Movies and Thoughts

I took my kids to see Shark Tale today, or as Son#3 says, “Shoik Tale”. I went into it with low expectations, but actually laughed a lot. I’m not sure it’s that funny or if I was laughing at the absurdity of the Shark/Italian spoof. There is a scene where there is what I would call an Italian Catholic Mafia funeral for a shark... straight out of a Godfather movie. I could not quit laughing.

It does make me wonder, however, do I laugh because I’ve married into an Italian family (no mafia nor do we know any people like that), think Big Fat Greek Wedding in reverse and that truly is my life, or because it was really that funny. Pop, my father in law, has a good friend, Joe, who talks just like all the Italian stereotypes from Sopranos, Godfather, Shark Tale. And he is LOUD! And he is hugely affectionate. I laugh whenever I’m around him because to know him is to love him. Case in point:

Last year, Son#2 had a soccer game and Joe and Pop came to see a small portion of it. I’m sitting with another Mom from our school, who is neither Italian nor married to one, and as they walk over, Joe starts shouting… and it truly goes something like this… very fast, very loud, thick NY/NJ Italian accent: “IT’S SO GOOD TO SEE YOU LOVE! (big bear hug and a kiss on each cheek here) HOW’RE YOUSE GUYS DOIN’? MAMAMIA, LOOK AT THOSE BOYS RUN! HOW’RE YOUR MOM AND POP DOIN’? THEY DOIN’ OK? YOUR BROTHER AND SISTER? I THINK OF THEM EVERY DAY, GOD LOVE ‘EM.”

I’m not kidding. I don’t get a word in. Did I say he was loud? I think he has bellows instead of lungs. It makes his voice travel. They leave and the Mom that is next to me is shell shocked, eyes wide open, mouth agape. I say nothing, just sit back down and act like this happens every day… which it kind of does. Finally she says, “Are they for real? I feel like I just stepped on a set from Sopranos” to which I reply, “Yes, they are real. Welcome to my life.” You gotta laugh.

So I do wonder if I thought the movie was funny because of my life.

Now the odd thing about the movie…there appeared to be two messages, one was definitely a ‘money is not everything, its who you love’ type thing… but the other.. it was something about ‘acceptance’. Now if you’ve seen this movie, please tell me if it's just me.

Lenny the Shark is very effeminate and isn’t the tough guy of his Mafioso father (Robert DeNiro). Lenny is a vegetarian and at one point, he’s disguised as a dolphin wearing a scarf and honestly looks like he could be in a Shark version of the Village People. During the entire movie Lenny laments that his father will never accept him for who he is, but of course, it’s a kid’s movie, so all works out in the end. But it just struck me as kind of weird, and I DON’T read stuff into movies, but this ‘acceptance’ thing seemed more of a homosexuality twist.

Ok, off that, I also saw a preview for a cartoon movie entitled Madagascar and it had penguins in it. You know you might be a Blogger affiliated with Harvey when you see penguins in a flick and you automatically think of The Alliance. I couldn’t quit laughing.

And we saw a preview for The Incredibles which I have not wanted to see… until now. This preview was funny. Any preview where a Mom can make her arms miles long and separate her kids cannot be a bad movie. I think stretchability and the ability to snap right back is probably a super hero power that any Mom would want… as well as invisibility… or maybe the ability to change one’s name and not tell anyone what it is… Oh wait, that’s not a superhero power… that’s a Mom’s dream. Silly me.