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64 Mostly About a Movie, but Politics, too, in a way…

7/17/2016

A couple of weeks ago, I was flipping through the channels on my TV and ran across The American President, directed by Rob Reiner, written by Aaron Sorkin, and with a brilliant cast. Since I’ve liked that movie for a long time (released in 1995), I watched the last part of it, enjoying it thoroughly.

It did strike me that there were similarities between one of the current “presumptive nominees” and president Shepherd’s political opponent, Bob Rumson, based on attitude expressed, rhetorical style, and a certain willingness to (apparently) make things up as he goes along, relying on questionable sources, etc., but I didn’t think more about this until I heard someone on one of the political talk shows allude to the same idea.

This got me interested, so I found a copy of the screenplay on the Internet in order to read it. (I like having “hard copy” when I want to really look at something closely.) While studying the script, I made an interesting discovery. There was a scene in the screenplay between Andy and his daughter, Lucy, which didn’t make it through the final edit, but which changes (in my opinion for the better) the entire thrust of “the speech,” which is certainly one of the major high points of the entire film.

If you don’t know this movie, take a look at it. I think it’s worth a couple of hours just because it’s a good movie, but take a look at the part of the screenplay I’ve quoted below and consider how much leaving out this scene changes it. I may be making too much of this edit. I think it was an incorrect choice, but I confess to wondering what others might think.

Anyway, enjoy the movie, the chemistry is (I think) great, the casting excellent, the script wonderful and, overall, it’s just a “good” movie. If it makes you think about current politics a bit, I won’t be surprised, but I think you’ll enjoy it in any event.

This begins with the last bit of the final “pool playing" scene between Shepherd and A.J., his Chief of Staff and oldest friend.

SHEPHERD gets to the doorway...stops...turns around...

                    SHEPHERD
          If Mary hadn't died...would we have
          won three years ago?

                     A.J.
          Would we have won?

                     SHEPHERD
          If we'd had to go through a character
          debate three years ago, would we have
          won?

                     A.J.
          I don't know. But I would've liked
          that campaign. If my friend Andy
          Shepherd had shown up, I would have
          liked that campaign.

     SHEPHERD looks away...nods absently...

                     SHEPHERD
                  (pause)
          Yeah.

     SHEPHERD exits, leaving A.J. alone as we

                                                          CUT TO:

     INT. WHITE HOUSE CORRIDOR - NIGHT

     A series of shots showing SHEPHERD walking down the corridor
     to the dish room, then walking down a long corridor which
     contains a series of paintings of various presidents. Then
     sitting alone in the Oval Office, lost in thought...

                                                       DISSOLVE TO:

     INT. RESIDENCE DINING ROOM - EARLY MORNING

     SHEPHERD and LUCY are eating breakfast in silence, neither of
     them very happy, each with their own problems. A nearby T.V.
     MONITOR glows with the live coverage of ROBIN's morning press
     briefing.

     Finally...

                     SHEPHERD
          You're not hungry?

                     LUCY
          This is oatmeal.

                     SHEPHERD
          Yeah.

                     LUCY
          We never have oatmeal.

                     SHEPHERD
          It's good for you.

                     LUCY
          I'm from Wisconsin. I need food.

                     SHEPHERD
          You're not from Wisconsin. I'm from
          Wisconsin. You've lived in
          Washington your whole life.

     He glances toward the T.V. screen. ROBIN's standing up there
     doing what she's been told: "No comment...No, this President
     is not participating in character debates..." He mutes the
     volume.

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          How are you doing in your
          Constitutional debates?

                     LUCY
          We're done.

                     SHEPHERD
          You're done?

                     LUCY
          We ratified it last week.

                     SHEPHERD
          Oh...well...that's good. Why didn't
          you tell me?

                     LUCY
          It's not a big deal, Dad.

                     SHEPHERD
          Okay, I give up. I don't care why
          you're not happy in social studies.
          I care about why you're not talking
          to me about why you're not happy in
          social studies.

                     LUCY
          Dad, I'm perfectly--

                     SHEPHERD
          You're not perfectly happy. You
          don't think I know when something's
          bothering you?

                     LUCY
          Damnit, Dad!

                     SHEPHERD
          Hey!

                     LUCY
          You know--

                     SHEPHERD
          Talk to me.

                     LUCY
          Look--

     LUCY winds herself up. It would appear she's about to burst.
     She's about to say the hardest thing she's ever had to say in
     her life--

                     LUCY
                  (continuing)
          --sometimes when you talk, you say
          things I disagree with.

