Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Different Kinds of Misfits

Slept in really late this morning, which didn't leave me time for much besides doing a little job research. I saw a job at the University of the Arts on South Broad Street in Philly that might be worth considering, but other than that, it's not going very well. I wish someone needed a writer, or an editor, or someone to edit something. I wish I knew what people wanted at all here.

Work was steady during the usual 4-6 rush hour, but mostly dead. I picked up some hours on Thursday when a manager who was also going to work as a cashier this week called out sick for the next couple of weeks. My relief was on time, and other than it being very windy, I had no problems getting to or from home.

I watched The Misfits during and after dinner. This stark black and white western drama was the last film for Hollywood legends Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable and one of the last for Montgomery Clift. A Reno divorcee who is disillusioned with men joins up with a group of aging cowboys and rodeo riders hoping to go after one last, small herd of wild Mustangs and sell them for dog food. The divorcee can't stand to see anything hurt, and her desire for freedom - theirs and her own - makes the men around her rethink their lifestyles.

As someone who's been a misfit for most of her life (and isn't really a fan of Gable or Monroe), I was quite impressed. Monroe and Gable did especially well as the older cowboy and unhappy woman looking for a place they can fit in. I've been doing that all my life. Eli Wallach was also good as a mechanic haunted by his wife's death and his involvement in World War II. Director John Huston's work was a bit dull in the beginning, but he kicked it up several notches with the capture of the wild horses on the salt flats in the finale.

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