De dentro a fuera

Recuerdo esta serie (The Greatest American Hero), emitida en España a mediados de la década de 1980, con especial cariño y simpatía, como tantas otras de aquella época, en que veía la televisión mucho más que ahora.

Los tres protagonistas eran Ralph Hinkley (William Katt), un profesor con poderes que le convierten en un singular superhéroe, su novia Pam (Connie Selleca) y un agente del FBI, Bill Maxwell (Robert Culp).

No la he vuelto a ver desde entonces (ni siquiera cuando ha sido repuesta en Cuatro), pero no he podido resisitir la tentación de buscar su pegadiza música de inicio:

Joey Scarbury - Believe It or Not


A ver si encuentro algo más de Joey Scarbury.

Etiquetas: El Gran Héroe Americano, Joey Scarbury, Música, Series, Televisión

Pese al absoluto predominio de las formas electrónicas a la hora de comunicarse a distancia con la gente, lo cierto es que las postales siguen teniendo su sentido. Las sigo mandando y las sigo recibiendo. E incluso las sigo comprando para mi propio disfrute.

La última que he recibido me ha hecho mucha ilusión (cosa que ocurre casi siempre) porque es la primera que recibo en mi nueva casa, porque está escrita desde un precioso lugar al que no he regresado desde hace quince años, porque me la manda mi familia y porque está ilustrada con uno de los cuadros de Chagall de "parejas voladoras" que tanto me conmueven.

Imagen: Marc Chagall, Au-dessus de la ville, 1914-1918.

Etiquetas: Marc Chagall, Pintura, Postales

“East is East and West is West and never the twain shall meet” (Rudyard Kipling)

Espero no ser nunca tan intolerante con nadie, y menos aún con mi mujer y mis hijos si llego a tenerlos, como el padre pakistaní (George Khan) que aparece en la película Oriente es Oriente (1999), opera prima de Damien O’Donnell y que he tenido la oportunidad de ver hoy. Ahora bien, no creo que este tipo de individuos sea exclusivo de la cultura oriental. Desgraciadamente, cabrones hay por todas partes.

Etiquetas: Intolerancia, Oriente es Oriente, Películas

Un año más. Y ya van quince. La mitad de nuestras vidas juntos. Quién sabe si lo que nos queda de ellas… también. Virginia, te amo, te amo, eternamente, te amo.

Pablo Milanés - Yolanda


Sarah y Mike Williams - Yolanda


Liuba Maria Hevia - Yolanda


Rey Tsap – Yolanda (The shooting took place in Verona, the city of Romeo and Juliette)

Etiquetas: Amor, Música, Pablo Milanés

Quienes tengan cierto orgullo patrio, probablemente no van a dar crédito a mis palabras cuando diga que The Sunday Drivers son españoles.

Quienes no hayan escuchado nunca hablar de este grupo, y menos aún les hayan escuchado tocar, a buen seguro me van a estar agradecidos durante un buen tiempo.

Quienes sepan apreciar la buena música, sin lugar a dudas van a disfrutar con esta serie de vídeos.

The Sunday Drivers - Do it


The Sunday Drivers - On My Mind


The Sunday Drivers - Often


The Sunday Drivers - Little chat (conciertos de Radio 3)


The Sunday Drivers - Better if I (conciertos de Radio 3)


The Sunday Drivers - Rainbows of colours (conciertos Radio3)


The Sunday Drivers - Life is (conciertos de Radio 3)


The Sunday Drivers - Day in day out (conciertos de Radio 3)

Etiquetas: Música, The Sunday Drivers

Jesse Malin - Broken Radio (featuring Bruce Springsteen), from the album by Jesse Malin Glitter in the Gutter

I was thinking about another time still in my mind
When I used to know a little girl high on this world

Your baby loves you more than you know
Raised on rivalry and rock’n roll
Moving to the motor City soul
She lets go
On the radio

Well we never had a lot of cash
But we loved those kids
Some say that she missed the boat
But she just burned the bridge

