That's not an accurate description. I was behind him in line. He turned his rounded body somewhat and swiveled his head a little and demanded, voice gruff with grating raspiness, from years of inhaling Kents, now Camels, "TIME."
Now, I must say at this point that I knew he was asking me for the time of day - maybe he wasn't wearing his Rolex, but more likely he was and forgot his reading glasses - because that is the way most attorneys talk to regular people, that is, every other person in the world, especially someone as ordinary-looking as me, as if every other person is in the servant class. His dark gray suit, after a Saturday at the office and after sitting in a movie theater for at least an hour and a half, if he saw only one film, was severely rumpled. His shirt was supposed to be white and could have been adequately disguised by a tie, but he had discarded that before he drank his coffee.
"Did you say something? I didn't catch that."
"Do you have the time?" he asked.
"Oh, is that what you wanted ... it's 20 after."
He left the line.
"You're welcome," I said to him.
nice. I'd like to think I'd have responded to his ejaculation with something like, "Oh, so you're finished now. Safe travels." At any rate it is good that he absquatulated upon learning what time it was, regardless of how nicely he did it. But I probably would have tried to read my watch for him and spilled something on myself in the effort. I'm such a tool sometimes.
It's experiences like this that ruin movies for me. I only call them films if they have a "message." And technically, product placement is not a message.
Posted by: dan at April 1, 2009 06:14 PMI would've been tempted to respond, "... to get Netflix." Or maybe, "... linear, generally."
I haven't sat in a theater among The Great Unwashed since Good Will Hunting was released in 1997. I see ads on TV for movies I think I'd enjoy, but by the time I get around to thinking I'd like to see them, they're out on video. And I have a great big leather chair.
Rob had a similar experience. the woman was Very Important, she was the second (widowed) wife of the grandson of Georges Clemenceau (see WWI). Only she said; 'Bread'. What she wanted was 'where is the nearest bakery s'il vous plaît?' Rob pretended not to know.
Posted by: Anji at April 4, 2009 05:52 AM