since. A wonderful performance by Ian Holm.
(Available on video).
Movie Trends in 1998
1998 was the year of the political film in Hollywood. Hollywood has always returned to the
subject of Washington shenanigans again and again, perhaps because Washington's insu-
larity and narcissistic quality reminds Hollywood of itself. Hollywood and Washington are
both company towns consumed by money, sex, and scandals. Both pander to the lowest
common denominator and are averse to risk taking. In America, it would be fair to say,
Hollywood and Washington are coming to resemble themselves so significantly that it is
difficult to tell them apart. Still Hollywood has undoubtedly produced some great films
about our number one pastime. Who can forget Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1936), All
the President's Men (1976), The Candidate (1972), or The Last Hurrah (1958). 1998 adds to
that storied list with three standout films.
The first of the three films, Wag the Dog, slyly makes the connection of the blurring of the
lines today between Hollywood and Washington. Where does politics end and entertain-
ment begin? Here Robert DeNiro, playing a presidential advisor, and Dustin Hoffman,
Playing a Hollywood producer, invent a phony war to divert attention from a presidential
sex scandal. With Wag the Dog, we've added a new phrase into the modern political ver-
nacular.
Unlike Wag the Dog, Bullworth goes straight for the jugular, relying on farce rather than
wit. While not as slyly subversive as Wag the Dog, it pulls no punches in it's critique of
modern centrist liberalism (e.g.- Bill Clinton?). In Bullworth, Warren Beatty plays a "prag-
matic"liberal running for reelection as a California Senator who rediscovers his lost ideal-
ism when he believes he going to die (an assassination arranged by his own hands).
In a tour de force performance, John Travolta plays a "fictional" southern politician run-
ning for the presidency while surviving a slew of bimbo eruptions as heads towards the
primary finish line. Based on the best selling novel by "Anonymous", Primary Colors is
enlivened by the supporting performance of Emma Thompson, playing the long suffering
political wife and Billy Bob Thornton doing a wonderful turn as James a Carville look-a-
like. Directed by Mike Nichols.
1998 proved to be a banner year for movies set in Boston locales. According to the
Massachusetts Film Office over 20 films were shot in or around the greater Boston area
during the 1997-98. Why Boston? Probably for many of the same reasons I love Boston -
an authenticity, a rich history, great locales, a texture and a color that makes it unique
among most major American cities.
Among the major films shot in Boston and/or released in 1998 include the above men-
tioned Good Will Hunting (South Boston); Monument Avenue (Charlestown); and Next Stop
Wonderland (multiple locales). Another film, A Civil Action, based on the best selling non-
fiction book, is set to be released shortly and expected to be a block-buster on the scale of
Good Will Hunting. Two of the four films - Monument Avenue and Next Stop Wonderland -
are small, independently produced films that have won widespread critical praise.
Monument Avenue has reminded many viewers of Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets (1973)
however, here, Boston's Charlestown is a stand-in for New York City's Little Italy.
Comedian-actor Dennis Leary plays an Irish Boy-in-the-Hood with stunning intensity.
Caught up in Charlestown's code of silence, we watch Leary come to a slow boil as he sees
his friends gunned down in Charlestown's killing fields. Where Monument Avenue is unre-
lenting dark, Next Stop Wonderland is a lighter shade of pale. Cynical about love after the
break-up of her long time boyfriend, actress Hope Davis reluctantly responds to the replies
from a personal ad her mother places in the paper on her behalf. Next Stop Wonderland is
a melancholic take on the vicissitudes of fate and love and the existential loneliness faced
by singles in the big city. What makes Next Stop Wonderland rise above all other romantic-
comedy wannabees is its wry sensibility and insight into the human condition. Buoyed by
its soulful score, its a must see film for all lovers of Brazilian Bosa Nova music.
One of the heartening trends of recent years has been the re-release and/or restoration of
Hollywood classics. This last year saw the re-release/restoration of Gone With the Wind,
The Wizard of Oz and Orson Welle's A Touch of Evil. Why spend $7.50 to go see a film that
you may have watched multiples times on either video or television? Because they are two
completely different experiences. I've had many moments of revelation and surprise when
I've watched an old chestnut on the large screen. Details that eluded you on your 19 inch
television screen leap out at you in the movie theater. Colors are brighter when restored
through digital re-imaging. In the case of A Touch of Evil, key segments were re-edited to
adhere more closely to Welle's original vision which had been subverted by studio execu-
tives. The contrast is even greater for post-1950s films which were shot in wide screen for-
mat or panavison. Up to one-third of a film's image is lost to make films fit the box-like
format of your home televison set. This results in a spectacular injustice to the artistic
vision of such classics as director David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia or Stanley Kubrick's
2001.The new High Definition Format Television (HDTV) will remedy this error but this
will not be available to most consumers for years. Most of all, the real delight in watching
a classic on the big screen is the shared intimacy that comes only in a darkened theater,
where we watch, with others, in awed contemplation the illuminating flicker of light, of
distilled celluloid images that seem to emerge as if in deep slumber from the portals of our
unconscious.
Top Ten Films of 1998
As I jotted down the films I saw during the last year (by my count 41), I came to the con-
clusion that 1998 may be one of the best years we've seen in cinema in the last decade.
Where in previous years, I struggled to find ten worthy films to include in my best films
list, this year my struggle was of a different order; which films to exclude in order to pair
my list down to the requisite ten. Here they are, and in no particular order.
1. The Truman Show
This newest film by Peter Weir (Fearless, Witness) is perhaps the best film of 1998. In the
tradition of such great films as Network and Being There, The Truman Show is much more
than a critique of television culture. On the surface it is the story of one Truman Burbank
(played by Jim Carrey), whose life has been filmed since birth and has become, unbe-
knownst to him, fodder for a long running, real-life soap opera viewed by millions world-
wide. In a break-through performance for Jim Carrey, he becomes the stand-in for every-
man as he eats the fruit of forbidden knowledge and yearns to break free from his self-
contained Garden of Eden.
