Desert island books and movies

We were watching a re-run of “The Office” (one of our favorite bygone TV shows) the other day, the one where there was a small fire in the office for which they had to clear the building. They were standing around talking to pass the time, and Jim decided to play “Desert Island” with anyone who was willing. The game involved asking players which three books and which five movies they would most want to have if stranded on a desert island for the rest of time.

First of all, one has to suspend reality to play such a game, since I’m pretty sure most desert islands don’t have electricity. Suspending reality has never bothered me much. I’ve even created an imaginary island called Cifiropos (soporific spelled backwards, because lying on a sunny beach tends to make one sleepy). It’s small but has electricity, is somewhere near Greece, and one of these days I intend to use it in a story or novel. Love the beaches there.

If I had to choose CDs of my favorite music to take to the electrified desert island, I’d be frozen by indecision and lose the game. What size boat is taking me to this island, anyway? Inquiring minds need to know.

What three books could I read again and again without tiring of them? I’d have to say the Bible first because I’ve read nearly all of it but not straight through, and I’d like to do that someday. I would want the largest volume of diverse poetry in existence (heavy on the American masters, please). And I would want Shakespeare’s complete works. If I could have a fourth, it would be on survival techniques for desert island living. Hmm. Might need to rethink the order of that list.

Imagining there is a DVD player and some sort of screen on which to watch movies in my straw hut or cave when I’m not reading, I’d start my list with “O Brother Where Art Thou?” It’s loosely based on Homer’s Odyssey (but ever so much funner) which kinda kills two birds with one stone. And I doubt I’d get tired of looking at George Clooney, much less watching him lip sync “Man of Constant Sorrow.” Do see it if you haven’t. It’s a piece of work.

Next I’d have to go with “Slingblade,” the tragicomic (heavy on the former) Billy Bob Thornton vehicle that catapulted him to more fame than he probably deserves. But, dadgummit, the dude can write a script like nobody’s business. I have to give him that.

For some musical interest, I’d be torn between “The Sound of Music” and “Amadeus,” a fictitious account of Mozart’s career and death — no one called him by his middle name, anyway, and there’s no proof that he was poisoned by rival composer Antonio Salieri, although Salieri had plenty of reason for jealousy. Most of Mozart’s contemporaries did.

“The Sound of Music” — also somewhat fictionalized — is one of those movies I’m compelled to watch whenever it appears on TV, usually around Christmastime. For most of my orchestra-directing years, I showed it to my students after their December concert was done. Coincidentally, they were usually studying WWII about that time, so the viewing served multiple purposes.

“Forrest Gump” is an easy choice because it, too, is one of those compelling movies that spans decades and includes important historical, social, and emotional events and changes that affected the titular character’s life. Tom Hanks deserved the Oscar he got for that role, hands down. And the soundtrack is awesome.

“A Family Thing” is a little-known jewel starring Robert Duvall and James Earl Jones, whose characters discover they are half-brothers. It’s a delightful study in overcoming ingrained racism and learning to embrace family, no matter what prejudices one might have held before.

If not that one, my fifth pick would have to be “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” Talk about suspending reality. Brad Pitt isn’t one of my favorite actors, but I love what he did with his role in that movie, which includes a fantastic (if sad) story line. The adventures his character encountered are interesting. Spoiler alert: He’s born a tiny old man and ages backward.

I looked at the American Film Institute’s top 100 movies of all time to see if there were any others I should choose. I’ve seem most of them, but — without including Christmas movies — the ones I could watch over and over without dying of boredom are these. There are so many others but, to play the game, I had to choose five.

The rules need to be reversed, far as I’m concerned. I’d rather have five books and three movies. Or just eight books. I’d be OK with that. What would your lists look like?

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