Jan 11, 2007

Daffy Yum - Day 10 Improved Visuals

Well I'm embarassed and ashamed. Usually I watch movies twice, but I was so in love with Cowgirls, the book, that I rejected the movie upon one viewing. And I've been close-minded about it for a long time. But I was wrong. Or at least I never gave it another chance to prove me wrong, until this week. I re-watched Cowgirls, the movie, and found it delightful in spite of its faults. (Delight in spite of everything?) The movie was visually beautiful and had a sweetness that you don't find much in movies anymore. Sure it had some pacing problems and the characters tended to make speeches--beautiful Tom Robbins words--but speeches nonetheless. But just as some people faulted Villa Incognito for being too short, I faulted this movie for not having the elements that I had learned to expect from movies (movie cliches?). But I found that if I accepted that the movie was sort of self-conscious (like a Robbins novel) that if I suspended the suspension of disbelief, that I could enjoy the movie for what it was...itself.

I'll write more about the movie later, but today as I read of Sissy's arrival at the Rubber Rose I had some beautiful visuals from the movie in my head and it made me appreciate the book more. This page explains why there was some controversy about Dale Evans. And it reminds me of a bumper sticker I used to have, "Success eliminates as many options as failure." which drew quite a lot of comment in success-mad Malibu where I was then living.

So, my apologies to Van Sant.