About Liberty

Post 471:

            I’d like to address storytelling by way of example. This could be classified as a review, though I’d like to make it about craft above all else. Storytelling is an endless and beautiful thing, and we can draw the infinite from a few guys’ touches to a piece of art.

            Hear me as I refer to The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. An oft overlooked piece of Western Americana that speaks hard and true on account of the sophistication in which the story was penned.

            Let’s do the almost absurd task of putting aside the wonderful direction, coloring, and setting. Near impossible. Perhaps totally impossible.

            Still…more important are the challenges the story presents, all the while staying entertaining and engaging.

            Challenging. That’s the point of this. As writers or content creators, some of the time you just want to do something that will take people out of themselves. Get them to stop thinking and such.

            But when you’re really on to something, it can be both a think piece and a fun piece. Here we’ve got the titular character, played amazingly by a sinister Lee Marvin. Even by today’s standards, this dude is creepy bad. He obviously needs to be eradicated. That’s about the only simple thing about the film. How you get rid of him is a tough question. More government. Less government. Statehood. Territory. Street justice versus the rule of law. It’s all on the table.

            And here’s where you want to go as storytellers: Each side has a pretty good point to make. I don’t know whether to like John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart more. They’re both noble in completely different ways, yet they’re completely noble.

            John Wayne plays his typical bit as an alpha male badass that could wreck shop. He ain’t ’fraid of nothing, if you know what I mean. Jimmy Stewart is sort of a pansy, but he’s got his own kind of bravery. Watch the movie and observe the interplay between these two moral systems—it’s not just a dumb Western.

            I think this is a noble challenge to writers. To create multiple characters inside the same narrative that have equal claims on the right. It’s difficult. Damn near Gordian Knot levels of frustration will ensue, but it’s what elevates the good to the great. Cheers. See you after.