January 25, 2004

'The Passion'; Bad Singing; 'Peter Grimes'; Balanchine; Hollywood's Ills

'THE PASSION'
I'll Take Pasolini
To the Editor:

Frank Rich's comments concerning "hard-knuckle religious politics" were right on target, and his term "spiritual McCarthyism" defines them to a T ["The Pope's Thumbs Up for Gibson's `Passion,' " Jan. 18]. Perhaps Mel Gibson's "Passion" could only happen in an age of malicious sanctimony. However, Mr. Rich's repeated coverage of the film probably gives it far more weight than it deserves.

As a gay man, I've lived through the obnoxious rantings of televangelists who demonize my lifestyle because doing so justifies their own positions. I miss the time when religion was practiced quietly, privately and humbly. What I truly resent is when Christian conservatives co-opt Christianity to persecute others. However, Mr. Gibson's "Passion" will probably prove a tepid tempest in a teapot, and the less said about a film of a well-known story whose only novelties are its graphic violence and Latin-Aramaic dialogue, the better. If I want to see a good film about the Passion, there's always Pasolini's "Gospel According to St. Matthew," a fine religious film by a gay director.
MICHAEL EHRHARDT
Manhattan

God Is Here to Stay
To the Editor:

Frank Rich's acceptance of two realities would be a tonic for his agitprop criticism: God, or a semblance thereof, is here to stay in American politics, and George Bush is not the reincarnation of Richard III. If Mr. Rich would broaden his myopic view of our culture, he would be more objective in his analysis of the American religious experience. Like Mel Gibson, he too has his "minions," and in placating them he is more demagogic than those he condemns.
D. PAUL THOMAS
Los Angeles, Calif.

BAD SINGING
Another Candidate
To the Editor:

Kelefa Sanneh cites Bob Dylan as Exhibit A when it comes to playing down vocal virtuosity ["The Sweet Sounds of Really Bad Singing," Jan. 18]. But consider Billie Holiday. At the start of her career her style was considered by many to be anything but virtuosic. Yet nearly 50 years after her death, she continues to entrance us. Will this be the case for 50 Cent?
CHRIS RIPLEY
Deer Park, N.Y.

`PETER GRIMES'
Exculpatory Evidence
To the Editor:

"Peter Grimes" has always been one of my favorite operas ["Britten and His `Hero,' Outsiders Both" by Anne Midgette, Jan. 18]. During a visit to the Aldeburgh Music Festival in 1984, I spent time photographing the area, which is the setting for Britten's opera. Seeing the Moot Hall, the village church (where Britten is buried), and the fishermen bringing in their catch assisted by young boys in hip-waders, made the opera very real.

Perhaps the most striking feature was a few kilometers north, where a marker near the edge of a cliff commemorated the loss of a child who had fallen. The North Sea has been known to erode the cliffs in the area, a fact that could exonerate Grimes in the death of his second apprentice.
NELSON TANDOC
San Jose, Calif.

BALANCHINE
The Black Aesthetic
To the Editor:

Re "George Balanchine, Musical Comedian?" by Matthew Gurewitsch [Jan. 18]:

Nowhere in the Balanchine centennial chatter has it been pointed out that part of the inspiration for the maestro's revolutionary redefinition of ballet came from his appropriation of a black aesthetic. His musical comedy years in London, Hollywood and on Broadway were flavored and accented by the coolness, timing, acrobatics and unexpected movement juxtapositions that we call jazz dance — our American euphemism for black influences.

Balanchine became an all-American. It's high time to acknowledge what that means.
BRENDA DIXON GOTTSCHILD
Philadelphia
The writer is author of "Digging the Africanist Presence in American Culture: Dance and Other Contexts" (Greenwood, 1996).

HOLLYWOOD'S ILLS
Still Independent
To the Editor:

Re "Bullies Are Not What Ails Hollywood" by Frank Rich [Jan. 11]:

Citing an epic production like "Cold Mountain" as evidence of Miramax Films' "big studio mentality" fails to offer the proper perspective on the company's priorities. Considering that every major studio originally turned down "Cold Mountain" (just as they did "The English Patient,") and that one of them abandoned it during preproduction, the financial risk and sacrifices associated with the project hardly qualify as joining "the establishment." In many ways "Cold Mountain" became so independent, it was almost an orphan.

Mr. Rich acknowledged that Miramax released "some genuine indie movies" like "The Station Agent" this year. A true evaluation requires considering the entire slate, including Miramax's financing of the Portuguese-language "City of God" and Stephen Frears's "Dirty Pretty Things," and its distribution of "The Barbarian Invasions" and "The Magdalene Sisters."

While Miramax can no longer be best described as "a renegade operation," our co-chairmen remain committed to those projects that no one else will make, to help rescue the art that remains such an important part of our culture.
MATTHEW HILTZIK
Manhattan
The writer is senior vice president for corporate communications at Miramax Films.