Let's dispense with the Derby quickly... My horse got lost in the crowd. A man lives by his system and dies by it too. Now onto other things...
I've been obsessed with two remarkable American artists lately. David Foster Wallace and Matthew Barney. Two very different men. Two very different visions. They create all-encompassing worlds. Two hard cases. They dare you to come along with them, but they make no concessions.
So unfashionable. So other-worldly. You really, really have to work to try to track with them. They are both amusing and inspiring. But prickly. They don't make your life easier. They demand a different kind of perception and intention.
One is all about words, an over-flowing of words, a hurricane of words. Words from all directions, all corners. Strange words. Foot-noted words. Technical words. Obscure words. Convoluted words. Baffling. Puzzling. So many words. Finally you just have to succumb. Trudge thru. Go with the flow. Noodle the words. Bully the words. Let them roll. Let them take you. One word at a time.
And jargon. Lots of jargon. Medical. Technical. Intellectual. It's endless. Funny. Dazzling. Overwhelming. Stunning. Boring. Beyond boring. Fascinating. Enlightening.
The other guy is all about images. Structural. Cellular. Architectural. Bold. Beautiful. Strange. Off-putting. Long meandering scenes. No words. Or very few words. Discordant. Baffling. Unexplainable. Sexual. Explodes all expectations. His movies work like no one else's movies. His movies are like sculptures.
Both artists have sort of hooked me. I have been seduced. Love their work. Hate their work. It doesn't matter. The work is amazing. Substantial. Beyond criticism. A man lives by his system and dies by it too!
Update: I'm reading Infinite Jest now. It's a major task. Just to track with it. It challenges you. Challenges your patience. Challenges your idea of what a novel is supposed to be. Challenges your assumptions about what's entertaining. What's stimulating. What's good.
And we just saw saw a couple of the Crewmaster movies again. We've done the whole cycle in the past. Challenges your patience. Put's you in a different world. Makes you wonder what is a movie. What is a good movie.
Both works change you. Change your perception of time. Challenge you. Confound you too. Entertaining. But not too!