Tag: movies

Genius or Madness? Must There be Both?

I recently pondered that age-old question how far is the distance between genius and madness?

From where I’m sitting not so very far.

It seems those whom have been gifted with great talent are also cursed with torment and a cornucopia of demons.

I may be wrong, as it has been known to happen for sure. Yet when we look at some of the great artists, they seem to have carried a great deal of baggage on their trip through life.

I will focus on music and begin with Michael Jackson. Now of course there are those who may argue it was his upbringing and not his genius that caused his behavior and demons.

I imagine it was both. Yet watching him perform there is a certain tension one feels that he may explode from holding all that talent in and BOOM!

It’s as though if he sings one more chorus and does one more moonwalk he will literally explode.

His body seems unable to contain whats inside him.

No one who has seen him perform, either live or on screen can argue this is a man with an overabundance of talent. A gift that exceeds most by so far, it’s impossible to ignore.

It’s also quite obvious his demons are as great as his talent. His behavior cried out he was hiding pain. Yet, I imagine he was happy in his way.

Any man that possesses two battling spirits must be confused. The Michael that created and felt the excitement of performing and executing his art. Then there was the other Michael. Unsure of how to contain such a vast amount of talent. It must have been difficult to be him. I am not going to use this platform to judge him or his actions. I am far from convinced he was as kind or caring a person as he seemed.

In fact, I am sure he could be relentless and unscrupulous to a frightening degree. I’m just assuming a dark side to his character, but if I’m wrong, I apologize. Michael Jackson was not a man who felt or acted in small ways. It was all over the top and beyond.  

Did we enjoy his music? Yes. Did we enjoy watching him perform? Yes, as well. Do any of us really believe he had a handle on his demons? Of course not. Yet it didn’t seem to stop us from being amazed by his talent. We accepted his genius was simply too much for him to control. Watching him perform one ran the gamut of emotions from excitement to awe and ultimately confusion. Confused his extraordinary gifts also seemed to be his greatest curse.

If we’re talking about those who are blessed with enormous talent one must never forget Bob Fosse. Another prime example of a man with extraordinary abilities to transfix, excite and move us, yet unable to contain his demons.

Yes, there is a pattern emerging here and it’s a scary one.

I was a great fan of Fosse since the golden age of MGM musicals. They were catnip to me and I reveled in watching Howard Keel sing, and Ann Miller and Fosse dance. There were so many great talents displayed there, but even at a young age I couldn’t take my eyes off Fosse. Something about the way he leaped higher, moved more stealthily and had that IT factor was never lost on me. He seemed to fly higher through the air, smile wider, engage more; he was simply Fosse.

He went on to increase his gifts with the advent of directing in addition to choreography. Broadway became a perfect vehicle to display his genius. Fans appreciated every moment spent watching Damn Yankees, Sweet Charity or Pajama Game.

Cinema welcomed him to create an unforgettable adaptation of Cabaret and his public ignored the drugs, infidelity and self- destructive behavior he exhibited.

But that’s what we do with our idols. We accept somehow there’s a price to pay for such gifts that rise so far above us mere mortals, we’ve stopped questioning why.

As someone who actually watched up close and personal as Robin Williams performed onstage, I can tell you I believe that man’s brain did not work like other people’s.

Now of course we all know, and I freely admit that yes, comics are a bit, shall we say, off, to start with. But true comedy genius reaches another level. Robin achieved that level. Watching any great comic is a double sensory experience. Our eyes and ears are working together to bring us the message that will click in our brains and spark our funny bone.

Robin added another intensity to our sight. One could almost see his mind working as hilarity spewed from his mouth. Constantly and consistently nonstop.

It was as if you’d boarded a train going one hundred miles an hour and had no desire to jump off.

Robin was rare. I can tell you there are many brilliant and hilarious comedians, many I have been privileged to know and work with, but Robin was unique. His brain took off like a rocket ship and the stage was his launching pad.

There are many other great talents I could name, and many although incredibly talented owe much of their pain to drugs.

I imagine some used drugs or alcohol to soothe the pain of genius.

So many gifted people the likes of Van Gogh, Beethoven, Orwell, Frida Kahlo, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison, Hemingway and countless other musicians, writers, poets and artists created and suffered simultaneously. And no list of gifted performers would ever be complete without the incredible Sammy Davis Jr. He made it all look so damn easy. The man oozed talent.

Despite the tortured aspects of their personalities, they used their gifts. I cannot say whether their pain caused them to be greater or less.

If one is honest there seems to be a great many people besides artists battling demons. I only know when one looks at the geniuses we admire, they seem to have greatly suffered.

I for one am grateful they fought to excel and create as we are the benefactors of their talents. Especially now, the world is a more musical, beautiful and uplifting place because they did.

I’m a Superhero! Guess Who.

Why Do Superheroes Wear Masks?

Proving how bored I was the other day, I actually spent time pondering why heroes need a mask.

