WEBVTT

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Kenobi:Use the Force, Luke.

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I stick my neck out
for nobody.

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Well, darling, look out,
\'cause my hair is coming down.

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Always do the right thing.

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That\'s it?
That\'s it.

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I got it.
I\'m gone.

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Suber: There are certain films
that people keep going back to

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over and over again.

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I\'m gonna make him
an offer he can\'t refuse.

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Films that were not
only popular in their day,

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but that continue
to be popular.

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You talkin\' to me?

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And my question is why?

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It\'s not about what I want.

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It\'s about what\'s fair!

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They call me Mister Tibbs.

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I\'m in love with you.

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Snap out of it!

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Rosebud.

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I\'m Howard Suber.

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For over five decades,

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I\'ve taught thousands
of aspiring directors,

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producers, screenwriters,
and scholars

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the patterns and principles
I\'ve found

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in America\'s most memorable
popular films.

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Join me as we discover
the power of film.

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Great stories come into
being the way pearls do.

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That is,
in reaction to an irritant

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that forces
some reaction within.

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Why don\'t you tell me
the story of your life?

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The story of my life?

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We got 18 hours to kill
before we hit New York.

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In movies, the expression
of love, sex, and violence

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are all things that
huge audiences respond to,

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and I think they respond to it

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precisely because,
when they leave the theater,

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they don\'t get these things.

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Come on.
Night.

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Night, Sam.
Sure did like the picture.

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Well, good.

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Suber: Film is compensation
for the real world,

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for the life
that we don\'t really lead.

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You\'ll never go
broke selling hope.

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Whether you\'re a politician
or a businessman or a teacher,

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people want to hope.

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They may not need
a happy ending.

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In fact, we frequently
don\'t have happy endings,

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but we don\'t end in despair
in memorable films, either.

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We end with hope,
as we see, for example,

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in Stanley Kubrick\'s
\"Eyes Wide Shut.\"

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The important thing is...

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...we\'re awake now.

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Hope is like faith.

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And hopefully...

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It\'s a belief in something
you can\'t prove is real.

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...for a long time
to come.

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If you could prove
that what you believe

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or what you hope for were real,

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well, it wouldn\'t be
hope or faith.

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It would be a reality.

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Forever.

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Mnh. Let\'s --
Let\'s not use that word.

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But our lives
are driven by fantasy,

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a word
that comes from \"phantom.\"

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It isn\'t there.

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Gryffindor!

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[ Cheers and applause ]

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Suber: In the 21st century,

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7 out of 10
of the top-grossing films

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have been fantasies.

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What does this tell us about
where our minds are focused,

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what we\'re really
concerned about?

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We\'ve always had fantasies,
largely provided by Walt Disney,

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who continues with fantasies
like \"Toy Story\" and \"Cars\"

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and \"Up\" and so on.

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By definition,
animation is a fantasy.

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[ Pop! ]

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The imagined world
is often more powerful

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than the world
we really experience.

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We sincerely want to believe

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that love conquers all,
even in death,

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which is why so many

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of the world\'s
most memorable love stories

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end in the death or separation
of the lovers.

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It\'s okay.

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It will live forever
in our memories.

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[ People screaming ]

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A perfect example is \"Titanic,\"

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one of the most commercially
successful films of all time.

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[ Shivering ] You must
promise me that you\'ll survive,

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that you won\'t give up.

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[ Gasping ]

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One of the lovers freezes
to death in the North Atlantic.

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I\'ll never let go.
I promise.
But he\'s saved Rose, his lover,

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and she saves a memento
that reminds her of him.

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And at the end
when we are in the present time

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and she\'s now in her 90s,
she takes this valuable jewel

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and drops it into
the North Atlantic.

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[ Gasps ]

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A memento
for her long-dead lover.

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And our reaction is --

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[sighs] --

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is to sigh at the power
of this long-gone love.

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Of course, this theme
of the power of love to triumph

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is not limited to storytelling
and certainly not to movies.

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What is Christianity about,

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if not the triumph
of love over death?

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Where is there a religion
that doesn\'t tell its followers

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that its divine beings and
revered leaders all love them?

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The love of the deity is what
the people constantly seek.

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God is love.

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Certainly,
in terms of our value system

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and how most people act,

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they look for somebody to love.

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It\'s a central core
of human desire.

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Write me well.