The angels love you more than you know
Raised on robbery and rock’n roll
Moving to the Motor City soul
She takes hold
On the radio

Stomachache Sundays
And books we never read
Well I was hoping one day
We might meet again

She used to talk about astrology
She was born in June
She danced with strangers and celebrities
Empty stars and the full moon

I was thinking about the universe
For what its worth
Or the one about the Phoenix bird
That died and then returned

The angels love you more than you know
Raised on robbery and rock’ n roll
Moving to the Motor City soul
Moving to the Motor City soul
Sometimes I see her face
When there’s no place to go
On the radio
On the radio
On the radio
Broken radio


Bruce Springsteen - Radio Nowere (from the album Magic)

I was trying to find my way home,
But all I heard was a drone.
Bouncin' off a satellite
Crushing the last long American night.

This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?

I was sitting around a dirt dial
Just another lost number in a file.
Been in some kinda dark cove
Just searching for a world with some soul.

This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

I just want to hear some rhythm.
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm.
I just want to hear some rhythm.

I want a thousand guitars.
I want pounding drums.
I want a million different voices speaking in tongues.

This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

(Sax solo)

I was driving thru the misty rain
Yeah, searching for a mystery train.
Bopping thru the wild blue
Trying to make a connection with you.

This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere.
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?

I just want to hear some rhythm (you swoon.)
I just want to hear some rhythm (you swoon.)
I just want to hear you swoon.
I just want to hear you swoon.
I just want to hear you swoon.
I just want to hear you swoon.
I just want to hear you swoon.
I just want to hear you swoon.

Etiquetas: Bruce Springsteen, Jesse Malin, Música

La ex vocalista de Sixpence None the Richer Leigh Nash, incluyó en su disco debut Blue on Blue (2006), una canción en la que expresaba lo que para ella era el cielo. Supongo que cada cual tendrá una idea distinta (véase este divertido video de resonancias dylanianas), aunque para muchos, en el fondo, sea la misma o parecida. El caso es que comparto esta manera tan sencilla y al mismo tiempo profunda de ver y sentir las cosas.

My Idea Of Heaven

I never thought I'd get here; I was so far away
I didn't believe in love, thought it was just a game
People played
Everything changed when I met you
I touched your hand, you took my heart
And you led me to a better place, just the two of us
In the dark...

This is my idea of heaven, lying here with you
This is my idea of heaven, nothing else, I'd rather do

I never thought you'd get here, why'd you make me wait?
And when I looked into your eyes, I recognised your words
My faith
I've been living in a lonely shell, with no windows, to the world
How in God's name did you find, a lonestar
Loneliest girl...

This is my idea of heaven, lying here with you
This is my idea of heaven, nothing else, I'd rather do

To feel your heart, beating
To feel our limits, meeting

This is my idea of heaven, ooh
In heaven, love is everywhere
There is no pain, there are no tears
In heaven, love lasts forever, it doesn't, disappear...

This is my idea of heaven, lying here with you
This is my idea of heaven, nothing else, I'd rather do

To feel your heart, beating
To feel our limits, meeting

This is my idea of heaven, ooh
This is my idea of heaven, lying here with you

Etiquetas: Leigh Nash, Música

Me encanta la música. Y me gustaría ser músico. Y, por qué no, tener un grupo.

Dicen que el que no se contenta es porque no quiere. Afortunadamente cuento con amigos músicos, y eso me permite vivir más de cerca cosas como esta:

Reno - Suicide Cherry


Pero eso no quiere decir que no me muera de envidia.

Imagen: Gustav Klimt, dibujo para Two Emblems for Ver Sacrum (Der Neid), 1898.

Etiquetas: Música, Reno

Al igual que a mi padre y a mi hermano, me gustan mucho las bandas sonoras de películas. Una muy recomendable, y muy sensual, es la de Waiting to Exhale (Esperando un respiro, 1995), que supuso el debut como director de Forest Whitaker y narraba la historia de cuatro amigas de raza negra (Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine, Lela Rochon) y su relación con los hombres.

