Things that Sang to Me #1
a book, a movie, a TV show, a song, a poem
Book
I’m working on a novella about a momentous hunt on my reservation so Ernest Hemingway’s work came to mind.
I hadn’t read The Old Man and the Sea in at least twenty years. And I haven’t seen the film adaptation since the 1970s. But, wow, this novella is so exciting. I sped through it in one sitting while I ate lunch in a neighborhood pub.
I love this description of the power and delicacy of fishing and of the fish. But The Old Man and the Sea is more than a story about human versus animal. This book is a spiritual and physical journey. It’s about faith and doubt.
I think that old man’s swordfish is really that old man’s God.
Movie
At a young age, I was obsessed with Charles Manson and his cult. Most Americans were similarly obsessed. One of his mass-murdering followers, Leslie Van Houten, is soon to be paroled after five decades in prison. I’ve conflicted by her impending release. I believe in rehabilitation. I believe that she’s been rehabilitated. But does she deserve freedom? I don’t think so. Her crimes were too horrific.
During the late 60s and early 70s, in the same era in which Van Houten committed her crimes, the serial killer named Zodiac was terrorizing the San Francisco Bay area.
I’ve seen Zodiac, the movie, at least twenty times. And I’ve rewatched this particular scene more times than I can count.
The movie was first released in 2007 but I watched it on 35mm film this last Friday at the Grand Illision Theatre here in Seattle.
It’s a great and disturbing movie.
If you know the true story of the Zodiac then you know that he was never caught. There were a few strong suspects but all of them are dead now, as are most of the police officers and journalists who worked on the case.
This movie asks a powerful question: What happens to people whose life mission is to solve crimes when they can’t find one of the most famous serial killers of all time?
TV Show
This limited series stars Idris Elba.
Yeah, Idris Elba trying to save a hijacked plane. That’s all you need to know! It’s an old-fashioned thriller.
Song
Louise Post of Veruca Salt, a great 90s band, has a new solo album out and I love this tune.
Poem
Andrea Cohen is one of my favorite poets. She’s written some amazing short poems and I’m highly influenced by her.
My former mother-in-law terrified me and I used to wonder if maybe she was the zodiac killer. That insane and unlikely thought kept me up any nights I spent under her roof. A tall manly woman, she smiled every time she talked about the zodiac killer, a private kind of smile. She lived in the Napa/Bay Area at the time of the murders, working on her nursing degree, and she knew a couple of the victims. Perhaps that’s why she brought up the Zodiac Killer so often. Or perhaps she just noticed such talk disturbed me. Anyway, my divorce was a happy one, made even more celebratory because I never had to see that woman again. I’m happy to say I’m certain my current mother-in-law is not a serial killer.
I love seeing people do this. I think more of us should share the things we love. Especially older media that has stood the test of time but might be dismissed by younger consumers.