Pretty in Pink! This sprang immediately to mind.. my poor son endured my daughters and my obsession with it!! I am happy to have found you Austin, in the short stack of writers I feel a connect with!
Field of Dreams is a communal family favorite. To me it is endlessly rewatchable. The vague but life/sports-affirming magic strikes a favorite note in my chest every time. Every single line is quotable. I have it memorized like a song.
The Black Stallion is another one for me. I don't have a specific memory of watching it as a very small child, but it was young enough that at the time I didn't know what a movie was. Watching it now, it's more like reliving a memory than watching a movie. There are edges to the picture that weren't there when I was little. I've lost most of that ability to completely live in a movie, but I can revisit a little bit of that feeling every time I watch it.
I enjoyed this piece the other day and I’ve just reread it again after getting home from seeing the Bowie documentary Moonage Daydream. Watching it, I think he’s the ultimate Dorothy; constantly looking for Oz, without ever wanting to go home. This one’s going to stick with me, thanks Austin.
Wonderful thread. I rarely watch a movie twice and I think I need to start because, just as Ruth Ozeki (I think?) said, “no one ever reads the same book I wrote,” perhaps I would not be watching the “same movie” either. I never thought the “moral” of Oz was complicated: be careful what you wish for! The grass is not always greener AND behind the unbelievable is a little man pulling strings. And that was one movie I watched every year as a kid!!
Ive been re-reading Terry Pratchett's novel "Witches Abroad." It has more than passing references to Wizard of Oz, as well as many other classic tales, as he explores how story, which he later calls Narrativium, can shape life. It's worth a read.
Reading back through these comments, I realised I'd omitted to mention
Before Sunrise
Before Sunset
Before Midnight
I watch them back on occasion to tell me about the power of human connection, to better understand the magic of chance. If Paul Auster could have written a movie, it would have been Before Sunrise, but Richard Linklater got there first.
- I hardly watch movies anymore, maybe when the baby is older
- I might watch ‘The Martian’ again, that was a good one.
- I think The Wizard of Oz makes a great background movie. Just play it on repeat and without sound and put it on a flat TV on the wall, it creates visual interest without taking too much attention.
Oh, I love your message from Sep 13th especially the concept of self-authorization of yourself as a writer!
A few movies that I watch to watch myself (at least I think these are) include 'The Wizard of Oz' and 'Cinderella' (both were family events in our home when I was young), 'The Miracle Worker' (a powerful story and great acting), and 'Galaxy Quest' (such a delightful satire of the Star Trek original series that was a favorite too). The old favorite I watch over and over really is The Wizard of Oz when it's on TV. I know the words to the songs in that show more than I know the song lyrics of any other musical (maybe except Mary Poppins), and it makes me happy to sing-along. I've never read the books the movie is based on though. Do you recommend them?
Yes, this is one of my favorite posts of yours Austin, and it brought all the feelings! The Wizard of Oz is a key story in my INNER IMAGINARIUM, as Sharon Blackie calls it: "We are each haunted by different images; we each resonate with different myths or fairy tales, and with different archetypal characters within them. And each of us identifies with different archetypal characters and patterns at different times in our own lives." (more here: https://sharonblackie.net/constructing-your-inner-imaginarium-2/). I don't generally re-watch movies or shows but I've watched season 1 of "Russian Doll" on Netflix three times. It reminds me of Dorothy's journey (and Alice's in Wonderland... another all time fave). Lots to dig in here!
I love this "inner imaginarium” idea and you've done me a great favor because it's put me back in touch with this Camus quote I hold dear:
“A time always comes in an artist’s life when he must take his bearings, draw closer to his own center, and then try to stay there…. A man’s work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened. This is why, perhaps, after working and producing for twenty years, I still live with the idea that my work has not even begun.”
