More on the death of Cormac McCarthy: 

From AS…

“Last night, in honor of Cormac McCarthy’s passing, D and I watched The Road. We both read the book years ago and didn’t remember most of the details. As the movie rolled, my memories of the book slowly came back.

“It was so well done, and the acting was off the charts. Robert Duvall had a small part, but, as usual, his part was memorable. Somehow, the director made the movie darker than the book.

“I know you like movies that make you think and have questions that spill over to the next day. I’m glad I saw this one. It was terrific. But I prefer lighter movies. When it ended, I felt like taking my own life.”

My Response: I hear you. I have seen The Road and read the book. And I agree. The movie was a bit darker than the book.

As for “lighter” movies, I’m not against them. I watch my share. But I have to admit: When it comes to all forms of entertainment and amusement, I try to keep my consumption as healthy as I can bear. I do that not because I want people to look up to me (although I do), but because I believe 100% that the value one gets from entertainment is directly correlated to the mental and emotional work one must do to consume it.

And because, as everyone who knows me knows, I take enormous spectrum-like pleasure in sorting and arranging every aspect of my conscious existence, I’ve developed an informal (okay, I’m lying – an anally retentive) hierarchy for video entertainment that I use to decide what sort of movie to watch.

At the top of the list is, of course, big, dark, idea-laden dramas like Schindler’s List that have both tremendous verticality and horizontality, and that change me in some significant and lasting way.

When I don’t have quite enough mental and emotional strength for those, I opt for beautifully made and emotionally touching movies – domestic dramas, historical romances, lyrical adventures, etc. – that are smart and well photographed so that they leave me feeling like I’ve somehow raised my personal humanity somehow, even if it only lasts a day or two. (For my taste, the best of these are made in China and Japan. Shoplifters, for example.)

When I feel too lazy and/or sloppy for those, I go for spoofs like Monty Python’s Life of Brian or comic family dramas – particularly Indian domestic comedies like Monsoon Wedding.

And sometimes, not often, but sometimes, I have an appetite for junk. On the recommendation of MM recently, I watchedDirty Grandpa with Robert De Niro. I could give you a dozen ways Dirty Grandpa is juvenile and pandering, but I laughed out loud at least a half-dozen times.

From DF…

“You did a great job on your piece on McCarthy – better than the obits I’ve been reading in the big publications.”