OSCAR NIGHT

         A friend invited me to an ‘Oscar’ party last week. Oscar night comes off like a cross between the NFL Draft and American Idol and it takes several hours. Everyone has a list of awards and nominees and they make their predictions. As the night unwinds, they keep score. On commercial breaks it’s just like sports junkies; food, drink, spirited conversation and anticipation. I was the odd one, hadn’t seen any of the movies and was too late to complete the bracket before the awards began. I really like movies but don’t go very often so the conversations went over my head. The bast movie was about a washed up super hero, with a Mexican director who had a great night, winning several other Oscars as well. My party crowd thoroughly dissected the results and presented a trophy to the best guesser. I nodded my approval, went back for more guacamole and arrived home just before midnight.

         I have a good DVD collection of old movies. Last night I indulged in an old flick that has never left me disappointed. National Velvet was released in 1944, set in England after WW1, the story of a school girl (Elizabeth Taylor), a young drifter (Mickey Rooney) and a horse named Pie. Over time I’ve come to realize the movie’s undercurrent is more compelling than the story. A young girl comes by a horse that runs and jumps its way to the Grand National Steeplechase, the greatest horse race ever. But it leaves you with the warmth and the power of nurture and family. Interestingly, maybe a sign of the times, Mickey Rooney and Donald Crisp (Husband/Father) got top billing, ahead of the young Liz Taylor (Velvet Brown) and Anne Revere who won the Oscar in ’45 for supporting actress, as Velvet’s mother. 

         Mr Brown is the classic, dominant male but no match for Mrs Brown. He obviously trusts and depends on her to be his spell check as it would be. She allows him to be the ‘Man’ then gently provides wise course corrections that move the family in a healthy direction. In her youth she had been the first woman to swim thee English Channel. She understood the need to pursue a dream, even if it was not fulfilled. Without being written into the script she conveys, the journey subordinates the destination and that you must live in the moment. Life will make new demands and you need to be ready to move on. Throughout the movie, Mr & Mrs Brown refer to each other as Mr & Mrs Brown. You never learn their first names. The formal protocol is offset by a singleness of purpose and their affection for each other. In the end, Michael (Mickey Rooney) changes from a shady, self serving bloke into a principled young man and moves on in his life. The Brown family choses the simple life over celebrity and you conclude what you sensed from the beginning, Mrs Brown was right all along. They could have named the movie, “Mrs Brown Kicks Ass.”