A little pause. Just read all of the comments. From childhood, I have memories of an early Dean Stockwell (as a kid) Boy with the Green Hair. Another was a Danny Kaye where he sings this funny ditty "The pellet with the poison in in the vessel with the pestle and the vessel of the castle is the brew that is true." Am quite amazed that I remember it after roughly 70 years. When my mother died in 2008 a friend suggested I get Netflix. I went on a binge of Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn movies. Another old favorite is Bell, Book, and Candle. In the late 70s and early 80s I went to see a lot to French and Italian films. Also some into the 90s. There were great to see in the theater, but not all were popular enough to make it to DVDs. One I watch repeatedly is Man on a Train.
About Oz. As a kid, the monkeys terrified me. As an adult, I wondered why no one called Glinda on basically being a bitch with her "You could have gone home any time."
Your boys will love A Hard Day's Night, I’m sure. We once showed it to our neighbor's nine year old daughter. She protested the B&W and she didn’t know the Beatles. She was transfixed within minutes and immediately wanted to rewatch it. It's the magic of the Beatles.
To Have and Have Not…and bonus, Hoagie Carmichael!!!
Back in the day, it was a big family event to watch the annual screening of "The Wizard of Oz", with JiffyPop to get us through the trauma of flying monkeys. First year in college I went to see it in a movie theater, and was amazed at how glorious it was on a big screen. I was so struck and delighted with all the jokes I had been too young to pick up on as a child.
Among many family favorites to re-watch, I would put Galaxy Quest at the top. Great cast, costumes, effects, and both touching and funny. On my own (because no one will watch with me) I like to re-watch terrible, terrible movies like Troll 2, The Room, Birdemic, Plan 9 from Outer Space, The Terror of Tiny Town, and my favorite best worst movie, Tiptoes.
I keep being told deep and meaningful things about movies, but I just can't seem to see them that way. Honestly, I have only a small handful of movies that I ever rewatch, most notable of which is Young Frankenstein every Halloween for some reason.
I guess I'd rather reread a book series than rewatch movies. I wonder why that is.
Shirley Valentine and Eat Pray Love when I got divorced in my early 40s and felt like I wasn't alone and that I had permission to feel what I was feeling. I was seeing myself then I suppose...
I have a tendency to project into movies, and I cannot watch war movies or hospital dramas when my (new) husband is deployed (military man). When he's away I tend to return to musicals like Mama Mia that I can sing along to and sooth my vagus nerve an have a good cathartic cry. But that's not seeing me either ...
As for looking into myself these days... it really depends what sort of mood I am in .. A couple of weeks ago I watched Interstellar, Arrival and Contact and it all felt transcendent and like I was swimming in a deep pool. I have watched them all several times and feel the same each time...they make me feel alive and excited for possibilities. Other times I watch Rocky Horror Picture Show and and the freak in me comes out. Or I'll watch The Goonies or Gone With the Wind and be instantly transported to a very specific time and place in my early teen years.
Actually...now that my brain has been churning ... I watch Brave (Pixar) to see myself. Strong women :) Plus it has little animated Scottish butts and Billy Connelly to make me laugh :)
I love your essays... they always make me think. Thank you
"But eventually I learned the only person who could authorize me… was me." Bravo bravo! That's one of the essential secrets to your success, IMCO, ("IMCO" = "in my confident opinion"). I didn't learn this simple truth for being a grownup until I was over 60! And it's such a simple principle. I wish my early cultural leaders (my parents, especially) had known this was true and one of their jobs to help me learn this truth as a skill applicable in all areas of my life.
"We forget all too soon the things we thought we could never forget. We forget the loves and the betrayals alike, forget what we whispered and what we screamed, forget who we were." Yes, yes to this wise reminder. If we can't remember the pain of our past selves with clear "writer's objectivity" in the present, that's a sign we'd haven't accepted/made peace with the reality of those former selves and our life learning from the truth of our experiences. (IMEO) ("IMEO" = "in my empathy opinion").
Pretty in Pink! This sprang immediately to mind.. my poor son endured my daughters and my obsession with it!! I am happy to have found you Austin, in the short stack of writers I feel a connect with!
Field of Dreams is a communal family favorite. To me it is endlessly rewatchable. The vague but life/sports-affirming magic strikes a favorite note in my chest every time. Every single line is quotable. I have it memorized like a song.
