July 30, 2014
®l?* Fortiani» (Observer
Real Life Drama
c o n t i n u e d f r o m page 9
ment of the characters connected
with the physical and emotional
development of the cast, and the
filming involved no exterior judg
ment of the product — as Linklater
puts it, for years it was all process,
no product.
The result plays more like real life
than any non-documentary feature
I can remember. The drama of the
lives of the family members is made
up of small moments: Samantha
deliberately annoying her brother
with a Britney Spears song; the kids
eavesdropping on mom arguing
with her boyfriend; the two compet
ing for the attention of their way
ward dad after a long absence;
Mason perusing a lingerie catalogue
with his pals; the accumulation of
signs that the kids’ new stepdad
has a drinking problem; a fishing
trip between Mason and his dad in
which you hear M ason’s voice
changing; and a laconic adolescent
Mason being lectured by a series of
adults.
Never have movie children looked
and sounded more like actual kids.
Unlike the usual well-scrubbed and
articulate movie children, these kids
sometimes look as though their
clothes don’t fit quite right, or they
have bad haircuts or acne. They are
cute kids, but the kind of cute kids
you might actually meet. And they
are sometimes maddening — sulky
and uncommunicative, or self-ab
sorbed. Their conversations with
their peers sound like these kids
overestimate what they know, and
you cringe with recognition as you
watch them overshoot which expe
riences they are ready for.
The parents, too, look familiar.
They are by turns beleaguered, or
lazy, or harried; they miss the strain
their choices put on the children.
Mom (Patricia Arquette) presents a
combination of attentive and blind
that is rarely depicted so accurately;
she loves and listens to her kids, but
seems to have a knack for picking
men who will and do jeopardize their
well-being. And dad (Ethan Hawke)
seems at times to be playing at par
enthood, yet you see how his inten
tions toward his kids nudge him to
grow up himself.
The flexibility and trust involved
in Linklater’s process yields an au
thenticity that couldn ’ t be arrived at
any other way. It reminded me of the
quality of conversation that be
comes possible when you make a
habit of showing up over and over
again; you may not ever have the
silver bullet revelation that explains
the arc of a relationship, but you will
share plenty of small moments that
will yield glimmers of the soul of the
other. Linklater and his cast have
constructed a container for some
thing ineffable: and rich.
The tenderness here will make
you weep for your own childhood,
or that of your children. It will nudge
you to reflect on your own efforts to
explain something difficult to a child,
or to answer questions for which
you don’t have answers, or don’t
trust the answers. It will remind you
of just how darling an awkward ado
lescent can be.
Darleen Ortega is a judge on the
Oregon Court o f Appeals and the
first woman o f color to serve in that
capacity. Her movie review column
Opinionated Judge appears regu
larly in The Portland Observer. You
can f i n d h e r m o vie b lo g at
opinionatedjudge.blogspot.com .
Page 15
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THE
SPINACOLUMN
TM
An ongoing series of questions and answers about Americas natural healing profession.
Part 8. CONSTIPATION:
The backing up of body’s sewage system.
: N o th in g h a s e v e r rea lly
helped my constipation. What
can Chiropractic possibly do?
: As a natural form o f heal
ing, there is much a Chiroprac
tic and the improved lifestyle we
ommend can do to remove the immedi
ate distress and long term health haz
ards of constipation. But before we
begin, you should understand that
constipation takes two approaches.
The first is the tight, sometimes painful
feeling in the lower back area. The
second and more insidious type is
what we call “hidden constipation.”
Q
A
Dr. Billy R. Flowers
This is when we seemingly move our
bowels regularly, but never completely
eliminate everything in our colon (large
intestine). This causes the colon to back
up and spread toxic poisons throughout
rec
the body. This can lead to everything
from sinusitis to allergies to arthritis.
Chiropractic can help to alleviate this
problem by gently turning nerves back
on in the colon and small intestine. It is
not uncommon for a patient to have two,
three or even four bowel movements
after the first adjustments on his or her
spine. A man with FBSS (failed back
surgical syndrome) went home and
had 12 bowel movements that night.
And he claimed he wasn’t even con
stipated! W hatever questions you
might have about health and healing,
you'll find that Chiropractic is often
the answer. Call us for an appointment
today.
Flowers' Chiropractic Office
2124 NE Hancock, Portland Oregon 97212 •
P h one: (5 0 3 )2 8 7 -5 5 0 4