El disco, producido por Babyface, combina soul y rhythm & blues y cuenta con las estelares aportaciones de Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, Aretha Franklin y Patti LaBelle, entre otras (aquí pongo lo que he encontrado en Youtube, no siempre de calidad).

Pon una luz tenue, busca a tu pareja, llámala susurrando, deja hervir la sangre y prepárate para transportarte a otro mundo.

Whitney Houston- Exhale (Shoop, Shoop)

Everyone falls in love sometime
Sometimes it's wrong
And sometimes it's right
For every win
Someone must fail
But there comes a point when
When we exhale (yeah, yeah, say)

[Chorus:]
Shoop, Shoop, Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (yeah)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
(All you got to say is shoo be doop)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Shoo be doop)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
Shoo Be Doo

Sometimes you'll laugh
Sometimes you'll cry
Life never tells us
The when's or why's
When you've got friends to wish you well
You'll find a point when
You wille exhale (yeah, yeah, say)

[Chorus:]
Shoop, Shoop, Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (shoo shoo shoo huh)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Sho0 be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Say shoop say shoo be say shoo be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (say shoo-hoo say sho)
Shoo Be Doo (be doo oh)

Hearts are often broken
When there are words unspoken
In your soul there's
Answers to your prayers
If you're searching for
A place you know
A familiar face
Somewhere to go
You should look inside yourself
You're halfway there

[Repeat Verse 2]

[Chorus:]
Shoop, Shoop, Shoop (Shoo Be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Shoo Be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Shoo Be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Shoo-hoo-hoo be)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (Shoo be doop doop doop hoo hoo hoo)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (do do shoo be shoo be feels alright)
Shoo Be Doop Shoop Shoop (You can say oh)
Shoo Be Doo

Whitney Houston - Why Does It hurt So Bad

Chorus:]
Why does it hurt so bad
Why do I feel so sad
Thought I was over you
But I keep crying
When I don't love you
So why does it hurt so bad
I thought I had let you go
So why does it hurt me so
I gotta get you outta my head
It hurts so bad
Oh it hurts so bad baby

My life's been better
Since the day I left you boy
I must admit life's been kind to me
I went and did the things I said I would boy
I found someone who loves me for me
Haven't had much drama since the day that we split boy
My heart's never been more at ease
And when I think of all the things you put me through
Leaving you has been the best thing for me

[Chorus:]
So why does it hurt so bad
Why do I feel so sad
I thought I was over you
But I keep crying
When I don't love you
So why does it hurt so bad
Baby I thought I had let you go
So why does it hurt me so
I gotta get you outta my head
Hurts me so bad
Hurts so (yeah you do)
Hurts so (hurts me so)
Hurts so bad (did you know)
Hurts so (that it hurts me so)
Hurts so (so bad, hey hoh)

"Never again" that's what I said to myself
I never wanna feel kind of pain again boy
Just when I think it's over
Just when I think it's through
I find myself right back in love with you

[Chorus:]
So why does it hurt so bad oh baby
Why do I feel so sad
(thought I thought I) Thought I was over you
I keep crying
When I don't love you (when I really don't love you boy)
(oh no oh no oh no oh no it hurts so bad, oh tell me)
So why does it hurt so bad
I thought I had let you go (thought I could let you go)
You could
Gotta get you outta my head
Boy you hurt me so bad
Hurts so (yeah you do)
Hurts so (hurt me so)
Hurts so bad (hurts so)
Hurts so (sure you did)
Hurts so (make me wanna make me wanna shoop shoop)
Hurts so bad (hurt me so, gotta shoop now, hey hey hey hey)
Hurts so bad (Hurts me so)
Oh why, you hurt me so bad
Bad... (how bout that?)

