Farce
I enjoy the films of the Coen brothers. I suppose what made me resist adding Burn After Reading (2008) to my Netfilx list was the assumption that it was about politics. I should have read more about it, even though I want to know as little as possible about a movie going into a viewing. Although it is set in Washington and several of the characters are insiders, politics has very little to do with the story. It is a first class farce. The plot is set in motion when an ego-maniacal CIA analyst played by John Malkovich resigns following a demotion. He seeks revenge by writing a memoir. He loses a floppy disc of it in a health club, where characters played by Frances McDormand and Brad Pitt see the possibility of financial reward in its return. Misadventure as only the Coen brothers fashion ensues. George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, Richard Jenkins, Elizabeth Marvel and J.K. Simmons are along for the wild ride. My only quibble is the abrupt ending, although everything is tied up. I wanted more. It runs only 96 minutes. 294,000 users at IMDb have rated it, forging to a consensus of seven on a scale of ten. Made on a budget of $37 million, it brought in $163 million worldwide, earning far more overseas than in America. Were the brothers making a statement about the type of people who work in DC or about security agencies in general? Perhaps, but I see the film more as lively farce about the human condition. Several of the characters are broad caricatures. The F-Bomb is used liberally. Although there’s violence, there’s far less than most flicks. I’m glad I finally got around to it. A note about Tilda Swinton’s character: it was grounded, normal, so unlike the basket case she seems in public, and infinitely stabler than the other characters in the montage below:
Here’s a headline I couldn’t resist from nypost.com, which fits perfectly within the theme of today’s blog: “ABC told Batman actor Burt Ward to take pills to shrink penis.”
And here’s one from foxnews.com: “Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop is selling a vagina-scented candle, and it’s already sold out.”
The January doldrums continued at the floating book shop despite the spectacular spring-like weather. My thanks to to Bill Brown, author of Words and Guitar: A History of Lou Reed’s Music, who bought Harpo Speaks . . . About New York by Harpo Marx; and to the lovely woman who donated two thick cook books in pristine condition.
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