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But why do so many great,

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memorable love stories
end badly,

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as opposed to romances
and musical comedies,

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which end happily?

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Well, maybe we\'re back
to the territory

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of the power of memory.

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To engrossing death.

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Romeo.

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Romeo and Juliet die,
but they will live in our memory

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as this great romantic story

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of two people
who really loved one another

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but were prevented
from staying together.

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[ Gunshot ]

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Our memories are
the most powerful place

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in human existence.

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In \"Brokeback Mountain,\"
Heath Ledger\'s character, Ennis,

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goes into a closet
and embraces a jacket

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once worn
by his dead lover, Jack,

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and he smells it.

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And it\'s powerful because
nothing is more ephemeral

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than our sense of smell.

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But this little whiff of his
jacket brings back memories.

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We all know that love works

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not in words necessarily,

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but in other feelings

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that work on a pre-conscious,
pre-word level.

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What are we
gonna do now?

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We want to believe that love
can solve every problem.

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We want to believe,
if we are religious,

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that our God\'s love
is sufficient

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for our own lives
and our own needs.

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We want to believe
that if we find the right mate,

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as Bogart and Bacall do

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in Howard Hawks\'
\"To Have and Have Not,\"

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our lives will work out
despite the divorce statistics,

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but hope springs eternal.

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We tend to think
sex and love go together,

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but there are many
very powerful relationships

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built on love

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that have nothing to do
with sex.

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In \"Moonlight,\"
there\'s this exquisite scene

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of Chiron\'s mentor, Juan,
teaching him how to swim.

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Let your head
rest in my hand.

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Relax. I got you.
I promise you.

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The scene feels
almost like a baptism,

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and it is intimately charged

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with the caring love
of a mentor.

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Some of the more powerful
relationships

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throughout storytelling
in general

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are between mentors
and their mentees.

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\"Good Will Hunting\"
is about the relationship

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between Matt Damon
and Robin Williams\' characters,

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which officially is that of
a therapist and his patient.

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I didn\'t mean it. Like --
It\'s alright.

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It\'s an important
question.

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But on the emotional level,

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it\'s the story of a younger man
and an older man,

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and it\'s about
cross-generational nurturing

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and caring...

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and, ultimately, loving.

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[ Sobbing ]

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The final scene in their
relationship ends with them

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putting their arms
around each other intimately.

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[ Sobbing ]

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The great psychologist
Erik Erikson

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attributed to Sigmund Freud

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a line that ran
something like this.

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There are various versions
of it.

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The most important thing
to maturity

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is the ability to love
and the ability to work.

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In an astonishing number
of films,

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ones that we don\'t even think of

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as being about worlds of work
and worlds of love,

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the protagonist can do one

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but can\'t do both simultaneously

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because, in real life,

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balancing work and love
or work and family,

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it\'s really hard...

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[ Babbles ]
Yeah.

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...as in \"The Hurt Locker.\"

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You love everything,
don\'t you?

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Yeah.

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[ Babbles ]

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But you know what,
buddy?

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As you get older, some of
the things that you love

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might not seem
so special anymore.

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Billy Wilder,

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who is as great a screenwriter
as we\'ve ever had,

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said, \"All great stories
are love stories.\"

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And if you don\'t
just take that literally

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as referring to romantic love,

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I think there\'s a lot there.

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[ Thunder crashing ]

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In \"Frankenstein,\"
there\'s a key scene

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when Dr. Frankenstein
tries to deal with his fiancée,

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who is upset with him

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that he\'s up in his laboratory
day and night.

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And he says, \"My work
must come before my love.\"

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Elizabeth, please,
won\'t you go away?

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Won\'t you trust me?
Just for tonight?

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You\'re ill.
What\'s the matter?

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Nothing. Oh, can\'t you see?
I mustn\'t be disturbed.

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You\'ll ruin everything.

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My experiment
is almost completed.

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\"Whiplash\" is about a drummer

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who has an obsession
to become a great drummer

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and decides to sacrifice
his lover for his work life.

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Okay. I\'m gonna keep
pursuing what I\'m pursuing.

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And because I\'m doing that,
it\'s gonna take up more
and more of my time,

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and I\'m not gonna be able
to spend as much time with you.

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And even when I do
spend time with you,

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I\'m gonna be thinking
about drumming,

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and I\'m gonna be
thinking about jazz and
my charts and all that.

