Luna and I went to see another movie last Friday. It was The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and it was actually pretty good. The basic plot is that a lot of aging Brits decide to go stay at a hotel for the elderly in India, and their stay ends up affecting them all in different ways. There's a racist character (played by Maggie Smith) who overcomes her racism, a gay character who comes to terms with his past (he had a lover in India, where he lived as a young man), an old married couple who realize it's not working out and break it off, etc. It's sort of a funny feel-good movie, on the one hand, since it's a comedy and everyone ends up getting their happy ending (save for one who passes away during the events of the film), but on the other hand it deals with a lot of heavy themes like aging, death, etc.
I'm not sure why Luna picked that movie for us to see, actually. It's true that only three movies were playing at the local theater and we'd already seen one of them, but I expected a twelve-year-old to be more interested in Dark Shadows. Perhaps she heard some bad reviews of it?
I felt a little weird watching that movie with Luna, because there was a lot of stuff in it that might not have been too age-appropriate. (It's a PG-13 movie, but you can get away with a lot in a PG-13 movie.) Some of it probably went over her head. I just hope her parents wouldn't be upset that she saw it, or I could be out of a job.
The funny thing is, while watching the movie I kept thinking about how I'd hate to live in a place like India. It's beautiful, but there are just so many people and so many open spaces that I don't know if my negative reaction is one of claustrophobia or agoraphobia. Or is it something else — fear of being watched? Fear of being around too many people? I'm not sure, but there was definitely something uncomfortable about it. After the movie was over, when Luna and I were walking home, she said to me "I don't think I could live with so many people. I think it would be too hard." I pointed out that she used to live in Manhattan, and she said something like "Manhattan's different. People don't talk to you there, or look at you. So even when you're in a big crowd it's like you're alone."
The more I think about it the more I think she's right. It's probably why some people perceive New Yorkers as unfriendly. New York City is full of busy (or even overworked) people, it's cold half the time, and it used to be pretty dangerous. No wonder people don't stop to acknowledge you on the street. But that's partly what I like about it, and I guess Luna likes that too. It's comforting knowing you probably aren't going to be bothered by anyone.
When you live in an upstate small town, though, it's different because there are rarely enough people around to bother you, but we still act detached. Every TV show, movie, or book I've read featuring an American small town in the 20th or 21st centuries paints the town and its inhabitants as a close-knit group where everybody kind of knows everybody. But when half the people in your town used to live in the city, and come here with the attitude of "don't talk to anyone", then you end up with a place where you really are alone and everyone makes sure you feel that way.
I can't wait to grow up and move out.
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