Toni Braxton - Let It Flow

First thing Monday morning
I'm gonna pack my tears away
Got no cause to look back
I'm lookin' for me a better day
You see the thing 'bout love
Is that it's not enough
If the only thing it brings you is pain
There comes a time when we could all make a
change

Just let go
And let it flow, let it flow, let it flow
Everything's gonna work out right, Y'know
Let go, and let it flow, let it flow, let it flow
Just let it go

Don't nobody want no broke heart
And don't nobody want no two time losers
Ain't nobody gonna love you like you are
If you take whatever he brings your way
You see the thing of it
Is we deserve respect
But we can't demand respect without change
There comes a time when we must go our own way

Just let go
And let it flow, let it flow, let it flow
Everything's gonna work out right, Y'know
Let go, and let it flow, let it flow, let it flow
Just let it go

Sometimes love it can work out right
Sometimes you'll never know
But if it brings only pain in your life
Don't be afraid to let it go

Aretha Franklin - It Hurt Like Hell
[Intro]
Oh baby
Oh oh babe
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh baby

Love was always supposed to be
Something wonderful to me
To watch it grow inside yourself
To feel your heart beside itself

Sometimes it hurts to love so bad
(When you know you've given all you can)
Sometimes it hurts to even laugh
(You do your best but it's still much too sad)
Sometimes the pain is just too much, oh oh
And it hurts like hell, that's the way it feels

True love, it has no hiding place
It's not something you just put away
It's always there inside of you
Oh, and it shows in everything you do

Sometimes it hurts to love so bad
(When you know you've given it your best)
Sometimes it hurts to even laugh
(You feel a thousand miles from happiness)
Sometimes the pain is just too much, oh oh oh
And it hurts like hell, that's the way it feels

Oh oh, oh oh
Here we are, the two of us
So full of love, so little trust
But dying for some tenderness
Ohh, but too afraid to take the step

Sometimes it hurts to love so bad
(When you know what it can put you through)
Sometimes it hurts to even laugh
(There's nothing funny if it's killing you)
Sometimes the pain is just too much
And it hurts like hell, that's the way it feels

I know if there is any chance
For us to find our happiness
We've got to learn to let it go
Ohh, forget all the pain we know

Sometimes it hurts to love so bad
(Sometimes it hurts so bad, baby)
Sometimes it hurts to even laugh
(Sometimes it hurts to even laugh, oh)
And it hurts like hell, that's the way
Oh baby, that's the way it feels
Yeah, yeah, oh, yeah

Brandy - Sittin Up In My Room

Seems like ever since, the first day we met
There is no one else I think of more than you
Can't seem to forget, can't get you out my head
Cause the verdicts in I'm crazy over you
How can one be down, tell me where to start
Cause everytime you smile, I feel tremors in my heart
I have but one concern, how can I get with you
Til my day comes, here's what I'm gonna do.

[Chorus]

Be sittin up in my room
Back here thinkin bout you
I must confess, I'm a mess for you
Be sittin up in my room
Back here thinkin bout you
I must confess, I'm a mess for you

Pray that you'll invest, in my happiness
All it takes is just one simple call from you
Turn my heart around, if I'm making ground
Pretty baby please, tell me if I'm getting through
Tell me what is up
You see I need to know
Tell if I'm far, or if I'm getting close
I have but one concern, and that one concern is you
Til I'm with you, here's what I'm gonna do

[Repeat Chrous]

How can one be down, tell me where to start
Cause everytime you smil, I feel tremors in my heart
I have but one concern, how can i get with you
Til my day comes, here's what I'm gonna do

[Repeat Chorus]

Mary J. Blige - Not Gon' Cry

While all the time that I was loving you
You were busy loving yourself
I would stop breathing if you told me to
Now your busy loving someone else
11 years out of my life
Besides the kids I have nothing to show
Wasted my years a fool of a wife
I shoulda have left your ass a long time ago

[1] - Well I'm not gon' cry, I'm not gon' cry
I'm not gon' shed no tears
No, I'm not gon' cry, it's not the time
Cuz your not worth my tears
Well I'm not gon' cry, I'm not gon' cry
I'm not gon' shed no tears
No, I'm not gon' cry, it's not the time
Cuz you're not worth my tears

