A day of food and drink is highlighted by a fascinating documentary
It was around 10:00 on a Friday morning. I got a text message from my friend Helen asking if I wanted to meet for some breakfast. Of course I said yes. We went to Johnny Rockets which is exactly where we went the last time we decided to have breakfast in Hoboken. This time we had burgers since we got there just after 11:00 and lunch was being served.
After our late burger breakfast, we decided to have a couple of margaritas at East LA. As we sat and chatted about how nice it was to have a day to just be lazy, Helen began to tell me about this film. It was this documentary called ‘I’m Your Man’ all about songwriter Leonard Cohen. She said that supposedly he would in the end tell us all the meaning of life. I was fascinated and said I’d love to see it.
Now I’ve never really considered myself a fan of Leonard Cohen. Oh don’t get me wrong, I love what I’ve heard, I just never really knew all that much about him or his work. This is basically the result of me not paying close attention to much of anything as I grew up. Songs would penetrate the brain thru my ears, but the details would pass right over head.
We headed in a bit early so we stopped for a couple more cocktails at the White Horse Tavern (567 Hudson St, NYC). Established in 1880 it’s infamous as the spot where Dylan Thomas drank himself to death. It’s the perfect place to kill some early afternoon time before going to the movie. Some dude from Saturday Night Live was there. I forget his name. In the meantime, Helen and I traded some ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend horror stories.
We made our way to The Film Forum (209 West Houston St, NYC) where the film was playing. ‘I’m Your Man’ is not a biography about Leonard Cohen but a magical tour thru his legend and the influence of his songs on others. As such its interview segments with performers and Cohen himself are filmed and edited beautifully. Equally moving is the footage from a Cohen tribute concert in Australia.
Now I didn’t know who this performer Antony was, but his rendition of ”If It Be Your Will’ was chillingly haunting, moving most in the theater to tears. Other standouts for me would be Nick Cave singing the title track ‘I’m Your Man’ and of course Rufus Wainwright’s version of ‘Alleluia’. Cohen himself said that he feels the Wainwright family is keeping his music alive.
The film ends with a touching moment in a seedy NYC burlesque club with Cohen being backed up by U2. Listening to them do ‘Tower of Song’ makes me wish I had paid better attention all these years and moves me to do so in the future. I left the theater with a renewed sense of inspiration and hope in my own writing. As for the meaning of life; Helen and I both were a bit baffled about that.
It seemed to come toward the end when he told the story of a man who had questioned God and God replied that life was a play. Every man is destined to play a part which cannot be changed. Or something to that affect about fate. I can’t say I agree with it, but there it is. Either way I found the movie very enlightening although Helen wished there was more actual biographical facts about the man himself.
We discussed this at some length while having one final drink back in Hoboken at Louise & Jerry’s. We called it an ‘evening cap’ since it was not even 7:30 yet. But after such a long day, we walked out of the bar feeling as though we’d been out all night. I guess in a way we had been, only in the daylight.
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