"SATIRE IS a lesson, parody is a game," said Vladimir Nabokov.
- IF A star lasts long enough, they all come to parody. Their familiar gestures, facial expressions, way of moving. Their personal life, too. Writers start to drop in little autobiographical bits with which the audience can identify. This happened more back in the day, when stars were more individual personalities, less independent, had fewer opportunities after a certain age. For some, it became grotesque (Bette Davis.) For others it burnished their legend long after youth had fled (Katharine Hepburn.) For others it was simply fun (Elizabeth Taylor, who unveiled a whole array of crazy tics and brayed out line readings in her later years.) And for some, the parody became a noble iconic symbol. (John Wayne.) Well, parody has come to Matthew McConaughey, and not a moment too soon.
Matthew was once a Hollywood golden boy, the next big thing. He received a hot Vanity Fair cover--not always a good sign--sometimes that honor is like winning an Oscar
too early. He never quite lived up to the initial promise. In recent years he has become a poster boy for a certain kind of cheerful narcissism/exhibitionism. All that running around shirtless. And there was the laid back naked bongo-playing and pot smoking. It was amusing, but where was this actor going? He sure wasn't getting any younger. With the weekend release of "Magic Mike" now we know. Yes, this is Channing Tatum's baby, loosely based on his brief teenage career as a stripper. And Mr. Tatum is very good--he seems to relax more with each
movie. The movie itself, directed by Steven Soderbergh, is neither the cheesy flesh-bazaar so many were hoping for-- though there's plenty of flesh! Nor is it as satisfactorily dark as others expected. The two sides of the movie-- both appealing-- don't always mesh. (Stripper movies never quite get it right, except for the last 25 minutes of "Gypsy.")
But Matthew, as the owner of the strip club, who still keeps a six-pack on hand just to show the youngsters how it's done, is the real winner of "Magic Mike." He's a great big smirking, self-aware, funny, version of the glossy magazine creature he has become. He's more spray-tanned, more cocky, and definitively more stoned than he has ever been in public, but it comes across like an effortless non-performance, just a day in the life. And he also looks like
he's having a ball on screen.
- P.S. Sitting in Hollywood today is a still remarkably handsome man, somewhere in his middle-years. He must be highly amused by all the "Magic Mike" hoopla. His name is Gregory Harrison. At the peak of his heartthrob fame on the series "Trapper John, M.D." Gregory made a TV movie titled, "For Ladies Only." He played a fairly innocent, down-on-his-luck actor who takes a job at a strip club more or less in desperation. Naturally, he's a sensation (especially because his first performance is so innocently tentative.) Then he gets caught up in "the life." ("Beast Master" action star Marc Singer played the older, more jaded stripper, who warns the hero where it all ends up.)
- "MAGIC MIKE" did well at the box-office, but the champ was "Ted" a movie starring that remarkable re-inventor of his particular image, Mark Wahlberg.
- WELL, IF there is any truth to the screaming headlines that have Tom Cruise's Scientology friends spying on his soon-to-be-ex, Katie Holmes, she can relax. If she twists her ankle accidentally, Tom and his pals will be blamed and crucified in the court of public opinion. I don't see joint custody coming out of this one.
And, as already has been pointed out, all three of Tom's marriages ended when the wife was 33. This number apparently has meaning in Scientology. (Yeah, your number is up, honey!) Tom will be fifty years old today. That's a significant number too. Especially for an actor.
But, as this was the first time a wife filed against Tom, maybe he was willing to overlook the "33 thing." If indeed such a thing exists.