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And because of that, you\'re
gonna start to resent me

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and we\'re just gonna
start to hate each other,

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and it\'s gonna get very --
it\'s gonna be ugly.

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And so for those reasons,

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I\'d rather just, you know,
break it off clean.

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\"The Social Network.\"

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The life of Mark Zuckerberg

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as fantasized by the great
screenwriter Aaron Sorkin.

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And in the first scene
of the film,

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Rooney Mara is the girlfriend
of Mark Zuckerberg.

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It\'s a long scene,
but at the end, she says...

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You are probably
going to be

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a very successful
computer person.

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But you\'re gonna
go through life

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thinking that girls don\'t like
you because you\'re a nerd.

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And I want you to know
from the bottom of my heart

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that that won\'t be true.

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It\'ll be because
you\'re an asshole.

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[ Chair slides ]

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At the very end
of \"The Social Network,\"

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it\'s the end
of the depositions

00:12:56.437 --> 00:12:59.571
in this really
expensive lawsuit.

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There\'s a brief conversation
with one of the lawyers.

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You\'re not an asshole,
Mark.

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You\'re just trying
so hard to be.

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And then Zuckerberg

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is all alone in this office
at his computer.

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And he pulls up the picture

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of his long-gone girlfriend
on Facebook,

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his creation,
and he tries to friend her.

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And there\'s no response.

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And so he presses \"send\" again.

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And again.

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This is a man who put his work
first before love

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and ends up
being fabulously wealthy,

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but extremely lonely,

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as he realizes
that the value of work

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is nothing in comparison
to the value of love.

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In all these
and many more films,

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you have characters
who think they\'re unloved

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when in fact they\'re incapable
of loving other people.

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They\'re narcissists.

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For most of the 20th century,
Orson Welles\' \"Citizen Kane\"

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was regarded as the greatest
film in world history.

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\"Citizen Kane\" is about
a classic narcissist,

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and it perfectly mirrors

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the Greek myth
of Narcissus and Echo.

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People will think --

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What I tell them
to think.

00:14:43.203 --> 00:14:45.970
Kane is filled
with grandiosity

00:14:45.970 --> 00:14:49.070
and inflated images
of himself

00:14:49.070 --> 00:14:52.571
who, deep down, desires love,

00:14:52.571 --> 00:14:55.736
a word that runs
throughout the film.

00:14:55.736 --> 00:14:58.203
Love.

00:14:58.203 --> 00:14:59.537
That\'s why
he did everything.

00:14:59.537 --> 00:15:01.370
That\'s why he went
into politics.

00:15:01.370 --> 00:15:02.970
It seems
we weren\'t enough.

00:15:02.970 --> 00:15:06.571
He wanted all the voters
to love him, too.

00:15:06.571 --> 00:15:09.137
That\'s all he really wanted
out of life, was love.

00:15:09.137 --> 00:15:13.637
And on one level,
\"Citizen Kane\" is a love story.

00:15:13.637 --> 00:15:18.470
The problem is that Kane loses
everyone who\'s been close to him

00:15:18.470 --> 00:15:22.304
because he\'s incapable
of giving it.

00:15:22.304 --> 00:15:24.804
Whatever I do,
I do because I love you.

00:15:24.804 --> 00:15:28.470
You don\'t love me.
You want me to loveyou.

00:15:28.470 --> 00:15:32.404
For her part in the
Narcissus and Echo story,

00:15:32.404 --> 00:15:36.703
Susan Alexander
is a classic Echo.

00:15:36.703 --> 00:15:39.370
Unable to find her own voice

00:15:39.370 --> 00:15:41.370
and submerged by the dominance

00:15:41.370 --> 00:15:45.203
of the narcissistic
Charles Foster Kane,

00:15:45.203 --> 00:15:47.536
she attempts
to kill herself.

00:15:47.536 --> 00:15:48.803
Get Dr. Corey.

00:15:48.803 --> 00:15:51.203
The myth of
Narcissus and Echo

00:15:51.203 --> 00:15:54.370
has traditionally
been a common story

00:15:54.370 --> 00:15:58.537
of men and women
in life and in films.

00:15:58.537 --> 00:16:03.304
The man is trapped by his
inability to care about others,

00:16:03.304 --> 00:16:05.137
and the woman is trapped

00:16:05.137 --> 00:16:08.770
by her inability
to make her desires known.

