Monday, September 15, 2003
Documentary Day
I recently got to see two truly epochal films, ones that are invariably mentioned in the same breath because of their manifest thematic similarities and interconnected plots. I refer, of course, to Frida and American Pimp. I enjoyed both films. I was relieved that Frida spoke english so fluently, as most of her mexican compatriots tend toward local dialect. It was also good to see that Tony Banderas is actually so engaged in political activism. The film was visually striking and I enjoyed the blending of VH-1 sensibilities and Hollywood filmic traditions, as in the way some scene segues or songs were dis-integrated from the story so as to create surreal breaks from reality. In the end, however, I never got a sense of true pain from Hayek, and that detracted from my sympathy for the epynomous character. Ultimately though, the film was saved by the introduction of one of the cleverest and most useful domestic laborsavers I’ve ever encountered, and I am expecting every household in the US to jump immediately on the laundry-monkey bandwagon. What an important advance in the domestic sciences. I can’t now stop thinking of things for which a monkey would be handy. Updates to follow, pending clinical trials.
American Pimp was, sadly, actually filmed in local dialect, without the handy “english-language subtitles” option that has proved so valuable in films such as Sexy Beast, The Harder They Fall and My Brother Vinnie. Instead, I had to listen very carefully to people as they spoke quickly through gold-plated diamond studded teeth about macks, hoes, and smacking people around. It was a fascinating movie, ultimately showing me that truly stupid people can be attracted to a man based purely on the enormity of the hat he wears. At one point an interviewee discusses his new line of work, post-pimping, as a blues singers, telling us, “I’m now singing the blues. But blues singers and players have a lot in common. We look the same, we dress the same - so it was a good transition for me.” Up next, the snakeskin-sombrero’d stylings of Howlin’ Wolf and his fine bitches. Adds a whole new dimension to “making it big in show bidness.” It was also entertaining for me to see so many young lions of the flesh-peddling profession giving respect to a hometown hero, Fillmore Slim, an elderly dapper man with 50 years of pimping under his belt and an impenetrable slur. “I been flefshiming since mnolomgsoro” he intones with a wry smile, and you figure you just have to smile back and nod or you won’t be cool. Of course, this avatar of pimpdom is patrolling his turf, through which I ride on the bus every day to work - the Gazebo smoke shop, the Century Theater and Video Arcade, the public toilet that is Jones Street at O’Farrell… It was both enormously entertaining and a little sad to see the world some people make for themselves.
I couldn’t watch both movies back-to-back, that would have been too intense - so I multitasked and enjoyed them simultaneously via picture-in-picture. I saved so much time I get to tack another 45 minutes onto the end of my life. I just need someone to remind me when that happens. As a final reflection, I leave you with the words I found when gassing up my car over the weekend on a small paper sign taped to the pumps at a cut-rate gas station: “Come and See Us at the Booth for All Your Snacking Needs.” Just replace “booth” with “Chucklehut” and “Time-Frittering” for “Snacking.” Mmmm, time fritters. I can almost taste the procrastination.