[2] - I was your lover and your secretary
Working every day of the week
Was at the job when no one else was there
Helping you get on your feet
11 years of sacrifice
And you can leave at the drop of a dime
Swallowed my fears, stood by your side
I shoulda left your ass a thousand times

[Repeat 1]

I know there are no guarantees
In love you take your chances
But somehow it seems unfair to me
Look at the circumstances
Through sickness and health, 'till death do us part
Those were the words that we said from our heart
So now that you say that you're leaving me
I don't get that part

[Repeat 2]

[Repeat 1 until fade]

SWV- All night long

Coko]
Baby you can call on me
Anytime that you feel the need
And I'll be there in a hurry
Giving you the best of me

And baby you know I keep it nice and warm to satisfy
Baby you know that I am always hot for you
And if there's any kind of love that will exemplify
My sweetie I have got that kind of love times two

[1 - SWV]
Boy I'll do you all night long
Do you any way you want
I will do you all night long
I wanna please you
Don't wanna tease you

[Coko]
You can melt in my body
And I will slowly melt onto you
Caress your face in my valley
Let me feel the sweetness of you

[Coko and Taj]
And baby you know I'll keep it special each and every time
I never do nothin once and never quite the same
And baby you know if there is anything you want from me
I will supply so you can have it your way

[Repeat 1]

[Coko]
Here's the vibe, there's candlelight
As I undress for you baby
A sip if wine, we take our time
Then I undress you too
I look at you, you look at me
And then we both embrace
And then we just let nature take it's place

[Repeat 1 to fade]

Patti Labelle - My Love, Sweet Love

[1] - My love, sweet love
With you, nothing else matters
You're my heart, and my heart is yours
My love, sweet love
For me, there's no one better
Cross my heart, I could not love you more

And I swear to you, there's no one more important
And I trust you with my life
So I pledge my heart to you

[Repeat 1]

'Cause with you, my world
Is filled with so much pleasure
When I'm blind, you are my eyes
So I pledge my trust to you

[Repeat 1]

And I swear to you
That I will always love you
And I trust you with my heart
So I pledge my world
I pledge my world, I pledge my world to you

[Repeat 1]

Whitney Houston - Count on me

[Chorus]
Count on me through think and thin
A friendship I will never end
When you are weak, I will be strong
Helping you to carry on
Call on me, I will be there
Don't be afraid
Please believe me when I say
Count on...

[Verse1]
I can see it's hurting you
I can feel the pain
It's hard to see the sunshine though the rain
I know sometimes it seems as if
It's never gonna end
But you'll get through it
Just don't give in cause you can...

[chorus]

[Verse2]
I know sometimes it seems as if
We're standing all alone
But we'll get though it
Cause love won't let us fall

[chorus]

There's a place inside of all of us
Where our faith in love begins
You should reach to find the truth in love
The answers there within, oh
I know that life can make you feel
It's much harder than it really is
But we'll get through it
Just don't give in

[chorus]

Whitney: count on
Ce Ce: Count on
Whitney: Count on
Ce Ce: Count on
Whitney: Count on
Ce Ce: Count on
Both: meeeeeeeee
Whitney: oh yes you can
Ce ce: no i can't
Whitney: Sure you can
Ce Ce: Oh yeah
Whitney: so glad i can
Ce Ce: Count on me
Whitney: Count on me Baby

Etiquetas: Bandas sonoras, Películas, Waiting to Exhale

Aunque hace muchos años que no patino, el hecho es que me encanta la sensación de ir deslizándome sobre el asfalto, y más aún sobre hielo. Si uno no domina la técnica, puede ser peligroso, aunque también muy divertido.

Recuerdo que yo aprendí a montar en bicicleta a edad bastante tardía, y al poco tiempo empecé también a patinar.

Hubo una época en que prácticamente todas las tardes bajaba a la calle a patinar con mis amigos. El caso es que en el lugar en el que vivíamos había un chico bastante mayor que nosotros que era un auténtico artista con los patines, y eso servía de aliciente al resto. Yo deseaba fervientemente patinar tan bien como él, y me esforzaba por aprender más y más.