The Black Stallion is another one for me. I don't have a specific memory of watching it as a very small child, but it was young enough that at the time I didn't know what a movie was. Watching it now, it's more like reliving a memory than watching a movie. There are edges to the picture that weren't there when I was little. I've lost most of that ability to completely live in a movie, but I can revisit a little bit of that feeling every time I watch it.
I enjoyed this piece the other day and I’ve just reread it again after getting home from seeing the Bowie documentary Moonage Daydream. Watching it, I think he’s the ultimate Dorothy; constantly looking for Oz, without ever wanting to go home. This one’s going to stick with me, thanks Austin.
Wonderful thread. I rarely watch a movie twice and I think I need to start because, just as Ruth Ozeki (I think?) said, “no one ever reads the same book I wrote,” perhaps I would not be watching the “same movie” either. I never thought the “moral” of Oz was complicated: be careful what you wish for! The grass is not always greener AND behind the unbelievable is a little man pulling strings. And that was one movie I watched every year as a kid!!
Ive been re-reading Terry Pratchett's novel "Witches Abroad." It has more than passing references to Wizard of Oz, as well as many other classic tales, as he explores how story, which he later calls Narrativium, can shape life. It's worth a read.
Reading back through these comments, I realised I'd omitted to mention
Before Sunrise
Before Sunset
Before Midnight
I watch them back on occasion to tell me about the power of human connection, to better understand the magic of chance. If Paul Auster could have written a movie, it would have been Before Sunrise, but Richard Linklater got there first.
- I hardly watch movies anymore, maybe when the baby is older
- I might watch ‘The Martian’ again, that was a good one.
- I think The Wizard of Oz makes a great background movie. Just play it on repeat and without sound and put it on a flat TV on the wall, it creates visual interest without taking too much attention.
Oh, I love your message from Sep 13th especially the concept of self-authorization of yourself as a writer!
A few movies that I watch to watch myself (at least I think these are) include 'The Wizard of Oz' and 'Cinderella' (both were family events in our home when I was young), 'The Miracle Worker' (a powerful story and great acting), and 'Galaxy Quest' (such a delightful satire of the Star Trek original series that was a favorite too). The old favorite I watch over and over really is The Wizard of Oz when it's on TV. I know the words to the songs in that show more than I know the song lyrics of any other musical (maybe except Mary Poppins), and it makes me happy to sing-along. I've never read the books the movie is based on though. Do you recommend them?
I've heard mixed things about the books, so I still haven't read them!
Yes, this is one of my favorite posts of yours Austin, and it brought all the feelings! The Wizard of Oz is a key story in my INNER IMAGINARIUM, as Sharon Blackie calls it: "We are each haunted by different images; we each resonate with different myths or fairy tales, and with different archetypal characters within them. And each of us identifies with different archetypal characters and patterns at different times in our own lives." (more here: https://sharonblackie.net/constructing-your-inner-imaginarium-2/). I don't generally re-watch movies or shows but I've watched season 1 of "Russian Doll" on Netflix three times. It reminds me of Dorothy's journey (and Alice's in Wonderland... another all time fave). Lots to dig in here!
I love this "inner imaginarium” idea and you've done me a great favor because it's put me back in touch with this Camus quote I hold dear:
“A time always comes in an artist’s life when he must take his bearings, draw closer to his own center, and then try to stay there…. A man’s work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened. This is why, perhaps, after working and producing for twenty years, I still live with the idea that my work has not even begun.”
https://austinkleon.com/2019/03/25/its-raining-today/
I too am a fan of Russian Doll. Hadn't thought of the connection to Dorothy. Thanks for that.
