Frida

D and I do not have cable, so TV viewing, particularly on the weekends, is usually rather dire. However, in the past few weeks, Frida seems to be becoming a regular feature on weekend television. If you haven't seen the film, I encourage you to do so (though I would advise renting rather than watching the censored version that I'm watching right now). I love this film, for so many reasons - it's passionate, provocative, sexy, and artistic. I love women like Frida Kahlo, likely because I'm almost nothing like her - nowhere near as brave or creative.

The film is also a powerful, though certainly controversial, portrait of love. For a lazy Sunday afternoon,* I leave you with this beautiful quotation from the film, spoken by Frida's father, out in their garden, as her mother lies inside on her deathbed:

She'll throw a fit if I let her plants die. We fought so much. Sometimes I... sometimes I would regret that I ever married her. I would think how I hated her. You do enough damage to one another, you begin to think that way. Well, then she gets sick, and ... I tend her garden.

There's little that's rosy about the film and its portrayal of relationships, but isn't this what marriage is about? The commitment to tend to each other, even after the tragedy, hurt, and bad behavior on both sides. Something to think about...



*Don't tell, D! We're moving in exactly two weeks, and I have far too much packing to do!