Pero como tantas cosas, el patinaje ha quedado en el baúl de los recuerdos, y eso que hay una pista de patinaje sobre hielo a cinco minutos de mi casa.

Eso no quita para que me entren unas ganas enormes de patinar cada vez que veo a alguien haciéndolo, ya sea en la realidad o en la ficción. En este instante me vienen a la cabeza dos películas (de las centenares que habrá) altamente recomendables en que me divierten mucho las escenas de patinaje que salen. Son, además, dos bellas historias de amor: la hermosísima e inquietante Portrait of Jennie (1948), de William Dieterle, con Jennifer Jones y Joseph Cotten; y la simpática y entrañable Beautiful Girls (1996), de Ted Demme (fallecido a los 38 años de edad), con Natalie Portman, Timothy Hutton, Uma Thurman, Matt Dillon y Mira Sorvino.

Portrait of Jennie (1948)


Beautiful Girls (1996)


Imagen: Peter Brueghel el Viejo, Paisaje invernal con trampa de pájaros, 1565.

Etiquetas: Beautiful Girls, Deportes, Películas, Portrait of Jennie

Un largo puro, un buen mostacho y unas gafas redondas, unos ojos juguetones, una oscura levita y un andar desgarbado. Estos rasgos bastan para identificar a uno de los cómicos más geniales de todos los tiempos, fallecido hace 30 años. Se trata, cómo no, de Julius Henry Marx, más conocido como Groucho, quien junto a sus hermanos protagonizó un buen puñado de películas que deberían de estar en toda filmoteca que se precie, sobre todo de aquellos que padezcan depresión o tristeza crónica.

Se ha definido a Groucho como un ególatra, un excéntrico, un gruñón, un maniaco sexual… Poco importa. De lo que no cabe duda es de que tenía gracia y hacía reír a la gente casi sin proponérselo.



Tiene frases y escenas realmente memorables. Como muestran un botón de sus muchas apariciones en películas:







En este simpático video casero de los años 30 se le ve con su familia haciendo el ganso, precisamente el año en que se estrenó la famosa sopa:


Y en este otro aparece como invitado en el show de Bill Cosby:


Da lo mismo que fuera en blanco y negro o en color, joven o viejo, de forma planificada o improvisada. Fue un hombre con recursos, que supo vivir de su talento humorístico. ¿Hay algo más bonito que lograr poner una sonrisa en los demás?

Etiquetas: Groucho Marx, Películas

He aquí una bellísima canción, originalmente compuesta e interpretada por Tom Waits (Heartattack And Vine, 1980) y dedicada a su mujer, Kathleen Brennan. Es tan buena la original, que tiene mérito que gente como Bruce Springsteen o Bon Jovi se hayan atrevido a versionarla, con buenos resultados, por cierto.

Tom Waits - Jersey Girl

Got no time for the corner boys, down in the street makin all that noise,
Dont want no whores on eighth avenue, cause tonight Im gonna be with you.

Cause tonight Im gonna take that ride, across the river to the jersey side,
Take my baby to the carnival, and Ill take you on all the rides, sing sha la
La la la la sha la la la.

Down the shore everythings alright, you with your baby on a saturday night,
Dont you know that all my dreams come true, when Im walkin down the street
With you, sing sha la la la la la sha la la la.

You know she thrills me with all her charms, when Im wrapped up in my
Babys arms, my little angel gives me everything, I know someday that shell
Wear my ring.

So dont bother me cause I got no time, Im on my way to see that girl of
Mine, nothin else matters in this whole wide world, when youre in love with
A jersey girl, sing sha la la la la la la.

And I call your name, I cant sleep at night, sha la la la la la la.

Bruce Springsteen - Jersey Girl -(Atlantic City, 2003)


Bon Jovi - Jersey Girl (StoryTellers, 2000)

Etiquetas: Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen, Música, Tom Waits

Tal día como hoy pero de hace 70 años nació en Santa Mónica (California) un auténtico sex symbol, que pese a haber envejecido sigue siendo mundialmente famoso por su atractivo físico: Robert Redford. Sin embargo, hay que reconocer que Redford (como tantos otros, desde Paul Newman a Leonardo DiCaprio o Matt Damon) es mucho más que una cara bonita. Redford tiene a sus espaldas una notable carrera como actor y como director, además de ser el responsable del Festival de cine independiente de Sundance.

