June 19, 2021

I had a dream last night that I was with a group of four and we had to participate in like a reality TV show of death. I don't know if it was actually televised ("actually" televised -- ha), but it was similar to wipe out or American Ninja Warrior, but with death. You had to first grab on to this contraption that ferried you to the arena (you had to use your arm strength or otherwise be able to haul your legs up and into it. The first area was a bunch of viscous dogs -- or that might have been the second area, I'm forgetting one of the areas. The last area was these beautiful people in togas, like in ancient Rome, and some of them were tied up and others had sharp swords. It was bad. Maybe the thing could get electrocuted too. John Cena was in charge of the thing, but he was like a psychotic John Cena who needed to inflict pain on others. He had three very narrow/small and very sharp finger nails. He cut himself with them in agitation and blood sprayed out. I was last of the group of four. I assume the athletic guy that went before me got ripped to shreds by the dogs. I woke up thinking: okay, my plan is to befriend the dogs -- they've been socialized for niceness for generations, after all -- and then sick the dogs on the last challenge. In reality, ("reality" -- ha) I was probably just going to die, but if Nancy Drew books have taught me one thing, it's keep thinking anyway. Maybe you can come up with a plan that works. 

I had this dream because of the previews before the Sparks Brothers documentary. One was for a Suicide Squad movie (which John Cena is in) and another one was a death by escape room movie. The death by escape room movie looked stupid during the parts where you're just watching a group solve a puzzle. I know there's the stakes of death and everything, but still. It seemed silly. 

Okay! So main event here is that it's 

Mlog Time! 

SPARKS BROTHERS DOCUMENTARY

2021

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Watched: 6/18/21

This is a documentary about Ron and Russell Mael, the two men behind the pop duo Sparks. They’ve been putting out albums since the early seventies. They’ve had boom and bust success, but they’ve always done something new. They’ve always pushed their music forward. A ton of people were interviewed for the doc, lots of creative famous people – actors, musicians, comedians, writers – were influenced by Sparks. Russell, the younger brother, was always the lady killer. He’s the singer, the front man, bouncing around the stage. While Ron, the elder and keyboardist, was always still, impassive, with a glinting stare and Hitler mustache. He writes all the lyrics. They’ve gone big internationally, they’ve flopped at home (Los Angeles). They’re constantly out in front of their fans. They seem to make the art for the art’s sake. And now, in their seventies, they’re still making music. Their routine is to get up, go drink a coffee from the same coffee shop, take a walk around a park, and then start working in their home studio. The park where they walk and the coffee shop is near my apartment! At the end, our theater applauded the film twice. 

I went to see this in theaters on opening night with my husband. We were both touched by the commitment, the work ethic, the creativity, and the immersion that Sparks have in their music. Also, of course, their longevity is amazing. I wonder what quality that is exactly, the one that allows people to keep going, to keep making, no matter the ups and downs. Success or lack of success. To get in the groove and then never step out of it. It was overwhelming, the esteem that very esteemed people heap on these men. I also left with a sense of dismay that they may never get capital “C” Credit for who they are and what they’ve done. Maybe that doesn’t matter though. Because they’ve been loved by some – many really – and have been able to keep doing what they love, their vocation. And they get to live in Brentwood after all. 

I left the theater feeling pretty overwhelmed by what I watched. I went to the bathroom and thought to myself, It’s LA, I’ve got to keep my head up and pay attention to who’s around me. These guys have been walking around our neighborhood park every day for twenty years. I wouldn’t have known who they were until I saw the doc, but no matter. I think it’s safe to assume that anybody, walking around here, may have had –or be in the middle of having—a very interesting career. I walked out of the bathroom to where my husband was waiting in the lobby. He lead me away from the exits. I was confused. And then I saw that he wanted to give his thanks and congratulations to Russell Mael who was standing in the lobby and who had been at our screening. 

Rating: ★★★★