Boyhood-The Movie

     The draw for this movie is it was filmed over
12 years of "real time."  Of those 12 years it was edited to 3 hours. That is a lot of years condensed into what is, by today's standards, a long movie.
     The writer, director, and producer cast his daughter in one of three main characters.  When I perused reviews and such-casting his daughter seemed a bit controversial. I do not understand why folks feel a parent should not give advantage to their children. Is that not part of the "American Dream?"  As a parent, you work hard hoping you can make your child's life better. Nepotism is sensible. In this case, Lorelei-well she was excellent. So her dad gave her a chance and she hit a home run.
     Patricia Arquette is the mother of two children. A girl, and two years younger, a boy. While "Boyhood" is the title of the movie-it could easily have been titled, "Motherhood."  Arquette's character filled this movie.
     The boy, whose real name I don't recall-well, for me anyway-he tried hard to stand out, he was grasping for something profound, trying to become a lone wolf.  Ironically, (and this is just my take on things) his desire for profoundness made him ordinary. The mother's quest to be ordinary, made her stand out.
      Sometimes I encounter a piece of art, written, painting, design...whatever, and I just don't get it. While many are speaking about beauty, intensity, extrodinary-I am standing there scratching my head.  I wonder what am I missing that everyone else sees. One time I was in a store where they sold those computer generated paintings-you know the kind you look at long enough until you see it is not a animals in a zoo, it is actually, constellations in a winter sky. So, I am looking at this picture and I see nothing-nada-blank to me. Several folks started to join me in deciphering what was hidden. So I just started to shake my head up and down-quietly giggling  in to myself.  "Do you see it?" Someone asked. "Yes," I replied. I did not see a darn thing. I went on to point out the beautiful sea-scape amongst all those dots.
     Sure enough, one by one, folks gathered there started pointing out details in my made up interpretation of this picture. My point, and I did start with one! Ah, yes, my point-sometimes when we don't "get it" we fake the funk. Then other folks, also unable to grasp an artistic concept, they join in.
     Reckon this is my take on "Boyhood."  I didn't "get it."  I would have titled it "Bad Choices 101."  Would believe movie was about an adult expecting different result even though she, (the mother) kept making the same bad choices.
     There is one thought this movie has left me to chew on-Mother and Son lived parallel lives. Other than giving birth-mother and son lived without their lives ever intersecting. The daughter and mother, their lives intersected back and forth-back and forth. Mother and son had one point of contact. Which is more evidence supporting my thesis; donating sperm or serving as a host-these do not make anyone a parent. Vise-versa...an individual becomes a parent even if physicogically they did not contribute.