And the countdown continues in my quest to watch and find something inspiring in every single one of Yahoo’s 100 Movies to See Before You Die. Today, two seemingly different films that are both inspiring in the same way …
Songlian’s mother: Rich man? If you marry a rich man, you will only be his concubine.
Songlian: Let me be a concubine. Isn’t that the fate of a woman?
When her father dies, leaving her family broke, 19-year-old Songlian is forced into becoming a concubine. At first the accommodations as the fourth wife are good. The master lights the red lanterns, sends a servant to massage Songlian’s feet and gives Songlian her choice of food at family meals. But when the master chooses to sleep with one of his other wives, all the perks go to her. Politics and competitiveness take over, and Songlian eventually loses it. I don’t blame her. All the other wives smile to your face and say the opposite of what they really mean. The thinly veiled hostility is enough to make anyone go crazy. Want to feel better about your life? This is your movie.
Joey: They only gave him that fuckin’ decision because he’s goin’ in the Army next week.
That’s the only reason.Jake: I knocked him down. I don’t know what else I gotta do.
I don’t know what I gotta do…
Joey: You won and they robbed ya! They’re miserable because their
mothers take it up the fuckin’ ass! That’s why.
Jake: I’ve done a lot of bad things, Joey. Maybe it’s comin’ back to me.
Who knows? I’m a jinx maybe. Who the hell knows?
Robert De Niro is Jake LaMotta, a self-destructive boxer who is thirsty for a title fight. Oh yeah, and he’s an asshole. And when I say the man has no redeeming quality, I am being kind. With the help of the mob he gets his title fight and wins twice. But is that good enough for him? Of course not. He won’t be happy until he completely destroys his life. He beats his wife repeatedly, then accuses his brother (Joe Pesci) of sleeping with her. When Sugar Ray Robinson beats the crap out of him and takes the title away, the train wreck keeps coming. And you can’t stop watching. In the end it’s another movie that is inspiring solely for its ability to make you feel better about your own life.
