esrosedotblog

SLOWLY

I have been thinking about the guys, all ballplayers, in BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY (see below). It is interesting that none of them are presented as 'smart' or educated. They are, indeed, wise and intelligent; but they are blatantly common and relentlessly human; a rare commodity in any film role, let alone ten or twelve of them. These frailties are not used to any comic effect in the sense of 'laughing at'. Rather, it is more endearing; laughing with. Everyone knows that they are not the brightest bulb and do not try to mask it. Humility comes to mind.

Yeh, I know this is only a movie but it is one that stuck with me and has levels beyond the story. It is a presentation of a way of life which us educated 'fellers' might want to emulate. Simplicity. What you see is what you get. Enjoying each other as a primary goal. And so on. I think that it is a delicate process to make a piece of art about being uncommonly common and not make it look like farce or making fun of or, worse, corny. The last line of the film is "From now on, I rag no one". It is a great line and one that follows a whole film full of lessons in how that works.