I can definitely see the benefit of a bad guy covering up to hide from his crimes, but why would the Lone Ranger have to wear a mask? Wouldn’t that be taking humility a bit too far? And couldn’t someone follow him and check out where he lived to see his real identity? Duh.

And let’s get real here… Superman and those Clark Kent glasses? Really? Gee what a great disguise. I’d never be able to tell it was him. How stupid were the people who worked at the Daily Planet anyway? Wouldn’t the voice give it away even if they were too dumb to recognize him? And why didn’t Lois Lane have the hots for Clark Kent? Did the glasses turn her off? I mean he did look smarter with the glasses.

Zorro wore a mask, Batman, okay every superhero almost. Except the Incredible Hulk. But seriously how many gigantic green guys are there anyway? I’m just guessing here, but I don’t think a mask would hide Hulk’s identity.

The kind of confusing thing about the hero stuff and mask wearing wasn’t lost on me.

Why didn’t Roy Rogers were a mask?

He was a good guy who caught the bad guys? Most cowboy good guys and sheriffs didn’t see the need to cover their faces. In fact I think they wanted the bad guys to know who they were.

When Jim Arness walked into Miss Kitty’s bar I think he wanted to make a statement. Like “I’m here so don’t even think about it. And don’t make me call Chester.”

I do realize that many heroes wore not only a mask, but also a costume.

How did they have time to change so fast when the bad guy was doing his worst?

Like Bruce Wayne is in the Batcave just chugging some expensive wine. Oops! There goes the Bat signal mid sip. But he’s in his Saville Road suit. So he has to run into the bedroom, change into that elastic batsuit. By the way have you ever tried to put on Spanx? It takes a while. Then he runs out to the Bat garage. Calls Robin to get his ass in gear and the two of them jump into the Batmobile and arrive just in time to find out the bad guys left twenty minutes before.

Timing a little off there spandex guy?

So why do Superheroes have to hide from the world?

Isn’t it good to show yourself and be forthright about the good deeds you do?

Perhaps it has something to do with the meaning of true charity being done in secret. But is being a superhero charity?

Actually, kind of silly to wear a disguise if it isn’t even partly adequate when we all knew Clark was Superman, and Zorro Don Diego de la Vega. And how obvious was it for heaven’s sake if you saw some guy and an Indian companion with no mask, DUH? How’s that working for you? “Hi Tonto, who’s your friend on the white horse?”

Of course, the costumes do work for some. Would be hard to recognize Tony Stark in that tin can. Or figure out who was hiding inside that Spidey get up or those Black Panther duds.

Yet I still can’t think of any really good reason why these heroes need masks. Were they afraid someone would sneak up in the night and hurt them?

Seriously, if someone surprised Superman could they actually do some damage? What are we, stupid?

Wouldn’t it be smarter to advertise you’re a hero? That way people would see you and say, “Oops, better not blow up that building right now. Batman is idling in his Batmobile over there.”

Let’s be honest, being a superhero is cool. I’m sure you get the best tables in restaurants and even when the place is full you could just drop your name and they’d find room. And not next to the kitchen either.

If you risk your life, shouldn’t some perks come along with that? You should even be able to cut in line at Starbuck’s. Okay, right, there may be some pushback there.

Being a superhero can’t be easy. The cleaning bill on your costume must be astronomical.

Superman’s costume was indestructible. I don’t think the corner cleaners can just throw that in the drum with Aunt Sophie’s party dress.

I imagine the whole question is pretty much one of those forced-to-admit-heroes-wear-masks-but-damned-if-I-know-why moments.

I get that this is definitely not one those mysteries of the world that the Sphinx need tackle. Yet it does point to all the silly stuff we confront each day that makes us scratch our heads in wonder.

Like why vegetables have no calories and chocolate eclairs are fattening? My answer…God must be a man cause no woman would sign off on that one.

So until someone can answer the question of why masks are required accessories for a Superhero wardrobe, I’ll keep it on my what’s-up-with-that  list.

According to ichat this is why the masks. Superheroes wear masks primarily to protect their secret identities, ensuring the safety of their loved ones from retaliation. Beyond security, masks create an aura of mystery, establish a unique persona, and symbolize a shift from a normal life to a heroic role, often adopted after a traumatic or defining moment.  

It all sounds very reasonable to me. But that kind of goes against the whole Clark Kent glasses thing I’d say.

Honestly Superman, you seriously need to commit to the whole mask thing. I mean this half in half out bit, not cool.

If I were a superhero I’d wear tons of make-up, get plastic surgery regularly, eat like a pig and then Ozempic myself back to normal.

Oh wait, everyone is doing that now. Perhaps Superheroes are just being honest and open when they wear a mask. After all, don’t all of us wear a mask at times? Actually, sometimes many masks that change with the moment. Is covering one’s face just protection from the world? No matter how brave, we all need to hide away sometimes.

You have to admit Superheroes do their hiding with a lot of style. And that spandex is darn flattering.  Maybe a cool Spanx costume to cover the entire body? Hey, just thinking out loud here.