Sunday, June 22, 2003

It's The Young Man From Scene 153

Was re-watching Almost Famous tonight on TV. There's a scene near the end, where our hero, the young, rookie Rolling Stone writer William Miller, is on the phone being consoled by his mentor, legendary rock journalist Lester Bangs (Philip Seymour Hoffman), after young William's cover story on the band Stillwater falls apart when the band denies everything about the story, and the magazine rejects the piece as being fraudulent. Bangs is giving William his sage advice, and... aw hell, I'll just let the script tell the story. But check out the little nugget of truth at the end. I love that.
(script exerpt courtesy of script-o-rama.com)

153 INT. BIG OFFICE -- NIGHT 153

William sits in the "big" office. It's a small white tank.
After all the sound and fury, there is only the hum of a
large electric typewriter. His research, transcripts and
some band photos sit nearby. He takes a bite of a candy bar, a sip of coffee. He looks at the phone.

INT. LESTER BANGS' BEDROOM -- NIGHT

Crazy jazz is playing. Lester Bangs on the phone.

LESTER BANGS
Aw, man. You made friends with them!
See, friendship is the booze they feed
you. They want you to get drunk on
feeling like you belong.

INTERCUT:

INT. ROLLING STONE -- NIGHT

William in the empty Rolling Stone office.

WILLIAM
(ruefully)
Well, it was fun.

LESTER BANGS
They make you feel cool. And hey. I
met you. You are not "cool."

WILLIAM
I know. Even when I thought I was, I
knew I wasn't.

LESTER BANGS
That's because we are uncool! And
while women will always be a problem for
guys like us, most of the great art in
the world is about that very problem.
Good-looking people have no spine!
Their art never lasts! They get the
girls, but we're smarter.

WILLIAM
I can really see that now.

LESTER BANGS
Yeah, great art is about conflict and
pain and guilt and longing and love
disguised as sex, and sex disguised as
love... and let's face it, you got a
big head start.

WILLIAM
I'm glad you were home.

LESTER BANGS
I'm always home! I'm uncool!

WILLIAM
Me too!

LESTER BANGS
(leveling)
The only true currency in this bankrupt
world if what we share with someone
else when we're uncool.

No comments: