Tag Archive: Hero’s Musings

They grappled near the edge of a dark chasm. They were both sure they would be the one left standing, and their lover, their lover would be laying at the bottom of that lightless chasm. They struggled further, and like out of some comic book, they spoke in grunts as they vied for better footing, an advantage over their opponent, on this springy ground. These lovers negotiated like the German and Russian leaders of times past, on how Poland would be divided amongst them. Would they stop grappling and speak peacefully to form some lover’s accord, or would they continue to openly fight for ultimate control, only one left standing in the end, on this bed?
Power struggles between the sexes are a common theme in entertainment, including film, television, and literature. These struggles can be resolved in several ways, often based on real life relationships and situations. Writers often use what they know, what they have experienced in their own lives. In Sandra Cisneros’ “Never Marry a Mexican,” from the collection Woman Hollering Creek, Clemencia drops her lover’s wife’s toy into a creek as an act of spite. Cisneros, in an interview, speaks of how she had similarly taken a toy from her lover’s apartment and dropped it down a storm drain. Raising Victor Vargas is based on writer/director Peter Sollett’s life growing up in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1971/1998) is a brilliant novel that translates well into a Terry Gilliam film with few changes. Both the book and film chronicle the journey of famous gonzo journalist Raoul Duke (Thompson), played by Johnny Depp, and his demented attorney Dr. Gonzo, as portrayed by Benicio Del …

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