viggo mortensen, & the jerk...

just wanted to share a quote i just read from viggo mortensen...

"When I go to movies, I want to see something that is mysterious that I can't explain technically no matter how much I know about the process of making movies. There were movies made in the '30s or '20s, movies that have been made in the last few years, where every once in a while, there is scene, a moment, a close-up, a wide shot, a composition, a look on someone's face, the way they say a word, an interaction, that you go, 'How the hell did they do that?' And they could probably never do it again. It was just that moment where these characters, these actors, committed, and everything was lit right, and that stays in your head. It's burned into your memory. Most movies are lucky to have one moment, one shot that you look at and you always remember that moment and that scene. This movie, I think, has many moments like that. Duvall has moments like that, Charlize has moments like that, Kodi and I have several I think, Garrett Dillahunt, Michael K. Williams. I think it's a movie that has an emotional force, it kind of has some wallop to it, and leaves you at the end going 'Wow!' You are kind of spent. And you think right after, 'Oh, I can't watch this again,' but it stays with you."

i just love that.

i love hearing someone talk about something they're passionate about. and i especially love hearing someone talk about something i'm passionate about. viggo mortensen just gets it. the power of film, the beauty of it. it's why i still get goosebumps when i walk into a movie theater. that anticipation, the possibility of seeing something that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

strangest thing (and i may have talked about this already before, but... well, sorry), out of all the movies i've devoured over my 37 years, my favorite scene in any of them is in steve martin's "the jerk." it's one of the silliest and most hysterical movies ever made-- just ludicrous from beginning to end, and then-- bam! right in the middle of it is THE most romantic thing i've ever seen on film.

steve martin and bernadette peters sitting alone on a beach, singing "you belong to me". he's got a ukulele, and, eventually, she has a trumpet. it's a beautifully sweet song, but, for me, what makes it a classic scene is the way she looks at him. it's just written all over her face, "i am completely in love with this man." simple. lovely. perfect...

y'know what? ...i wanna be a filmmaker.


the five things i fell in love with today...

1) thanksgiving!!!!!!! seriously, what a great idea, right?!
2) the people who have been sending me really kind and encouraging emails about this blog! means a great deal! thank you so much!
3) 'the road'. or, well, no, actually, i haven't seen it yet-- not actually in love with it, but that was the movie viggo was talking about. really looking forward to seeing it!
4) seriously. i wanna be a filmmaker. gotta look into it.
5) steve martin. i tell the kids at the day care center that he's my uncle. i even put it into song whenever i can: "now i know my abc's, next time dance with my uncle steve."

honestly, one of our parents last year told me that her toddler mentioned my uncle steve in his prayers the previous night. "God bless, mommy, God bless daddy, God bless mya, God bless uncle steve..." when i told my friend cookie about it, he said, "wow, man... way to waste God's time."

:)

song of the day...
"deep water" by portishead. this song was inspired by the "you belong to me" scene in 'the jerk.'

movie of the day...
"a history of violence" maybe my favorite viggo mortensen film.

seriously, i just wanna grab a beer with the guy. and i don't even drink beer. he's that cool.