00:16:08.770 --> 00:16:10.436
Charlie?

00:16:13.203 --> 00:16:15.603
I couldn\'t make you see
how I felt, Charlie.

00:16:15.603 --> 00:16:17.636
Suber: Speak up.

00:16:17.636 --> 00:16:19.537
Don\'t be dominated

00:16:19.537 --> 00:16:22.704
by the narcissistic people
in your life

00:16:22.704 --> 00:16:25.704
who can only focus
on their own image

00:16:25.704 --> 00:16:28.369
and their own self-fulfillment.

00:16:30.970 --> 00:16:33.037
Narcissists are obsessed

00:16:33.037 --> 00:16:35.704
with the vision
they have of themselves.

00:16:35.704 --> 00:16:39.837
Others are obsessed with
the vision they have of others.

00:16:39.837 --> 00:16:43.203
The popular Alfred Hitchcock
classic \"Vertigo\"

00:16:43.203 --> 00:16:46.003
centers on Jimmy Stewart\'s
character,

00:16:46.003 --> 00:16:49.370
Scottie Ferguson, a detective.

00:16:49.370 --> 00:16:52.170
He is hired to track
Madeleine Elster,

00:16:52.170 --> 00:16:54.437
played by Kim Novak.

00:16:54.437 --> 00:16:59.037
As he follows her, he develops
a deep obsession with her.

00:17:01.837 --> 00:17:06.004
When she is killed in a fall
from a church bell tower,

00:17:06.004 --> 00:17:09.604
he is haunted by this death
and he\'s haunted by her,

00:17:09.604 --> 00:17:12.671
and his obsession
is so overwhelming

00:17:12.671 --> 00:17:16.103
that he looks for someone
to replace her.

00:17:18.670 --> 00:17:21.103
He finds Judy Barton,

00:17:21.103 --> 00:17:25.103
who, by the way,
is also played by Kim Novak.

00:17:25.103 --> 00:17:29.370
As his obsession with Judy
grows ever deeper,

00:17:29.370 --> 00:17:31.203
Scottie tries to make her

00:17:31.203 --> 00:17:34.937
into an exact replica
of the dead woman.

00:17:34.937 --> 00:17:36.536
The color of your hair.

00:17:36.536 --> 00:17:38.169
Oh, no!

00:17:39.904 --> 00:17:44.170
And so in one of the most
famous scenes in film history,

00:17:44.170 --> 00:17:47.604
he reincarnates Judy...

00:17:47.604 --> 00:17:51.237
so she\'s the spitting image
of Madeleine.

00:18:02.671 --> 00:18:04.836
But his attempt
to bring Madeleine

00:18:04.836 --> 00:18:07.237
back to life in Judy...

00:18:07.237 --> 00:18:09.837
I need you to be
Madeleine for a while!

00:18:09.837 --> 00:18:13.437
...ends up in a case
of poetic justice,

00:18:13.437 --> 00:18:15.504
with his replacement lover

00:18:15.504 --> 00:18:19.170
dying exactly
as his old one did.

00:18:19.170 --> 00:18:22.270
[ Judy screams ]

00:18:22.270 --> 00:18:24.671
Suber: Obsessions
are always dangerous,

00:18:24.671 --> 00:18:29.604
which is perhaps why there are
so many films about them.

00:18:29.604 --> 00:18:34.103
In another popular story
of tragic obsession,

00:18:34.103 --> 00:18:36.836
\"Sunset Boulevard\'s\"
Norma Desmond,

00:18:36.836 --> 00:18:39.470
played by Gloria Swanson,

00:18:39.470 --> 00:18:42.903
in her own twisted way
falls in love with Joe Gillis,

00:18:42.903 --> 00:18:45.571
played by William Holden.

00:18:45.571 --> 00:18:48.637
But it\'s unrequited love...

00:18:48.637 --> 00:18:50.637
that\'s clear
to the audience...

00:18:50.637 --> 00:18:52.737
You look
absolutely divine!

00:18:52.737 --> 00:18:54.903
...and eventually
it\'s clear to Norma.

00:18:54.903 --> 00:18:57.504
Please.
Come on. Perfect!

00:18:57.504 --> 00:19:00.903
Unrequited love
is too close to the reality

00:19:00.903 --> 00:19:03.636
of too many people\'s
experience.