     SHEPHERD is stunned and totally confused...

                     SHEPHERD
          Almost every time I talk, I say
          things you disagree with.

                     LUCY
          I mean politically.

                    SHEPHERD
                  (pause)
          Politically?

                     LUCY
          Yes.

                     SHEPHERD
                  (pause)
          What do you mean?

     It just starts spilling out in a stream--

                     LUCY
          Yes. Okay. Yes. Sometimes, I mean,
          I'm not sure. You know a lot more
          than I do -- but still, I have these
          feelings, and I don't think they're
          wrong. Like, okay, for instance, I'm
          not so sure it's all right to burn a
          flag. I mean, it really bothers a lot
          of people, and I don't know why you
          think it's okay. I hear Senator
          Rumson talk, and some of the things
          he says sounds right to me, and I
          think, "God, am I like Bob Rumson?!
          I mean, Dad thinks he's a jerk. Dad
          hates this guy!
          Why am I agreeing with him" And then
          I think, "Well, maybe I'm not really
          like Bob Rumson, but maybe I'm not
          like Dad either." But the point is
          I'm the President's kid, and people
          pay attention to what I say, and if
          I say something different from what
          you say, it'll be embarrassing for
          you. So I can't just get up in social
          studies class and say whatever I want.

     SHEPHERD is silent...totally blown away...he had absolutely
     no idea...

     He stands up slowly and moves toward her...LUCY doesn't know
     what's coming...

                     SHEPHERD
                  (quietly)
          Stand up please.

     LUCY gets up slowly...

     She's never seen her father like this...

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          I want you to pay very close
          attention to what happens now.

     SHEPHERD knees down, cups her daughter's face in his hands,
     and gently kisses her forehead. He pulls her to him and
     holds her in a tight embrace...

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          In your lifetime, you will never
          embarrass me. It could never happen.
          You're not the President's daughter,
          Lucy, you're mine.
          And no one's gonna vote me out of
          that job. You're my daughter, and
          everything else is a distant second.
                  (more)
          School is for you, Lucy. You say
          what you want. The only thing you
          have to do to make me happy is
          come home at the end of the day.

     LUCY squeezes her dad tight...they hold the embrace for a
     long moment.

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          One more thing. I don't dislike
          Senator Rumson because of his
          political views. And even if you
          voted for everything he would vote
          for, that wouldn't make you like him.
          There's a fundamental difference
          between you and the Bob Rumsons of
          the world.

                     LUCY
          What's that?

                     SHEPHERD
          The difference is that he says he
          loves America. Saying you love
          America is easy. What takes
          character -- and this is what you
          have--

     SHEPHERD trails off, realizing he's about to quote Sydney...

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          What takes character is loving
          Americans.
                  (beat)

     And now it's as if SHEPHERD is waking himself up from the
     longest trip of his life...

     ...he looks over at the T.V. monitor..."No comment"...
     "No, I don't know how many other ways I can say it. The
     White House isn't getting involved in..."

                     SHEPHERD
                  (continuing)
          Luce, I gotta go.

                     LUCY
          Dad, is everything all right?

                     SHEPHERD
          Everything's fine. I'm just a little
          late for work.

     He heads for the door, shouting out as he goes--

                     SHEPHERD
          Somebody get my daughter some food!
          The girl's from Wisconsin, for cryin'
          out loud!

     And he's gone as we...

                                                          CUT TO:

     INT. THE PRESS BRIEFING ROOM - EARLY MORNING

     ROBIN is on her last drops of energy and patience.

                     REPORTER #4
          Robin, will the President ever
          respond to Senator Rumson's
          question about being a member of
          the American Civil Liberties Union?

     But instead of hands going up, the PRESS CORPS suddenly
     stands. ROBIN turns to see SHEPHERD stride in and step up to
     the podium.

And we are off into the well-know speech which is the high point of this movie.

I think it’s important to note that in the script I copied from IMSDb (which I have quoted here) there is what I believe to be a minor, but important, change in the speech as used in the movie. In the released movie, Shepherd says “…you're smarter than I am, because I didn't understand it until a few hours ago.” As originally written, if the script I have is correct, the original line was “…you're smarter than I am, because I didn't understand it until a couple of minutes ago.” (emphasis added).

I think this is important because it makes the change more about the (left out) scene with his daughter and less about just getting Sydney back, without, in my opinion, weakening the overall speech, which I think is very powerful and sums up a good deal of the point Sorkin was trying to make in the script. I think it also goes a long way towards explaining the reference to “…celebrate that in your classrooms,…” which I’ve never fully understood as a part of the discussion of free speech in this scene.

