š Wonder Boys: A Love Song to Pittsburgh and Writing
The film adaptation of the Michael Chabon novel will always hold a special place in my heart
One morning as an undergrad, I was on my way to something I remember as a final (maybe a final presentation?), but whatever it was, it was early, and I had just enough time to get to it. I lived in the one designated quiet dorm on the campus, Welch House, and the quickest way onto the main campus was through a tiny parking lot that the business school and College of Fine Arts faculty shared, mostly empty around that time of year. That morning was no exception, save for two figures next to an older-looking car. With so few obstacles to navigate, I decided I was safe to quickly look over my notes ONE more time as I trudged. Suddenly, though, I felt a gentle barely-a-squeeze on my shoulderāI had ventured too far over, after all, and was about to knock into one of the figures. āOh, sorry!ā I breathed, looking up. The familiar-looking, eye-smiley man seemed unbothered, and he gave me a slight nod and continued his conversation. As I kept walking, now more like a side-scuttling crab, I tried to place him. I was about 10 steps away when it finally dawned on me that I had almost careened into Academy-Award-winning actor Michael Douglas.
Not long after, as banners were hung around the same parking lot for the imaginary WordFest* literary event, I found out that he was there to film scenes for the excellent Curtis Hanson film adaptation of the Michael Chabon novel Wonder Boys. As you might imagine with all this going down, the universityās ace drama students were beside themselves; some had even been cast as students or extras at the fictional college that Michael Douglasās main character, Grady Tripp, taught. Iām pretty sure it was winter when they filmed the college scenes, but at any rate, it wasnāt cold enough, so fake snow was scattered from time to time, adding to the festive feeling of the whole thing. (Later, I found out that one of my friends had been an extra in the airport scenes, and as she had relaxed in the Pittsburgh airport bar in between takes, she had the dubious luck of being propositioned by another well-known, caddish-at-the-time actor in the film, who initially approached her for cigarettes and had struck up his flirt soon after.)
* The WordFest banners *should* have been (literal) signs of latent literary dreams because when I found out they were hung for the movie and not an upcoming university event, I was genuinely bummed. At the time, I was using all my business-major electives for classes on Modernist literature and Intro to Playwriting. I mean! Elayne! (Head shake.)
This is all to say: Wonder Boys was a big deal to our eensy on-campus student body that year, and we all have our stories. However, my love of the film endures for reasons beyond that now. In fact, I will still occasionally dust off my DVD (yes, for real) copy and sit back for the ultimate Elayne comfort classic.
Hereās what I love most about it:
Cast. Kudos to the casting agents on this film! From Michael Douglas as Grady, to Robert Downey Jr. as his editor, Tobey Maguire as his secretive student, Frances McDormand as his married paramour (they have great chemistry!), all the way to Rip Torn, Alan Tudyk, and Jane Adamsāso many great actors doing great character work, creating memorable folx from roles of all sizes.
Pittsburgh**. One-way roads, tree-filled parks, houses on inclines that overlook the streets before them, beautiful buildings of all sorts sprinkled amidst decidedly unadorned rust-belt standards. Happy sigh.
Meta-literary characters, themes, and layers. I mean, I am a sucker for this, always. But add a grey-tinged heart-humor mix to low-key screwball/zaniness, and this was always going to be my bag.
A happy introduction to Michael Chabonās work. Until this movie, I had not yet caught on to his books, but thanks to this movie, I soon dove into The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, and Iāve counted myself as a fan since.
Soundtrack. There are very few films I purchased the soundtrack of; this is one of them. Iām more of a fan of Bob Dylan as a songwriter than a singer (sorry, I know, a personal failing), but his vocal work on the song he wrote for the movie, Things Have Changed, is just note-perfect; Bob sings wry very, very well.
** Okay, returning to Pittsburgh: I love Pittsburgh so much, and to explain why, I will crib my own writing about it (ha!), from comments I wrote on Carson Ellisās Slowpoke post about spiritual homes. (Related, Slowpoke is really, really good! You should read it if you donāt!)
āI had to think so hard to even decide IF I have a spiritual home. I've moved two dozen times, including a move to Australia for three years, during my forty-mumble-mumble years. So...maybe my spiritual home is just a very heavy moving box. :)
Having said that, if I had to pick one place--I've always felt like Pittsburgh, PA and I "got" each other. I'm all about good bones and grit, perogies, cloudy days and art, and that city has it all in spades. I'll never forget how I felt taking the 28x bus from the airport, returning from my first Thanksgiving break. We pulled out of a tunnel and onto a bridge, and there was this huge rainbow, and I could see the city fast approaching, with the three rivers, glittering and choppy, below. I teared up then, too. It felt like a banquet set before a very hungry girl.ā
If youāve seen or read Wonder Boys or have any other comfort film selections to share, feel free to pop your recās in the comments!
Your friend who suddenly has the urge to watch Flashdance again (I first saw it at the theater at age 5 or 6),
Elayne
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What a fun memory! Reminds me of the time, when I lived in DC, and was walking along the National Mall, specifically the reflecting pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial, and I wasnāt paying attention and literally bumped into Jamie Foxx! But I didnāt really realize it was him, until I had walked away! They were filming for scenes in I believe the movie, White House Downā which I havenāt ever seen!