“When I was 10 years old, I was an aristocrat. I rode around in taxis, and all I thought about was art and music. Now, I’m 36, and all I think about is money.”
-Wally Shawn, “My Dinner with Andre”
Have I mentioned recently how much I love this movie? I saw it first when I was in college, and it’s stayed with me ever since then. My friend Elizabeth recently gave it to me on DVD, and I watched it again last week. It’s an unlikely masterpiece, since it’s hard to imagine sustaining a two-hour movie with a conversation between any two people, no matter how interesting. But it works. And each time I see it, it’s like a kaleidoscope, catching the light in different ways.
One thing I know: as much as I want to be like Andre, I’m really Wally at heart. I want my electric blanket. But like Wally, once in a great while other people can give me a glimpse into that other world, where my electric blanket isn’t all that important.
Highly recommended. And let me know what you think in the comments.
To my shame, I’ve never seen it. But you’ve inspired me to go in search of a copy.
John regularly tells me I’m a bad boyfriend when we get reminded of yet another brilliant film that I haven’t forced him to see it yet, and “My Dinner With Andre” is one of the most truly amazing and transcendent films I’ve ever seen. … Can we borrow it from you sometime? 🙂
____________
I go now.