Today's moral dilemma involved the question of whether to attend the screening of Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert's four-hour children-with-cancer documentary A Lion in the House (which I had told them I would be attending), or to hang out with cinematographer Lee Daniel instead (who I ran into on my way to the screening of "A Lion in the House"). Lee is a friend from way back when (we met at Sundance in 1991 when Slacker and A Little Stiff were both in competition) and I knew he would be leaving town first thing in the morning.
I realized a long time ago that people are more important than movies, and that on one's death bed, it will be the encounters that one had with people that will be cherished and remembered, not the great films one saw. And yet, I had made a verbal commitment to Steven and Julia (who I also know and like) to see their film (which I had heard great things about). It was a difficult decision. My own preference on a pure pleasure-principle level was to skip the film (I could always see it another time) and to hang out with Lee instead. I don't get to see him all that often, plus he was alone (which is rare), plus I really, really like him. He's one of the most zen people I know, and I always enjoy his company and his idiosyncratic spirit.
But I decided on the basis of guilt avoidance and proceeded to the movie theater. I'm glad I saw the film because it was an amazing human experience, the kind that sears itself into one's memory forever, but afterwards I could't help thinking that I had made the wrong choice, not because the film was disappointing in any way (it far surpassed my expectations, and I'm haunted by it still) but because people are more important than movies, and I always forget that.
Lee Danielposted by Caveh Zahedi at
8:29 PM
