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CINEMA SEEN - "Well "Placed" Thoughts" By William Margold Throughout my life I have been very fortunate to have always had "special places" where I could "escape to" when I needed to "get away." The three quoted elements of the preceding sentence should strongly suggest to YOU that this is going to be one of "those columns." From the moment that I was exposed to "Song of the South" (a Walt Disney film released in 1946), and was made aware of something called "A Laughing Place"--- I began seeking out "my spots." Before providing you with an emotionally-charged geographical-site based tour of my life, I thought that I would mention that I've been told that my first steps into the world of film criticism were taken during "Song of the South" when I apparently got so upset with the way that Bre'r Fox was treating Bre'r Rabbit that I toddled (I was only three years old) up to the movie screen...and kicked a hole in it! While not all that private, the old Muscle Beach area right next to The Santa Monica Pier during the early 1950's---particularly on late Sunday afternoons when I went "bottle collecting"---is still very special to me, and in fact, is featured on my website: www.billmargold.com--- where I can be seen sitting with the apartment house that I lived in as my backdrop. Less than a mile north on Pacific Coast Highway nestled into the eroding Palisades was a place that I discovered in 1960, that I called "The Castle." What appeared to have been the start of a fancy hotel, complete with a huge swimming pool, had apparently been abandoned during its early building phase, and had been left to the elements. I was living on Second St. near Montana Ave. at the time, and was obsessed with BB-rifles. "The Castle" (the barest concrete bones of it remain to this day) became my firing range. Literally thousands of bottles were shattered into eternity, as I created elaborate war games wherein the glass objects became the opposing force. And I, acting very much like Audie Murphy, was "An Army of One." And don't think that I came away unscathed, as many times I was nicked and gouged by the flying shards of my victims. A beachfront near Malibu became "my spot" during the mid-Sixties, where I became addicted to "body-surfing"---and thanks to a friend of mine having a cozy little beach house, I spent many sun-baked afternoons slamming recklessly into the unforgiving shoreline. The "pocket park" at 1100 Coldwater Canon became my supreme "Laughing Place" of all-time, as I participated in a very special form of highly competitive, fanatically ritualistic touch football there from 1978-1994. Although the field was destroyed by the January 1994 earthquake, I still return to it once a year, as written about in my September 23, 2004 Cinema Seen column entitled "The Door." But now, I have a new spot---on top of the windblown parking lot of The Howard Hughes Center in Culver City overlooking among other things, my favorite movie theater---The Bridge. With an incomparable view of the hustle and bustle that is the 405 Freeway below me, combined with the image of a classy graveyard slowly sinking into the dusk, I am virtually "reborn" every time I have a chance to visit that soothing setting. Sitting in my van, catching my breath and feeling my mind becoming uncluttered---this is the magic of the moments that I find so richly rewarding when I visit my latest (and perhaps last) "Laughing Place." Which brings me to the reason that this page is illuminated with artwork from V FOR VENDETTA, which besides being the Best Film that I've seen (so far) in 2006, was viewed at The Bridge on its IMAX screen. It was one of those very special Saturday afternoons---spent with my ebullient friend and magnificent web site designer Jon B.---that began with a delicious meal at Pann's (on La Cienega where Centinela and La Tijera collide), and which continued through the compelling effort from ALL involved (particularly Natalie Portman and Stephen Rea) that is the James McTeigue-directed V FOR VENDETTA. Excitingly evocative, if for no other reason than the futuristic (London-set, but it could just as easily be Washington D.C. or the San Fernando Valley) tale based on David Lloyd's graphic novel (adapted to the screen by The Wachowski Brothers) is the very essence of the rebellion against tyrannical forces (some of which even mask their endeavors by hiding behind a smartly reworked image of the American flag) that constantly reignites the passion in my soul to pursue matters of "truth and honor" as well as of "loyalty and friendship." And when those cornerstones of my existence need a place to be re-energized, it's very comforting know that I can always "go up on the roof." end NOTE: Originally published in LA Xpress, May 11, 2006, issue. |