But I was, and am, a Carrie Fisher fan. My fangirldom came from the work she did and the post-teen-Princess-Leia woman she was. I loved the way she created painful, searing, remarkable humor; the way she told stories with surgical precision —"Surrender the Pink," "Delusions of Grandma," and "Wishful Drinking." I admired how her mother's most selfish tendencies were handled in "Postcards from the Edge" with care and understanding. I treasured her genuine portrayal of real women on camera, and how she often stole the scene when she did. How she told off movie execs and other critics - in the way so many of us who don't look like we did at 20 wish we could - and said, "I swear, when I was shooting those films I never realized I was signing an invisible contract to stay looking the exact same way for the rest of my existence.”
I loved her openness and honesty about herself; about her struggles with regular human issues and superhuman mental health issues, and the generosity and self-deprecation she employed to keep moving forward and to help herself and others heal.
She was candid and gutsy, and from what one can tell about her through interviews and close friends' reflections, she closed off her life - full up to her Leia double-donut hairstyle - with integrity.
She could be counted on to point out that the emperor had no clothes, even as everyone else was admiring the cut of nonexistent finery. Kind of like what's happening today. Maybe she could see the future when she tweeted, "You know those days when things keep getting worse faster than U can lower your standards?"
Yes, Ms. Fisher, we know. Thank you for doing it right. We're so sorry you're gone, and not just for your talent ... because we would love to have your voice right now. But there is a lesson in your passing. Those of us who are witness to the parade, and wonder why so many are not pointing at the nakedness ... we need to get our Carrie on.
© 2016 A Bit of Brie/Anitabrie
On 22nd Dec we watched Carrie Fisher's "live" (delayed by a couple of days) interview on The Graham Norton Show (a U.K. chat show). It was so staggering to hear about her demise not long after it aired.
ReplyDeleteShe sat on the sofa during that show and was completely confident, charming, funny, ascorbic and uncompromising about her life, her problems and about herself.
It makes me feel like a little light went out when she left us here.
I agree, Kim. Have a happy new year! Love, Anita
DeleteAwesome piece Anita. I was a big fan of both her writing and her person. It's always been interesting to me how the arc of various people's lives plays out. In this case probably the most "pablum-esque" part of her professional existence is what she was most known for and people associated most with her… And yet she accomplished so much after. It's as if she was world famous for winning an Olympic gold medal or the World Series, and then later quietly saved a million kids in Africa. There can be a big difference between what we're known for, and what our lasting impact is. Carrie's talent gave her homeruns in both ways.
ReplyDeleteGreg, I just saw this comment this morning. Totally agree. And as always, enjoyed your writing – it's crisp and creative! Have a happy New Year's Day.
ReplyDeleteGreat piece! I too (until this week) had only been to one star wars movie in my life....
ReplyDeleteSo I'm not the only Star Wars holdout...
DeleteThanks for commenting, John!
I wrote a reply to you from my phone, John, but it's not showing up here! Glad to know I'm not the lone Star Wars holdout. Thanks for reading!
ReplyDelete