Once Upon a Time
I was pleased to watch the film called Once about an Irish street singer/vacuum cleaner repair man and a young woman who changes his luck. What a beautiful tale of intimacy, music, and friendship. It had fairy tale qualities, but its content surprised me with its unpredictable turns.
And on a different note, but still in the folk-tale-once-upon-a-time category, I happened to watch Tim Burton’s adapation of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I was so drawn to Ichabod’s Crane mixture of vulnerability and strength, and so wrapped up in the story’s theme of the rational as it comes to terms with the irrational.
Both films offered a fine transition from the old to the new year, reminding me that once upon a time carries magic and surprise. And within fiction, there can be such a heart of truth.
Comments
Well, that just makes me sad—a computer program that can predict hits.
I guess I would rather strike a chord than make a hit.
And from my own experience, I know that even if I had the secret (or not so secret?) formula, my attempts at recreating it would look like what it was, an experiment only—not anything authentic.
Jan 6 January 08
I have taken so long to respond to this, but promised myself that today is the day. You mentioned the film Once, which has become one of my all time favorite films for a number of reasons least of which is that it is about musicians and it takes place in Dublin. Those two points alone would do it for me. I have seen it way too many times, having bought it for myself for Christmas, and am currently showing it to two of my classes. Everyone is loving it, especially the young men, which is what I had hoped. That’s it. Just wanted you to know.
Anita 10 February 08
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In response to your thoughts on “Sounds and Melodies,” I had the impulse to tell you about an article I read in the fall, which describes a successful new computer program, being tested on both films and songs, that predicts whether it’ll capture an audience’s heart. (Film and record producers are betting big on it.) To some degree, it takes the mystery out of hit-making. I would ask you, however, if you really want to know what it takes. Would you want to write to that formula? Would you want to banish magic and surprise?
And now I read this post, celebrating the magic and surprise within a work. And I wonder if, in order to get the magic in the work, we have to live with the uncertainty in the occupation (of writer) itself.
Jane Kokernak 4 January 08