Como pequeño homenaje a su figura me gustaría recordar aquí una película menor en su filmografía (Dos hombres y un destino, El golpe, Memorias de África…). Estoy seguro de que Redford no pasará a la historia por esta película, pero yo siempre me acordaré de él por ella, porque me marcó en su momento. Fue estrenada en 1984 (8 añitos que tenía el menda) y llamada por aquí El mejor.

Supongo que el género “películas de deportes” tiene tantos admiradores como detractores. El caso es que a mi, que fui en mis tiempos mozos un buen y asiduo deportista, siempre me ha gustado bastante. Y una de las películas de este tipo que recuerdo con más cariño y emoción es precisamente El mejor.

La segunda película dirigida por Barry Levinson (El secreto de la pirámide; Good Morning, Vietnam; Rain Man; Toys; etc.) narra la historia de Roy Hobbs, un hombre con un talento “natural”. Pero la vida no es fácil, ni siquiera para los que tienen un don.

Se centra en un deporte escasamente practicado en nuestro país: el béisbol (deporte en el que, por cierto, destacó Redford en su juventud). Quizá eso pudo influir en que me llamara tanto la atención, no lo sé. El caso es que en poco tiempo mi hermano y yo nos hicimos con un bate, un guante, una pelota… y logramos poner de moda el béisbol en la urbanización en la que vivíamos, para indignación de varias vecinas, que veían peligrar, con razón, las cristaleras de las terrazas.

A mi juicio la película, libre adaptación de una novela de Bernard Malamud e inspirada en el jugador “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, tiene algunos altibajos, pequeños fallos de ritmo, pero tanto la historia, como la música de Randy Newman y las interpretaciones de Robert Duvall, Kim Basinger, Glenn Close, Wilford Brimley... merecen la pena. A mi se me pone la carne de gallina siempre que la veo.



Resumiendo, yo le daría una oportunidad a esta película de segundas oportunidades:

Iris- Yo creo que tenemos dos vidas.

Roy- ¿Qué quieres decir?

Iris- La vida con la que aprendemos y la que vivimos con lo aprendido.

Etiquetas: El mejor, Películas, Robert Redford

«Nadie es una isla, completo en sí mismo; cada hombre es un pedazo de continente, una parte de la tierra; si el mar se lleva una porción de tierra, toda Europa queda disminuida, como si fuera un promontorio, o la casa de uno de tus amigos, o la tuya propia. La muerte de cualquier hombre me disminuye porque estoy ligado a la humanidad; por consiguiente nunca hagas preguntar por quién doblan las campanas: doblan por ti».

John Donne, "Meditation XVII", Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, 1624.

Imagen: Adolgo Guiard, Campanas, 1914.

Etiquetas: Solidaridad

Tras un largo paréntesis me reincorporo a mi particular mundo bloggero. Cómo no, regreso con música bajo el brazo. Y tal día como hoy tenía que ser, forzosamente, con El Rey. Treinta años han pasado ya desde la desaparición de Elvis. Pero afortunadamente da lo mismo.

Escoger algunas de las canciones interpretadas por Elvis es una tortura. En cada momento variaría la lista. Aquí van unas poquitas en su memoria, y dedicadas a mi buen amigo JD, al que tengo muchas ganas de ver:

Elvis Presley - In the ghetto


Elvis Presley - There's A Honky Tonk Angel


Elvis Presley - I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry


Elvis Presley - Good Time Charlie's Got The Blues


Elvis - Snowbird


Elvis Presley - Kentucky rain


Elvis Presley - Green, green grass of home


Elvis Presley - You Gave Me A Mountain


Elvis Presley - Always On My Mind

Etiquetas: Elvis Prestley, Música