The Princess is in Another Castle

May 19th, 2006General2 comments

A metaphor for life: After dodging flying hammers and pools of lava and jumping on a reptillian fellow, you bust into the castle to rescue the Princess… But then you find out that the Princess isn’t even in this castle.

Not this castle. Another castle.

You now have a choice: Give up or keep moving forward onto the next castle, into the next struggle.

But there is a third way. Forget about the Princess and just play. “Screw the Princess! I’m here to PLAY, little man! Even if she gets rescued I’m gonna still keep playing! Now get the F outta my way!”

Yes, that will do.

I really like watching movies that I last saw when I was a kid because now I can watch them with adult eyes and understand new things.

For instance: Spike Lee’s Malcolm X, in my eyes his masterpiece alongside Mo’ Better Blues as a hair-close second.

In the scene where Denzel’s Malcolm Little (before his conversion to Islam and his years in prison) is making out with that luscious blonde in the car — Spike cuts away to the car’s exterior details. Its creamy finish, its sweeping body, the angelic form of the Cadillac hood ornament rising.

This is the life Malcolm was tempted with, he says with his visuals — this rich, white, dreamlike life that Malcolm will later rebel against because of his love for his people. Spike cuts away from the blonde and to the car, shows us that this dream is only material, only an illusion.

I’ll probably watch this movie when I’m 40 and still get something new out of it.