On the other hand, the scene which was cut does include a clear reference to an earlier scene, at Camp David, during which Sydney says “How do you have patience for people who claim they love America but clearly can't stand Americans?” in reference to something Bob Rumson has said, so it is made clear, I think, that while Sydney may have had some influence on Andy’s thinking, but it’s his daughter who truly precipitates “the speech” with her confusion about what’s been going on in her life. I think that’s important and changes how we should think about “the speech” a bit.

If you don’t know this speech, I’d encourage you to look it up online, or, better, watch the whole movie. I think it discusses ideas of MUCH greater importance than the specific discussion of Shepherd’s “crime bill,” environmental proposals, or romantic life.

While I think I can understand that Rob Reiner (the director) may have felt he had good reason for leaving this scene with Lucy out of the movie, I think that, in the long run, it would have been a better movie with it left in.

What do you think?

LLAP

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63 More Usual Stuff, Sort of...

7/8/2016

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Not too long ago, while I was reading Shakespeare Basics for Grown-ups by Foley and Coates, I ran across a most interesting statement in their discussion of some of Shakespeare’s late plays, which they refer to as “the Romances.” These are, mostly, some of the masque-like plays written, almost certainly to be performed at the Blackfriar’s, the “private” theatre used, and owned, by Shakespeare and his friends after 1608. They say, “This theater also allowed for plays that ranged further in time due to the necessity of act breaks for trimming the candles.” Think about it. It does make a deal of sense. We have every reason to believe that the earlier plays, at least, were written without formal act and scene divisions. These plays were, of course, written to be performed in the outdoor theatres which sprang up as theatre became professionalized and “business-like,” as opposed to the “amateur” religious plays of the Medieval Guilds. Now, as long as plays were performed outdoors, usually having to be done within time limits to satisfy the audience’s need to get home before dark, there was no need for acts, the scene divisions were efficiently indicated with an exit and entrance, and the plays had a highly “cinematic” quality to them.

Since the outdoor theatres were difficult to use during the winter, eventually the major companies established themselves with indoor (the so-called “private”) theatres, which required candles for light. Candles, of course, require trimming, so it is necessary to pause from time to time to do this. That suggests that the play would have had to be stopped, at least briefly. Playwrights (not known for being completely stupid, at least good ones) would, logically, have quickly developed points where a short pause would not too adversely affect the performance – hence, dividing the already present scenes up into “acts.”

As the Roman critic, Horace, for reasons that have never been completely explained, insisted that “No play should be longer or shorter than five acts,” it’s reasonable to assume that that number was rationalized as the proper number. Elizabethan popular playwrights, however, had been ignoring that dictum for a long time. Now, it may, of course, simply be that editors inserted breaks (to “correct Shakespeare’s mistakes”) when the books were published, as has been the common thought. Such divisions are certainly present as early as the First Folio and Neo-Classical scholarship would have demanded them to allow plays to be taken as serious literature. Still, it’s intriguing to think that there could have been a practical reason for their presence. Certainly, one can’t help but be struck at the awkwardness of the placement of some act breaks, especially in many of the early plays. So, it’s possible that the use of candles would, ultimately, dictate the need for “Act” divisions.

Is this provable? Of course it’s not. But, it does make a degree of sense and would help explain why some of Shakespeare’s plays (especially the later ones, after indoor theatres became more widely used) seem much more logical in their act divisions, than is true of some of the earlier ones. I think it’s possible that this is a plausible explanation, at least in some of the late plays.

I’ve recently taken considerable offense at what is becoming a common feature of a fair amount of advertising. That is, the featuring of "Real people. Not actors." Okay, I get the point. These are not paid spokespersons with a script about how great the product is. Of course, if ANY of these people ever appear in a second ad (I think I’m correct here) they will be required to join the union and become that dreaded and (apparently) totally untrustworthy non-person: an “ACTOR.” Still, I wish that advertisers would figure out that actors are, in fact, people. At least I don’t know of some alien hatchery which produces actors, so that they could reasonably be considered “non-people.” Oh, well, I suppose that this too will pass. I just hope that it’s sooner, rather than later.

Now, I know that I promised to get back to “more usual stuff” in my last posting, but this whole political thing has me too upset to have come up with more of the “usual stuff.” There is this election in about FOUR MONTHS, you see, and I’m already VERY over the whole process. Since it, and related stories, are about the only thing on the news, I don’t even have much in the way of robbery, murder, and mayhem to distract me from this political stuff. Now, don’t get me wrong, I DO care about politics. Political decisions are about the most important ones we citizens make. After all, the results of an election can have very wide ranging effects which will last for many years.

