Mausam & Escape

So I just watched Paper Heart. At Sundance, it was described as "self-indulgent crap".. not far off the mark.

If you're not familiar with the premise, it's about a girl (using the term loosely) who doesn't believe in love. She sets out with a film crew across the US, then abroad, the find out what love means to other people.

I don't know who pitched this idea, Jake or Charlyne, but I have to say that she was the one that ruined it for me. Would it have killed you to at least pretend you were having fun? One of the first people interviewed said it was "sad" that she'd never experienced love.. and that set the tone for the whole movie.

I don't know this girl, and I don't want to get juvenile about it, but maybe if she wore something that didn't drape on her like a tent (1/4 of the movie was spent in a hoodie and it was SO damn sloppy), combed her hair, and wasn't so cynical she wouldn't be in that rut.

Ever hear of conditioner? a skirt? heels? a tad of makeup? fitted clothing? You can't blame a (straight) dude for not wanting to be with another dude.

The side story is the plot line with Michael Cera. I can call it a plot now since they not together anymore. Charlyne went to a psychic in Albuquerque and the psychic told her that he was with her for "business reasons". She also predicted that it would end. Truth hurts, darling. Both her and Jake (director) called her a scam artist afterwards and disputed everything she said. I can't help but wonder if it's true now. I don't really care to know the specifics of the breakup, but it seems totally plausible.

I think what hurt the most is that I can see part of myself in this girl.

I used to dress like that... back when I was trying to avoid dating and not be looked at. It was a means of self-preservation. I figured no one would want a sloppy, unkempt woman.. but apparently someone else got a movie deal and movie star boyfriend (temporarily) out of the deal. I'm cynical, but not so much to the point that I can't just sit back and have fun. Charlyne seemed so miserable, and misery loves company. In the first 30 minutes, it seemed like everyone was having a good time but her and she was trying to bring them down with her. The scene at the biker bar pissed me off.

Overall, I feel like I should've stopped watching when my first instinct told me to. I'm pissed that I wasted 80-some-odd minutes on someone who didn't seem to give a damn how the film ended. I'm incensed, and I wanted to type this up before I had a chance to blow off steam.

The New York Times review might be better written, but the sentiment is the same.

There's only three good things that came out of this: 1) I didn't see it at Sundance 2) I didn't pay for the rental 3) I watched it during a week when all my business is up to snuff so I wasn't (technically) wasting time.

It was between this and Whip It, and I wasn't particularly enthused about either. Hopefully I'll have better luck next time, until then I'll link to some good movies.

Rocket Queen.

Today before my workout I decided to watch It Should Happen To You. I dig old movies and it was short; I figured I'd watch something light-hearted before a grueling yoga session. First and foremost, I have to say that the title character made my skin crawl. It wasn't her looks, but her personality. Gladys Glover (Judy Holliday, pictured above) is some strange bird from upstate New York who wants to be famous. Her angle? absolutely nothing. She just wants her name known. The scene above is when she meets the love interest, Pete Shepherd (Jack Lemmon) in Central Park.

After their chance meeting, she sees a blank billboard in Columbus Circle and gets the fabulous idea to advertise herself there. The sign is simple; there's nothing on it but her name (business acumen: +1, though adding a ph# or contact info would've been more effective) Problem? a soap company wants the space and they're willing to do just about anything to get it.

After a few rounds of negotiation, she gives up the space in exchange for six signs across town (business acumen +2) and one is electric (+3). All of a sudden she's the buzz of the city.. "Just who is Gladys Glover?" She goes from being Jane Doe from Podunk, U.S.A to being the spokesmodel for the very soap company that bought her out.

This of course leads to other deals, like for the diet pill she's plugging above.

This scene is not part of the movie, I just thought the picture was cool.

What initially started out as a light Sunday morning movie turned into so much more. Immediately I thought of the slew of other people that exist in this world that are famous, and got famous, for absolutely nothing:

Angelyne (who flat out took this idea and ran with it)

Tila Tequila

The White House Crashers

EVERYONE on a reality TV show

The Balloon Boy Family... the list could go on and on.

What is it about fame? What is it in your life that's missing? Are you really so unique and cool that you think the world needs to know you? What kind of impact do you have on the world, and what impact will you leave when you die? I just don't get it.

It almost seems hypocritical for me to write about this given that I have a public blog, but I value my anonymity. You guys might never see a picture of me. I haven't decided if I want to reveal myself just yet.. if ever.

I won't lie though, I think it'd be an interesting experiment to test this out and rent a spot in the city with my name. Maybe I'll call some places. I know some prime locations that are blank right now...

In the movie, Gladys loses Pete because of her quest for fame. He's not so much against her being famous, he's against the fact that it's for nothing. I am too. If you want your name known, do something worthy of attention. I know plenty of people that act the way these reality show kids do that don't have the benefit of a film crew capturing it all... and are possibly the better for it.

Speaking of which, the dad of the "Balloon Boy" kid just got out of jail today.

It's nice how everything wraps up in a neat package.