00:19:03.636 --> 00:19:04.970
[ Sobbing ]

00:19:04.970 --> 00:19:07.404
Your love
is unfulfilled.

00:19:07.404 --> 00:19:10.904
You didn\'t lose it
because you never had it.

00:19:10.904 --> 00:19:14.736
I don\'t know that
there\'s anything more painful

00:19:14.736 --> 00:19:16.470
than that experience.

00:19:16.470 --> 00:19:19.904
What are you gonna do, Joe?
What are you gonna do?

00:19:19.904 --> 00:19:23.070
That\'s why when Joe
walks out on her...

00:19:23.070 --> 00:19:24.337
Joe!

00:19:24.337 --> 00:19:25.636
...she kills him.

00:19:25.636 --> 00:19:27.003
[ Gunshot ]

00:19:28.903 --> 00:19:30.570
[ Gunshot ]

00:19:32.970 --> 00:19:34.536
[ Gunshot ]

00:19:37.504 --> 00:19:40.737
In the old days,
it was common knowledge

00:19:40.737 --> 00:19:46.003
that men don\'t like
sentimentality,

00:19:46.003 --> 00:19:49.138
don\'t like intimacy.

00:19:49.138 --> 00:19:54.070
So, very popular films such as
\"From Here to Eternity,\"

00:19:54.070 --> 00:19:56.736
\"Casablanca,\"

00:19:56.736 --> 00:19:59.570
\"The Best Years of Our Lives\"

00:19:59.570 --> 00:20:02.636
mix war and love.

00:20:04.504 --> 00:20:08.670
It was common wisdom that women
remember the great love scenes

00:20:08.670 --> 00:20:10.404
and that men remember war,

00:20:10.404 --> 00:20:12.736
and you\'re satisfying
the audience.

00:20:12.736 --> 00:20:14.003
[ Screams ]

00:20:14.003 --> 00:20:15.737
[ Crowd cheering ]

00:20:15.737 --> 00:20:20.237
Again, one should notice,
as in \"The Deer Hunter,\"

00:20:20.237 --> 00:20:24.170
what an important role
in creativity

00:20:24.170 --> 00:20:29.803
the combination
of two or more elements

00:20:29.803 --> 00:20:34.503
into an integrated story
produces.

00:20:34.503 --> 00:20:36.737
He\'ll be back.

00:20:36.737 --> 00:20:39.703
I\'ve talked about
the importance of triangulation

00:20:39.703 --> 00:20:42.137
in character relationships.

00:20:42.137 --> 00:20:47.203
Well, nowhere
is that more clear...

00:20:47.203 --> 00:20:48.870
than in love stories.

00:20:48.870 --> 00:20:51.238
Your friend
is quite a mercenary.

00:20:51.238 --> 00:20:55.803
I wonder if he really cares
about anything -- or anybody.

00:20:55.803 --> 00:20:57.070
I care.

00:20:57.070 --> 00:20:58.871
Suber:
A great many romances

00:20:58.871 --> 00:21:01.803
have either a guy
who has to choose

00:21:01.803 --> 00:21:03.870
between two women

00:21:03.870 --> 00:21:05.803
or vice versa.

00:21:05.803 --> 00:21:07.636
What do you think
of her, Han?

00:21:07.636 --> 00:21:10.303
I\'m trying not to, kid.

00:21:10.303 --> 00:21:12.037
Good.

00:21:12.037 --> 00:21:13.571
What do you think?

00:21:13.571 --> 00:21:15.369
Do you think a princess
and a guy like me --

00:21:15.369 --> 00:21:16.470
No.

00:21:16.470 --> 00:21:18.404
The point is,
the choice.

00:21:18.404 --> 00:21:21.637
And we call that
a romantic triangle.

00:21:21.637 --> 00:21:25.137
And it is the subject
for a lot of comedies

00:21:25.137 --> 00:21:26.636
and a lot of divorces.

00:21:26.636 --> 00:21:28.037
Hey.
Good luck, Brett.

00:21:28.037 --> 00:21:29.704
Yeah. Thank you.

00:21:29.704 --> 00:21:32.037
She\'s a great gal.
Take care of her.