2. Pleasantville
At first glance, Pleasantville may remind some as a Truman clone but that would be a dis-
service to first time director Gary Ross's (writer credits: Big and Dave) witty and some-
times subversive film. Here Ross is directing his arrow at the heart of latter day Babbits
who find reassurance in the soothing political and cultural conformity of the 1950s. The
fantasy plot is fairly straightforward. Disheartened by the modern world's seemingly end-
less dsyfunctional families, environmental calamaties, and sexual dangers, David (Toby
Maguire) fantasizes about a more perfect way of life by watching his favorite television
classic Pleasantville (think Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best). Suddenly he, and his
more rebellious sister, are sucked into the black and white world of Pleasantville through
their television set. David soon learns Pleasantville is not as perfect as he made it out to
be. What makes the film so enjoyable to watch is its clever use of color as metaphor and
as a means of introducing the play of emotions and real life complexity into its otherwise
sterile world.
3. Saving Private Ryan
It has already become film folklore that the first 45 minutes of Steven Spielberg's new
Saving Private Ryan is the most dramatic footage of war combat ever made. The opening
scenes depicting the landing at Normandy Beach, D-Day are hallucinogenic in their quali-
ty. Thereafter the film takes a more conventional turn as the principals (Tom Hanks) set
out to find Private Ryan (Matt Damon who has parachuted behind enemy lines) and
return him home after its learned that his other three brothers have all been killed in
combat. While not strictly a revisionist take on the World War II film genre, it does reflect
the post-Vietnam sensibility towards the horrors of war. A fine cast made up of many
indie film stars complements Tom Hanks's (another Oscar nomination?) deeply felt
humanism.
4. The Butcher Boy
Perhaps the darkest film of 1998 (no, that one goes to deeply flawed film Happiness) and
certainly one of the most original. Directed by Irish film maker Neil Jordan (The Crying
Game, Interview With A Vampire), the story is seen through the eyes of a young boy
(Eamonn Owens) whose world spirals into darkness after the loss of both his parents. This
is a black comedy that refuses to compromise it's dark vision. Filled with a panoply of
cruel caretakers, mindless bureaucrats, apocalyptic visions, and impromptu visitations by
the Virgin Mary, The Butcher Boy is a surrealistic descent into the imaginary and real-life
hell of a young boy.
5. Slums of Beverly Hills
The Slums of Beverly Hills is an amusing take on the fortunes and failures of the "Jewish
Joads" as they makes their way through the highways and byways of the less glamorous
neighborhoods of Beverly Hills. Here, the narrative focuses on Vivian (wonderfully played
by Natasha Lyonne), a sixteen year old who is coming to terms with her own budding sex-
uality and the embarrassment of living with her family and it's idiosyncratic personalities.
Vivian loves her father (Alan Arkin) despite his repeated failures as a provider for the fami-
ly. Still he has the grit and determination to keep his family together and anchored in
Beverly Hills so that they may benefit from the city's superior school system. Slums is a
cut above all other comedies of 1998 because of its deft writing, quirky sensibility, won-
derful performances, and shrewd observation of human nature.
6. The Horse Whisperer
Based on the best selling novel by Nicholas Evans and directed and starring Robert
Redford, The Horse Whisperer is a gorgeous film that finds itself in the new genre of revi-
sionist westerns. After a tragic accident in which teenager Grace MacLean's horse is seri-
ously injured and she loses a leg, mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) and daughter travel to
Montana and horse whisperer (Robert Redford) to begin a journey of spiritual and emotion
healing. Whatever limitations Redford has an actor (and they are many) he more than
makes up for as a director. Stunning cinematography adds to the lyrical quality of a film
that seeks to find transcendence and healing in the vast open plains and vistas of the
old/new west.
7. Elizabeth
Court intrigues, dark corridors, religious bloodletting make for this luscious period piece
set during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England, daughter of Anne Boleyn, be-headed
wife of Henry VIII. As Elizabeth (played by Kate Blanchett) ascends the thrown, the
Reformation is in full swing and England is on the verge of civil war with Catholics and
Protestants vying for power and each claiming it's superior godly virtues while raping, pil-
laging, and burning the other at the stake. This film has been said to genuflect to
Coppola's Godfather as it traces the loss of innocence and consolidation of power by
Queen Elizabeth (think Michael Corleone) as she follows the advice of her Machiavellian
court supplicant Sir Francis Walshingham (Geoffrey Rush). With a cross dressing French
prince, a torture scene, a burning at the stake, and a few lopped heads thrown in for good
merit, this is not your father's Masterpiece Theater.
8. Love and Death on Long Island
Loosely based on Thomas Mann's Death in Venice, John Hurt does a wonderful turn as a
fusty, English writer, Giles De'Ath, who becomes infatuated with a young, b-grade movie
actor Ronnie Bostock (Jason Priestly). The choice of Priestly is an ironically inspired one to
those who recognize him as the teenage heartthrob of Beverly Hills 90210. Here, Hurt, tor-
mented by his obsession, tracks down Priestly to his home in the Hamptons of Long
Island. Superbly written and directed, Love and Death is a funny, witty, perceptive take on
the sometimes neurotic quality of sexual obsession.
9. Wag the Dog (see Trends)
10. Primary Colors (see Trends)
There are several other films that did not make my cut but deserve mention here. Among
them: Next Stop Wonderland (see Trends); The Last Days of Disco; Beloved; A Simple Plan,
and Pi. Happy movie going in 1999.