Watched the movie "Ray" about the very famous jazz musician, the "father of the Soul style" Ray Charles. The movie is good and it features a ton of nice music. However, Hollywood, as is well known, couldn't resist sugarcoating everything and everyone.
For example:
- The musician's wife - "Bea" looks devoted to her husband to the point of cramps. When at the end of the movie in 1979 the powers that be of the state of Georgia apologize to Ray for racism and banning his performances, his wife stands nearby. In reality, they divorced in 1978. Later there was also a divorce from his second wife.
- According to the movie, it turns out that Ray wrote his most famous tracks not without heroin doping. The movie shows how, with the help of the memory of his mother's words, he overcame himself and kicked the habit. In reality, after the divorce, weed and booze replaced heroin for him. However, judging by the fact that he lived 73 years, the man knew his limits. He lived all the way to 2004, and even managed to see the rough cut of this movie. Regarding "see", I got a bit carried away, though, since Ray was blind.
- From the movie it's clear that Ray had at least a few women "on the side" and one illegitimate child. In reality the girls he had - are countless, and there's almost a dozen alleged and real illegitimate children.
Such is the unmasking of Hollywood embellishments, not detracting from the movie's merits. Anyway, all this I didn't make up myself, but read it in an article of The Washington Post newspaper (eng).
As that very same Goblin would say: "That doesn't happen!!!". This means that for some movies it's important not how much the events correspond to reality, but how interesting it is for the viewer to watch. Here, fake user immoralist declares altogether that all art is solely for the entertainment of consumers, and its "high purpose" was invented by critics. Another person whom I read on LJ - erudite music critic artem_r surely thinks the exact opposite, but to me his opinion has always smacked of the snobbery of the aestheticizing elite. For I do not believe that an "absolute concept of good taste" exists, just as I do not believe in "absolute moral and ethical norms and principles". Atheism and skepticism forever!
P.S. Started with a toast to health, ended with a dirge.