00:21:32.037 --> 00:21:35.370
[ Sobbing wildly ]

00:21:35.370 --> 00:21:37.804
Suber: The standard structure
of many comedies,

00:21:37.804 --> 00:21:41.103
going way back
to the Greek and Roman comedies

00:21:41.103 --> 00:21:45.804
of Plautus and Terence,
ends in a marriage.

00:21:45.804 --> 00:21:47.870
But what if you had
a romantic comedy

00:21:47.870 --> 00:21:49.970
that began with the wedding?

00:21:49.970 --> 00:21:51.871
Where can this story go?

00:21:51.871 --> 00:21:53.970
Is there anything in there
about the wedding?

00:21:53.970 --> 00:21:55.437
What do you mean?

00:21:55.437 --> 00:21:56.938
Well, I thought
maybe you --

00:21:56.938 --> 00:21:58.871
you being one of the oldest
families in Philadelphia

00:21:58.871 --> 00:22:01.304
and me getting
fairly important myself...

00:22:01.304 --> 00:22:02.938
Suber:
In \"The Philadelphia Story,\"

00:22:02.938 --> 00:22:08.137
it goes towards separation
of the lovers.

00:22:08.137 --> 00:22:10.370
Goodbye, George.

00:22:10.370 --> 00:22:14.637
And then we have
a great triangle.

00:22:14.637 --> 00:22:18.537
Katharine Hepburn,
Jimmy Stewart, and Cary Grant.

00:22:18.537 --> 00:22:20.604
Lovable, all three,

00:22:20.604 --> 00:22:23.470
so the audience kind of
has to make a choice

00:22:23.470 --> 00:22:26.604
about which one Katharine
Hepburn should go with.

00:22:26.604 --> 00:22:28.803
Champagne\'s
funny stuff.

00:22:28.803 --> 00:22:30.937
I\'m used to whiskey.

00:22:30.937 --> 00:22:32.537
Dexter, are you sure?

00:22:32.537 --> 00:22:34.304
Not the least, but I\'ll risk it.
Will you?
You bet.

00:22:34.304 --> 00:22:38.137
But the triangular structure
that I refer to

00:22:38.137 --> 00:22:42.271
isn\'t necessarily
on the level of characters.

00:22:42.271 --> 00:22:48.103
It can also be an outside force
that is part of the triangle.

00:22:48.103 --> 00:22:51.337
John Wade Prentice.

00:22:51.337 --> 00:22:53.170
Isn\'t that a lovely name?

00:22:53.170 --> 00:22:55.504
John Wade...

00:22:55.504 --> 00:22:57.270
Suber:
\"Guess Who\'s Coming to Dinner\"

00:22:57.270 --> 00:23:02.537
has race as the third part
of this triangle.

00:23:02.537 --> 00:23:05.103
I\'m pleased to meet you,
Mrs. Drayton.

00:23:05.103 --> 00:23:10.270
You can have a conflict
between desire and duty.

00:23:10.270 --> 00:23:14.937
In \"Roman Holiday,\"
Audrey Hepburn is royalty.

00:23:17.104 --> 00:23:22.270
And she falls in love with
this commoner, Gregory Peck.

00:23:22.270 --> 00:23:24.604
Say, you know,
you were great back there.

00:23:24.604 --> 00:23:26.870
You weren\'t so bad
yourself.

00:23:29.203 --> 00:23:32.937
And at the end,
she has to choose

00:23:32.937 --> 00:23:36.537
between desire and duty.

00:23:36.537 --> 00:23:39.671
The conflict
between desire and duty

00:23:39.671 --> 00:23:41.771
runs throughout storytelling.

00:23:41.771 --> 00:23:46.504
It\'s a really rich
kind of conflict

00:23:46.504 --> 00:23:52.170
because the audience may want
the lovers to get together,

00:23:52.170 --> 00:23:55.504
but they do generally understand

00:23:55.504 --> 00:23:58.737
that duty supersedes desire

00:23:58.737 --> 00:24:01.671
and that sometimes
there\'s things

00:24:01.671 --> 00:24:05.737
a woman\'s got to do
if she is royalty.

00:24:05.737 --> 00:24:09.837
Desire versus duty is,
above all, an inner battle,

00:24:09.837 --> 00:24:14.170
one between the voice in
your head that says, \"I want,\"

00:24:14.170 --> 00:24:18.170
and the echoing voice
which comes from society

00:24:18.170 --> 00:24:20.670
that says, \"You must.\"

00:24:21.670 --> 00:24:23.337
I\'ve said before

00:24:23.337 --> 00:24:26.403
that all memorable stories
are about power.

