I saw “W.” last night, and it was a fascinating political biography, although I thought Condoleezza Rice’s portrayal was overdone, but given Oliver Stone’s (who is actually a decorated Vietnam War veteran) signature directing and screenwriting, I wonder if his caricature or exaggeration of Rice was purposeful.
During the movie, it was oddly easy to feel sorry for George Walker Bush. However, the movie to me was about a man who constantly failed, and fought his father’s shadow (and his family name). His plunge into the presidency was obviously for all the wrong reasons, and no doubt history will judge GWB’s presidency as one of the worst, if not the worst U.S. presidency ever.
During one scene in the movie where GWB met Laura for the first time, there was an odd shot showing a corncob on the ground. Certainly, the corncob had meaning. After some thought, I took the corncob as symbolism for excess, wastefulness, and our worship of things, which aren’t necessary for our happiness, but we rely on them to makes us happy—even if for just a short while. From the Phoenix New Times:
SF: In the scene where George is meeting Laura for the first time at this backyard barbecue, as this mutual friend is walking George across the lawn to introduce him to Laura, you cut to this close-up of the woman’s high-heeled shoe stepping on a corncob in the grass. That struck me as an iconographic Oliver Stone moment.
OS: People mention that scene — it’s so bizarre. I really cracked down on myself, because I got so noticed [in my other movies] for stuff like that. Frankly, I tried not to put myself in this movie, because Bush is a sensitive issue for many Americans, and I don’t want to insult or hurt Bush. My mom, who’s a Republican, said, “Don’t demean him.” I did cut the corncob thing. I said, “Let’s get rid of this. It’s a nice touch, but I don’t want to have people noticing this.” And all four of my editors lobbied for me to put it back. The other day, a young critic said, “What is that about? Is that about ethanol?” To me, it seems a sign of excess. People grow up on excess in Texas.
On the Net: Jeb Bush dismisses Oliver Stone film W as ‘hooey’:
Jeb Bush, the younger brother of President George W Bush, has dismissed Oliver Stone’s portrayal of his family in the biopic W as “hooey” and questioned why the director did not seek to interview him or other relatives as part of his research.
Hat tip to Kevin.
Buck… buddy… “biography”??!!
Oh gawd, don’t tell me… the next thing you’re going to say is that Michael Moore’s films are documentaries.
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It took Joe the Plumber, looking at Obama square smack in the face and saying “Your new tax plan is going to tax me more, isn’t it?”, to take the wind out of Obama’s sails and make him finally admit to the whole world what’s really on his agenda…
…to “spread the wealth around”.
I hope that President Obama plans to give every tax paying citizen in this country a jar of vaseline for Christmas, to ease the pain of what’s coming over the next four years.
Gah!!
I’ll just be happy when this election is over so we can like… change the subject already.
Have a good weekend, Buck.
Andrea drinks Kool Aid.
hey…
We’ve been bent over for 8 years. They’ve just convinced you otherwise. As far as Obama goes, he’s just telling you like it is. Who else is gonna pay for this gawd-awful mess? And P.S., if you haven’t heard yet, Joe the plumber wasn’t a licensed plumber at all. He doesn’t even own his own business. As for small business folks, their taxes won’t be raised. I think y’all need to look at the facts instead of the rhetoric. Anyone who wants another 8 years of the same corruption and misery just isn’t thinking right.
Do some homework before Tuesday. You’ll be glad you did.