P.S. But Russian Doll is much darker, of course. Not for the kids! :)
A little pause. Just read all of the comments. From childhood, I have memories of an early Dean Stockwell (as a kid) Boy with the Green Hair. Another was a Danny Kaye where he sings this funny ditty "The pellet with the poison in in the vessel with the pestle and the vessel of the castle is the brew that is true." Am quite amazed that I remember it after roughly 70 years. When my mother died in 2008 a friend suggested I get Netflix. I went on a binge of Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn movies. Another old favorite is Bell, Book, and Candle. In the late 70s and early 80s I went to see a lot to French and Italian films. Also some into the 90s. There were great to see in the theater, but not all were popular enough to make it to DVDs. One I watch repeatedly is Man on a Train.
About Oz. As a kid, the monkeys terrified me. As an adult, I wondered why no one called Glinda on basically being a bitch with her "You could have gone home any time."
haha an excellent point! Both Glinda and the Wizard really use Dorothy! It's that tension of naivety/cynicism in there
Your boys will love A Hard Day's Night, I’m sure. We once showed it to our neighbor's nine year old daughter. She protested the B&W and she didn’t know the Beatles. She was transfixed within minutes and immediately wanted to rewatch it. It's the magic of the Beatles.
To Have and Have Not…and bonus, Hoagie Carmichael!!!
I think I'm gonna go for it tomorrow night — report to come!
Back in the day, it was a big family event to watch the annual screening of "The Wizard of Oz", with JiffyPop to get us through the trauma of flying monkeys. First year in college I went to see it in a movie theater, and was amazed at how glorious it was on a big screen. I was so struck and delighted with all the jokes I had been too young to pick up on as a child.
Among many family favorites to re-watch, I would put Galaxy Quest at the top. Great cast, costumes, effects, and both touching and funny. On my own (because no one will watch with me) I like to re-watch terrible, terrible movies like Troll 2, The Room, Birdemic, Plan 9 from Outer Space, The Terror of Tiny Town, and my favorite best worst movie, Tiptoes.
Great piece, Austin.
I keep being told deep and meaningful things about movies, but I just can't seem to see them that way. Honestly, I have only a small handful of movies that I ever rewatch, most notable of which is Young Frankenstein every Halloween for some reason.
I guess I'd rather reread a book series than rewatch movies. I wonder why that is.
I love ELF. It’s a joyful expression of the kid we all know we can still be.
Shirley Valentine and Eat Pray Love when I got divorced in my early 40s and felt like I wasn't alone and that I had permission to feel what I was feeling. I was seeing myself then I suppose...
I have a tendency to project into movies, and I cannot watch war movies or hospital dramas when my (new) husband is deployed (military man). When he's away I tend to return to musicals like Mama Mia that I can sing along to and sooth my vagus nerve an have a good cathartic cry. But that's not seeing me either ...
As for looking into myself these days... it really depends what sort of mood I am in .. A couple of weeks ago I watched Interstellar, Arrival and Contact and it all felt transcendent and like I was swimming in a deep pool. I have watched them all several times and feel the same each time...they make me feel alive and excited for possibilities. Other times I watch Rocky Horror Picture Show and and the freak in me comes out. Or I'll watch The Goonies or Gone With the Wind and be instantly transported to a very specific time and place in my early teen years.
Actually...now that my brain has been churning ... I watch Brave (Pixar) to see myself. Strong women :) Plus it has little animated Scottish butts and Billy Connelly to make me laugh :)
I love your essays... they always make me think. Thank you
"But eventually I learned the only person who could authorize me… was me." Bravo bravo! That's one of the essential secrets to your success, IMCO, ("IMCO" = "in my confident opinion"). I didn't learn this simple truth for being a grownup until I was over 60! And it's such a simple principle. I wish my early cultural leaders (my parents, especially) had known this was true and one of their jobs to help me learn this truth as a skill applicable in all areas of my life.
"We forget all too soon the things we thought we could never forget. We forget the loves and the betrayals alike, forget what we whispered and what we screamed, forget who we were." Yes, yes to this wise reminder. If we can't remember the pain of our past selves with clear "writer's objectivity" in the present, that's a sign we'd haven't accepted/made peace with the reality of those former selves and our life learning from the truth of our experiences. (IMEO) ("IMEO" = "in my empathy opinion").