00:24:29.004 --> 00:24:32.604
And there\'s no greater example
of this principle

00:24:32.604 --> 00:24:36.102
than the four different versions
of \"A Star is Born.\"

00:24:37.671 --> 00:24:41.004
The popularity of all four films

00:24:41.004 --> 00:24:44.837
testifies to the power
of their basic story,

00:24:44.837 --> 00:24:47.903
and the powers in conflict
with one another

00:24:47.903 --> 00:24:51.570
are once again love and work.

00:24:51.570 --> 00:24:56.304
♪ I\'ll get by ♪

00:24:56.304 --> 00:25:00.903
♪ As long as I ♪

00:25:00.903 --> 00:25:02.971
♪ Have you ♪

00:25:02.971 --> 00:25:06.736
Suber: And in all the versions
of this story,

00:25:06.736 --> 00:25:09.237
the female lover who wants

00:25:09.237 --> 00:25:12.904
to become a great star,
a great singer...

00:25:12.904 --> 00:25:15.803
Well, we have cheeseburgers,
nut burgers, banana burgers...

00:25:15.803 --> 00:25:18.504
Suber:
...and the man is already

00:25:18.504 --> 00:25:21.337
at the status
the woman aspires to.

00:25:21.337 --> 00:25:22.737
He\'s a star...

00:25:22.737 --> 00:25:25.004
You know I\'m grateful
and all that, right?

00:25:25.004 --> 00:25:27.970
And they\'re really, like,
fantastic musicians, but --

00:25:27.970 --> 00:25:30.671
What\'s wrong?

00:25:30.671 --> 00:25:33.971
Well, it\'s just not like
what\'s in my head.

00:25:33.971 --> 00:25:38.671
...but he\'s much older
and he\'s on the downside.

00:25:38.671 --> 00:25:41.203
♪ I told my dyin\' daddy ♪

00:25:41.203 --> 00:25:44.304
♪ That I had to run away ♪

00:25:44.304 --> 00:25:48.137
Suber: And this leads
to an exchange of gifts

00:25:48.137 --> 00:25:50.304
and an exchange of power,

00:25:50.304 --> 00:25:53.237
which is always
an interesting story.

00:25:53.237 --> 00:25:56.137
You should come
sing with me.

00:25:56.137 --> 00:25:57.703
Where?

00:25:57.703 --> 00:25:59.970
Well, first up\'s
Arizona.

00:26:02.404 --> 00:26:07.070
He uses his professional power,
for example,

00:26:07.070 --> 00:26:10.370
to get Barbra Streisand
on the stage

00:26:10.370 --> 00:26:13.203
so she can sing the song

00:26:13.203 --> 00:26:16.071
that, within the story,
makes her a big star.

00:26:16.071 --> 00:26:18.369
If she clicks, Oliver,
you\'ve got a star overnight.

00:26:20.636 --> 00:26:21.870
Okay.

00:26:21.870 --> 00:26:23.137
Suber:
And the same thing happens

00:26:23.137 --> 00:26:26.404
in all the versions
of this story.

00:26:26.404 --> 00:26:29.804
But now the new star\'s
ascendance

00:26:29.804 --> 00:26:33.970
comes into conflict
with the old star\'s descendance,

00:26:33.970 --> 00:26:36.704
and his self-destructive
behavior

00:26:36.704 --> 00:26:41.038
threatens the success
of the woman he loves.

00:26:41.038 --> 00:26:44.503
And so the plot requires him
to commit suicide...

00:26:48.537 --> 00:26:53.203
...which in this case
could be seen as a heroic act.

00:26:53.203 --> 00:26:56.370
All four men,
whether drowning in the Pacific

00:26:56.370 --> 00:27:00.137
or sacrificing themselves
by other means,

00:27:00.137 --> 00:27:03.103
give the gift of freedom
to their lovers.

00:27:06.703 --> 00:27:08.938
Lovers exchange gifts.

00:27:08.938 --> 00:27:12.038
I don\'t mean
Christmas gifts and birthdays.

00:27:12.038 --> 00:27:17.537
I mean the greatest gift one
human being can give to another

00:27:17.537 --> 00:27:20.704
is the belief
in their own potential.

