On Versions

The quadruple feature last night due to trouble sleeping began with Be Kind Rewind, followed by Some Like it Hot, Rules of Attraction, and ending with the pilot episode of Dawson's Creek.

Despite poor reviews, Be Kind Rewind was amazingly enjoyable. I feel like critics are missing it. It is not simply an ode to independent film as much as it is an ode to making yr own culture.

Sleater-Kinney's "#1 Must Have" describes the process from sub to mass culture. In this instance it refers to RiotGrrrl and how it started as something small but was co-opted and eventually appeared on Spice Girl t-shirts.

The song ends with the line "Now is the time to invent.invent.invent.invent.invent."

I see a similar thread in Michele Gondry's film. The idea that you would be so much happier seeing movies you were a part of seems so true to me.

I didn't like how Hollywood came in acting like they owned the intellectual property to Ghostbusters. An idea I came to wrestle with while writing my thesis, is I see something my own in the movies I watch. I don't see large themes, or metaphors. I see things my own way. And I think there is a little of that in all of our film experiences. In that way intellectual property laws fall apart. We all create versions of the things we consume. We can call it ours.

I'm in the middle of reading Bret Easton Ellis's Glamorama. It's been tough to get through so I briefly revisited Rules of Attraction as per Roger Avery's version. How good is that movie. Watching it again, I don't see how any movie can be considered unadaptable, Avery's film is unbelievable brilliant.