CxD: 4 donkeys

1. One of my truly favorite films of all-time is Au Hasard Balthazar, loosely translated as The Trials and Tribulations of Balthazar. Who is a donkey. The magic of the film is that Robert Bresson’s cinematic technique asks all of his actors to deliver their lines as stoically and anti-dramatically as possible, leaving to the viewers the responsibility of doing “the work.” It’s a staggeringly pessimistic film with human cruelty on full display. Maybe sometimes I like testing my character by observing just how stupid and mean humans are while trying to retain some compassion regardless. It’s brutal and lonely work.

2. Last night I saw Balthazar’s modern twin, EO, in a film that’s obviously a remake of the original, even though it’s not officially a remake. At its conclusion, all I could do was hold my beloved in the parking lot as we both cried buckets of rain.

Fuck it, just looking at this film poster is making me shed water again, so perhaps I’m just supremely sensitive about donkeys? The fact that he’s a Polish donkey might also have something to do with the waterworks, since I’ve been called a Polish donkey enough times to have lost count; seeing your own essence mirrored so beautifully is an intense experience turns out.

If you suspect I’m holding a bias in favor of donkeys from the motherland, the Nytimes’s chief film critic listed EO as her favorite film of the year. Do with this info what you will.

3.

It’s the holiday season! Perhaps a CxD gift subscription for the donkey in your life would be just the thing?