Still, the Republican Convention is, at this point, almost two weeks away and the Democratic one isn’t until after that. And we’ve been at this for about a year and a half already! The whole thing is too long, too expensive, too divisive, and, frankly, I’m fed up with it! Yes, I do intend to vote (although I won’t tell the world who I will vote for), but I wish we could handle this whole process with at least some small measure of dignity, decorum, and intelligence, which doesn’t seem to be the case at the moment. In fact, I’m reminded a bit of Coriolanus, but that’s another story.

In any event, as a consequence of all this ado, I’ve been having trouble focusing on the “more usual stuff.” So, the rest of this is going to be just a bit of a diversion, based on jokes, etc., which I’ve been collecting and seem amusing to me at this point in time. At least I’m finding them a bit of a diversion. I hope you do, as well. Enjoy!

General Stuff:

I ate a salad for dinner! Mostly croutons & tomatoes. Really just one big, round crouton covered with tomato sauce. And cheese. And mushrooms. OK FINE, it was a pizza. I ate a pizza.

I just did a week's worth of cardio after walking into a spider web. 

A boy asks his granny, “Have you seen my pills, they were labeled LSD?” Granny replies, “The hell with the pills, did you see the dragons in the kitchen?"

Then there’s the one about the dyslexic devil worshipper who sold his soul to Santa.

Ban pre-shredded cheese: make America grate again! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

I signed up for an exercise class and was told to wear loose fitting clothing. If I HAD any loose fitting clothing, I wouldn't need the class!

Sayings:

Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

I don't like political jokes. I've seen too many get elected.

I was going to give him a nasty look, but he already had one.

Money is the root of all wealth.

Women sometimes make fools of men, but most guys are the do-it-yourself types.

He who laughs last thinks slowest.

A politician is a fellow who will lay down your life for his country.
  Tex Guinan  

Social Commentary:

I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.

A well-worn one-dollar bill and a similarly distressed twenty-dollar bill arrived at a Federal Reserve Bank to be retired.  As they moved along the conveyor belt to be burned, they struck up a conversation.  

The twenty-dollar bill reminisced about its travels all over the country.   "I've had a pretty good life," the twenty proclaimed, "Why I've been to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, the finest restaurants in New York, performances on Broadway, and even a cruise to the Caribbean."  

"Wow!" said the one-dollar bill. "You've really had an exciting life!"  "So, tell me," says the twenty, "where have you been throughout your lifetime?"

The one-dollar bill replies, "Oh, I've been to the Methodist Church, the Presbyterian church, the Baptist Church, the Lutheran Church and to the Episcopal Church."  The twenty-dollar bill interrupts, "What's a church?"

I told my son "I want you to marry a girl of my choice!" He said "NO!" I told him she’s Bill Gates daughter!!!! He said "OKAY!"

Got in contact with Bill Gates & told him "I want your daughter to marry my son!" He said "NO!" Told him my son was the CEO of the World Bank! He said "OKAY!"

Went to the Chairman of the World Bank & told him to make my son CEO of the Bank! He said "NO!" Told him my son is Bill Gates' Son in Law! He said "OKAY!"

And that, my friends, is the essence of how politics works…

This isn’t made up. It’s comes from an actual sign we saw on our recent trip:
We saw a sign at the side of the road said, “Purgatory Emporium Antique Mall” which we found amusing. (Bonnie said that the business was probably named by a husband who had had to spend to much time in such places with his wife.)

I discovered later that it is an actual store (see below) and that it was actually named for Purgatory Mountain in Virginia, which it is near.

Questions… Some with answers:

Have you heard the song about a tortilla. Well, actually it’s more of a wrap.

Ever stop to think… and forget to start again?

A sign seen for a restaurant: “Peace, Love and Barbecue!” Does this mean that the meat was smoked with pot?

If tomatoes are technically a fruit, is ketchup a smoothie?

Q: How many seconds are there in one year? A: 12 of them: January 2nd, February 2nd, March 2nd, April 2nd, May 2nd, June 2nd, July 2nd, August 2nd, September 2nd, October 2nd, November 2nd, December 2nd.

If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, then doesn’t it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked, and dry cleaners depressed?

Do Lipton Tea employees get to take “coffee breaks?”

Does the little mermaid wear an algebra?

LLAP

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64 Mostly About a Movie, but Politics, too, in a way…

63 More Usual Stuff, Sort of...

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