Girls, I am telling you, "Death Of A Cheerleader" has all the makings of a musical!!!!! Those choreographed cheerleader routines, for starters, but how about the scene in the hospital, where Angela Delvecchio, at this point a candy striper, terrorizes an old lady, who looks at her and screams, "You! I know what you are!" This moment alone screams--Show Stopper!!!
Actually, to pull it off as a musical, things would have to be camped up a bit, because, with the exception of Tori Spelling as Stacy Lockwood(!!!! How campy is that name, darlings; yes, it is right up there with--ready???--Diane Dykeman!!!!) who is already camped up to begin with, the rest of the film is not.
Kellie Martin gives the kind of performance as Angela one might expect from Jennifer Jason Leigh. And wait till you see a pre-"Cold Case' and almost unrecognizable Kathryn Morris as Goth outsider Monica Whitley, who could belt out a few show stoppers, herself!!! You just know Monica would have a number of her own!!!!
The funny thing is, in spite of what I am writing, the film gets under the skin in a certain way. Who among us does not have high school memories, and--I don't care who you are--some reservations about them???? The most disturbing thing about this film is that you feel less sorry for Stacy than Angela, even though Stacy is murdered. And you can understand the desires driving Angela towards her deed. I know I can, because I had some of those same desires, myself!!!!!!
Now, despite being The Raving Queen, I never aspired to being a cheerleader!!! For me, the counterpart was being elected to the National Honor Society. I was certainly eligible enough, as I was given a nomination form. And, as my friend, Doug (like Angela's friend, Jill) said at the time, not everyone got even that. But, for me, like Angela, that just was not good enough. When I lost out in my junior year, when less students are chosen, I was disappointed, but took comfort in the fact that I had another chance senior year. After all, the then Woman Of My Dreams, Arna Zucker, who was brilliant (and went on to M.I.T., darlings!!!!) did not make it till then!!!! But when I was turned down next year, I was both devastated and MAD!!!! So mad, that, on my own level, I confronted Mrs. Santamarina about it. That bitch was as cold as ice, saying it had nothing to do with me!!! Like hell, it did not!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
As I watched the movie, I thought, "This could have been titled, 'What If I Had Bumped Off
Mrs. Santamarina?'" I certainly had my fantasies about that, but, outside of a verbal clashing, that's all it was--a fantasy, thanks to the fact I had two things Angela lacked--rationality and impulse control!!!!
Actually, thinking to back then, I always felt, maybe I had too much of such. Maybe if I had been more outspoken, and said what I really felt--that I was better than all my classmates and teachers (which I still believe to this day, darlings!!!!!) it might have gotten me somewhere--like kicked out of Highland Park High School, which is what I secretly wanted, and put in a different school, where I belonged!!! Of course, back then (early 70s), there were no alternative schools like now--just reformatories, which would have thrilled neither I nor my parents.
The point is, for all I felt like Anglea felt--I never crossed that line!!!!!
And if I had, I could NEVER have lived with it, as long as she did, which is what amazes me about Anglea, and her real life persona, Bernadette Protti. Even with a new identity and life, she still carries those memories. Youthful unhappiness is one thing; living with having done murder I cannot conceive of.
Even more interesting, the movie, like the Rolling Stone magazine article by Randall Sullivan, which inspired it, indicts, to a certain extent, the community and its social standards, putting them as much on trial, as Angela!!! Which is pretty gutsy!!!!
Maybe the way to musicalize it is to criss cross--have all the big, ensemble pieces--the cheerleading numbers, the Community-At-Large number, the Trial--camped up, while the solo numbers (with the exception of the old lady in the hospital) played straight. And how should it end, girls???? An Ensemble finale saluting the continuation of communal hypocrisy, or Angela, alone onstage, singing a lamentation of chances lost (there's the song title, "Chances Lost") as we go to fadeout?????
You know what ending I favor, darlings!!!! And you better believe I want to play Angela!!!!!!!!
One last thing, since we are talking about high school memories. You know Michael Karol, the big poof (because he IS big, and he IS poofy!!!!) who writes these ersatz film and TV books??? Hey, Mike, the reason you wanted me out of that audition room, was because you saw yourself (ie; gay!!!) in me, and you were just too unwilling to face that in yourself!!!!!
Gotcha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We're not going to please, or be pleased by every single other person, at all, within this whole world, that's only always a totally, fully, and completely unattainable goal, is all, never never never never never never never ever ever ever, at all, negatively, and pathetically beg any other people's liking you, always be your very own person, like, and love yourself, always truly remember you, and everyone else, at all, within this whole world's so very very truly, and fully deserved of being loved, not just simply only what, or who other people are, or think you should be, always most truly, and most fully only now, always, and forever soulfully, humbly, christianly, godly, spiritually positively, and nonjudgementally forgive, and never unforgive, any, and all other sinners, of this whole world, with every single little, tiny, remote, little bit, and part of your mind, heart, soul, and conscience, and now, always, and forever only most truly remember the smart, right, positive, good, great, fair, everlasting, helpful, strong, serious, adamant, godly, christian, lawful, respectful, respectable, constitutional, stable, sane, vital, important, and spiritually positive commandment, of thou shalt not kill.--------Kelly Joanne Cannon
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to also relay that I really do like you, Raving Queen, that I think you're truly only a good, decent, and soulful person, and I really hope you're only having a great day, so far, and have a great week.--------Sincerely, Kelly Joanne Cannon
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ReplyDeleteKelly,
Thanks so much for your insightful
and inspirational comments. It is easy
to go to the dark places, which will
always remain such. I am grateful for
so much in my life now. As some have
suggested to me, had things gone
differently, I might not have all I have now.
For that I am forever grateful.
Feel free to drop in amytime.
Nevertheless, despite any, and all evil, and negativity that's, at all, or that's all ever ever happened, at all, within this whole, entire world, I still only most truly, most fully, most totally, most sensitively, most positively empathetically, most definitely, most certainly, most strongly, most seriously, most honestly, most adamantly, most truthfully, most rightly, most purely, most tenderheartedly, most soulfully, most warmly, most vitally, most importantly, most positively healthily, most decently, most godly, most christianly, and most spiritually positively, now, always, and forever feel, believe, and think that God, and Jesus truly, and fully always like, love, and care about everybody, at all, within this whole, entire world, never only just some of us, or only just some of them, that they have only always, and now, always, and forever totally, fully, and completely will truly, and fully forgive any, and all of us people, at all, within this whole, entire world, for any, and all of their, and our sins, and that any, and all of us people, whom are, at all, within this whole, entire world, always truly, and fully have, and now, always, and forever will truly, and fully go to Heaven, and not to Hell, at all, if they've most truly, and most fully repented to God, and Jesus, in their hearts, for any, and all of their negative sins, at all, within their whole, entire lives. Actually, I honestly don't know, at all, whether, or not, there is really a Hell, or of who's already gone there, or not, or of who's ever ever going there, or not, but I do now, always, and forever, actually know, believe, remember, and feel that I'm most truly, and most adamantly not fit, or worthy, in any ways, at all, whatsoever, to ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever sentence any other people, at all, within this whole, entire world, to Hell, if there is truly a real one. No way. Not ever. Uh-uh. No way. Not me.---------Kelly Joanne Cannon
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ReplyDeleteKelly--
Actually your comments would have been more suited
on the post I wrote about the novel, "Linclon In The
Bardo." Or "Why I Don't Always Go To Mass."
Hell is something I think and worry about. My
personal beliefs go to what you are saying, but, as
you also say, we can never know.
A saint I ain't. But I try my best, each day given,
which I know to be a gift.