I buy all of what you say. I have shelves of vcr tapes, and now a growing stack of dvd's, that I regularly revisit. And on many of them -- if I space the reviewing -- I repeatedly get what seems the exact same zing at the same places. They are variously interesting in countless ways. For example, the use of music -- certainly in musicals like CABARET, but also in non-musicals -- unquestionably heightens certain moments.
Ideally, I suppose they would supply ready material for me to study in my search for an understanding of the a.e.'s the supply, but they haven't worked that way. I note a triumphantly successful moment, and I can point at the elements that "cause" the a.e., but I can't say why. In the end, maybe the most profound lesson lies there. "Pay attention! Look hard! Why does that 'work'?" I've done that. But I still can't say why. Oh? Why not? It may be as effectively una nswerable as why vanilla ice cream tastes good to me. In a message dated 5/1/08 5:55:37 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > My experience has been that, even when we (I) know "how it turns out," > if the play or movie is sufficiently satisfying or engaging, we (I) > want to see it again, to re-enjoy and appreciate how the playwright > formed the scenes and words--those non-contingent, free creations--and > how the actors and director realized them, how the other cinemagraphic > or dramaturgical arts supported the telling of the story, etc. > > This re-experiencing a play or movie is like the re-sating of an > appetite. We're hungry or lustful, we know what we want, we know > almost exactly how the forthcoming experience will feel, yet we strive > for it as a new or renewed thing. Afterwards, we may shortly want it > again. And only after so many repetitions in short succession does our > utter satiation so completely blunt our senses that we cannot taste or > feel the experience that not long ago was the complete focus of our > purpose. > > I reread books, or at least parts of them, sometimes in a short span > of time, and occasionally I watch movies several times over in a > couple of days, too (as when they are replayed on cable channels). I > do this because the first experience, fragmented and imperfectly > remembered, was so compelling or intriguing that I want to repeat it > and contemplate the whole sequence of the play. > > ************** Wondering what's for Dinner Tonight? Get new twists on family favorites at AOL Food. (http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001)
