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1/20/1999 The Artist's Vision11:30 p.m. Tonight was my weekly mental health night out, so I went to see Shakespeare in Love. I really wanted to see Elizabeth, but I waited too long and now it is only playing at a movie theater in Pennsylvania, about a half hour away. So I settled for Shakespeare, but I ended up loving it. I left the theater saying to myself, "That's the best movie I've seen in a long time." Of course it's the only movie I've seen in a long time, not counting the two animated bug movies I took the kids to see. There were so many funny little sight gags and visual puns, but best of all was the language, Shakespeare's own words, coming out of the mouths of main and peripheral characters alike. I particularly liked the interaction between Will and Christopher Marlowe: the rival playwrights in a peacock display of envy and competitiveness but also showing grudging respect and even cooperation. The scene at the tavern in which Shakespeare bounced ideas off Marlowe and Marlowe offered a few useful suggestions was priceless. This movie was the first time I'd ever seen Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare). He is as fine an actor as Ralph, less intense, but warmer and more accessible than his brother. I returned home to find Daniel still up. "Look what Daddy and Matthew built," he said, pointing out a kind of abstract Duplo cityscape, punctuated with multicolored towers. Duplo farm animals topped a few of the towers, adding to the surreal effect. I admired it and asked Tab how he liked building with Matthew. "Actually, Matthew didn't really let me build. Every time I placed a block down, he would pick it up and move it elsewhere. I finally gave up and just handed the blocks to him." Matthew has his own vision, which only he can realize.
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