12/27/2006
The Good Shepard
There is a lot of reality to the movie The Good Shepard. Maybe I ought to have seen a comedy on my birthday since I became withdrawn and depressed after watching the movie.
Today I thought of a comedy about Iranians who get an atom bomb and blow up New York City for the fun of it, so as to shake off my depression.
Homosexuals are inherently trained to be spies since they start out with a secret.
My study of spies and espionage prompted me to tell my daughter that she has a right to her secrets.
We are all spies in our private lives even with our secret thoughts that we never have need or time to tell anyone.
Edward Wilson is James Angleton, or the same character of Harlots Ghost by Norman Mailer, which I consider his best book since The Naked and the Dead.
Similarities between the movie and Mr. Mailer’s book are great even so far as the tone and rythum of the movie.
There is truth to both works that comes from the reality of the story of these people and the conflicts of our times.
The bottom line is that it is all personal.
President Bush doesn’t seem to get that when we consider his handling of the letter by President Ahmadinejad.
-but that is an aside.
Current realities of relentless war have intruded into my thoughts and I think in counterpoint that the attack on Saddam was maybe too personal.
Money and Ideology, Compromise and Ego are what make spies do what they do.
Spontanious affection also makes people do what they do.
None of us is invulnerable.
We are vulnerable and Americans are very vulnerable because we want to tell people our secrets.
The Good Shepard was extremely well photographed and I was pleased to see in the credits the names of two people I worked with in New York, Jimmy Mah and Peter Betula.
Jimmy was Best Boy Electric, and Peter may have been Key Grip.
I’d have to find an old Call Sheet to find the confirmation for Peter’s last name spelling but it does please me that two of my old friends and co-workers worked in important positions on the movie.
Russell