Timbuk 3--"A Sinful Life" (mp3)
The old conundrum has reared its ugly head again: can or should we separate the art from the artist?
Case in point: last weekend, I went to see The Ghost Writer. Good movie, well-done, well-acted by the likes of Ewan MacGregor, Pierce Brosnan, and Kim Catrall. I know I'm late to this party; it's showing at the cheap theater in town some 4 months after its initial release.
The problem is the movie was directed by.....................................Roman Polanski.
You remember Roman. Beautiful, young pregnant actress wife killed by members of the Charles Manson family as part of their California rampage in 1969. Polanski later accused of drugging and forcing sex upon (aka raping) a very young girl. He flees country to France rather than face charges. He produces a number of well-regarded movies over the past several decades. He is apparently able to move fairly freely about Europe and elsewhere, as long as he doesn't attempt to return to the United States. Except, the last time he tries it, he gets arrested. And now there is a major effort to extradite him to the United States so that he can face charges.Directors and Hollywood-types who have tried to defend him have been raked over the coals in the press.
And probably with good reason: if you read the particulars of his actions with the girl, you would, no doubt, be disgusted with him as a human being. It's rape, it's pedophilia, it's sick and twisted and immoral. You may well wish that justice be served after all these many years.
And probably with good reason: if you read the particulars of his actions with the girl, you would, no doubt, be disgusted with him as a human being. It's rape, it's pedophilia, it's sick and twisted and immoral. You may well wish that justice be served after all these many years.
And I think he's guilty, too. I don't feel the slightest need to try to defend or justify him. I'm willing to make that judgement, even in the land of innocent until one pleads guilty to a lesser charge.
But the issue here is his movies. People questioned my decision to see The Ghost Writer, as they have no doubt done with other people, given the plethora of boycott-related posts around the web. As they did when I went to see The Last Temptation of Christ at Eastgate mall back in the 80's and had to cross a picket line of Christians and klansmen to get to the ticket booth. Obviously, this film hasn't generated that kind of fervor. But still.Is everyone who sees this movie, who acted in it, who worked on it, who promoted it, are they all complicit in Polanski's crime?
See, the problem I have is the timing. Today, there is a quite a stigma attached to Polanski because of the media coverage his arrest received last year. But those voices were silent, or at least relatively quiet, when Polanski had critical and/or commercial successes with movies like Tess, Frantic, or The Pianist. The latter even earned him the Academy Award for Best Director and a standing ovation at the Oscars.
And while I know that Hollywood can often display questionable morals and that I can criticize those morals as much as anyone, it's also possible that Hollywood, by its very nature, is skilled at separating the artist from his art, and so their applause was not for the rapist, but for the director.
They're the same person, though, right? Agreed. But aren't they just two extreme sides of everyone we know? We may not know anyone that famous and artistically-accomplished and we may not know anyone that depraved, but the fact is that we will give those we do know any number of breaks, allowing their plusses to outweigh their minuses. Maybe I shouldn't have seen The Ghost Writer, but if that were to be the case, I shouldn't have seen any of those other Polanski films either. It's not like my decision of whether or not to see a Polanski movie just got more ethical that it ever was. And should I not visit his earlier catalog either? Is it now wrong to revisit classics like Rosemary's Baby or Chinatown because they were directed by a tainted director, albeit one whose taint had not yet happened when those films were made?
On those days when I'm an asshole, does that fact negate everything I've ever done?
Anyway, I continue to work on this dilemna. And the movie was quite good. I recommend it.
Timbuk 3's brief reign in the mid-to-late 80's produced some well-recorded, catchy tunes. Available where mp3's are sold.
And while I know that Hollywood can often display questionable morals and that I can criticize those morals as much as anyone, it's also possible that Hollywood, by its very nature, is skilled at separating the artist from his art, and so their applause was not for the rapist, but for the director.
They're the same person, though, right? Agreed. But aren't they just two extreme sides of everyone we know? We may not know anyone that famous and artistically-accomplished and we may not know anyone that depraved, but the fact is that we will give those we do know any number of breaks, allowing their plusses to outweigh their minuses. Maybe I shouldn't have seen The Ghost Writer, but if that were to be the case, I shouldn't have seen any of those other Polanski films either. It's not like my decision of whether or not to see a Polanski movie just got more ethical that it ever was. And should I not visit his earlier catalog either? Is it now wrong to revisit classics like Rosemary's Baby or Chinatown because they were directed by a tainted director, albeit one whose taint had not yet happened when those films were made?
On those days when I'm an asshole, does that fact negate everything I've ever done?
Anyway, I continue to work on this dilemna. And the movie was quite good. I recommend it.
Timbuk 3's brief reign in the mid-to-late 80's produced some well-recorded, catchy tunes. Available where mp3's are sold.
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