00:27:20.704 --> 00:27:25.470
That\'s what, in all of these
versions of \"A Star is Born,\"

00:27:25.470 --> 00:27:29.704
the male gives to the female.

00:27:29.704 --> 00:27:34.637
♪ Don\'t wanna know
another kiss ♪

00:27:34.637 --> 00:27:38.637
♪ Baby, unless they\'re
on your lips ♪

00:27:38.637 --> 00:27:42.670
♪ Oh, I\'ll never love
again ♪

00:27:42.670 --> 00:27:45.437
♪ Never love again ♪

00:27:45.437 --> 00:27:48.037
Suber:
Lovers give each other gifts.

00:27:48.037 --> 00:27:49.937
In \"Jerry Maguire,\"

00:27:49.937 --> 00:27:52.537
as in most great love stories,

00:27:52.537 --> 00:27:54.938
the gifts are complementary,

00:27:54.938 --> 00:27:58.270
a word that comes from
the same root as \"completion.\"

00:27:58.270 --> 00:28:02.270
It provides something
the other person doesn\'t have.

00:28:02.270 --> 00:28:05.337
You...

00:28:05.337 --> 00:28:07.104
complete me.

00:28:07.104 --> 00:28:11.437
That notion of completion
is not something I just made up.

00:28:11.437 --> 00:28:15.504
It\'s been present
in the notion of love

00:28:15.504 --> 00:28:19.170
probably since the beginning.

00:28:19.170 --> 00:28:24.103
We should notice who gives gifts
to whom in any film,

00:28:24.103 --> 00:28:25.771
whatever genre.

00:28:25.771 --> 00:28:30.270
In a film so completely
different, as \"The Dark Knight,\"

00:28:30.270 --> 00:28:33.937
we have this exchange
between the Joker and Batman.

00:28:33.937 --> 00:28:35.604
Then why do you want
to kill me?

00:28:35.604 --> 00:28:40.003
[ Giggles ] I don\'t --
I don\'t want to kill you.

00:28:40.003 --> 00:28:41.903
Why would I do
without you?

00:28:41.903 --> 00:28:43.903
Go back to
ripping off Mob dealers?

00:28:43.903 --> 00:28:47.503
No. No. No. No.
You...

00:28:47.503 --> 00:28:50.336
You complete me.

00:28:52.170 --> 00:28:54.604
In \"Harold and Maude\"...
Shh!

00:28:54.604 --> 00:28:56.337
...you have an 80-year-old woman

00:28:56.337 --> 00:29:00.837
who has an affair with somebody
60 years younger...

00:29:00.837 --> 00:29:03.237
Like some licorice?
No, thank you.

00:29:03.237 --> 00:29:05.737
...that was considered
in this time

00:29:05.737 --> 00:29:09.670
really kind of
bizarre and kinky.

00:29:09.670 --> 00:29:11.504
Do you disapprove?

00:29:11.504 --> 00:29:13.237
Me? No, of course not.

00:29:15.437 --> 00:29:19.070
Really?
Do you think it\'s wrong?

00:29:20.504 --> 00:29:23.070
Suber:
Maude gives Harold

00:29:23.070 --> 00:29:25.504
the gift that comes
from maturity --

00:29:25.504 --> 00:29:29.604
insight and a recognition
of his own potential.

00:29:29.604 --> 00:29:32.337
He\'s not just this weird kid.

00:29:32.337 --> 00:29:35.404
Harold gives Maude in return

00:29:35.404 --> 00:29:38.504
the energy of youth
and the love.

00:29:38.504 --> 00:29:42.003
This improbable, impossible,

00:29:42.003 --> 00:29:44.570
really ludicrous

00:29:44.570 --> 00:29:46.170
but acceptable --

00:29:46.170 --> 00:29:49.070
that\'s part
of the genius of that film --

00:29:49.070 --> 00:29:52.237
sense of being
genuinely loved.

00:29:52.237 --> 00:29:56.671
You make me feel like
a schoolgirl!

00:29:56.671 --> 00:29:59.003
And then
she commits suicide.

00:30:00.404 --> 00:30:03.836
Notice any patterns?

00:30:03.836 --> 00:30:06.504
\"Harold and Maude\" is a comedy,

00:30:06.504 --> 00:30:09.836
although some people
didn\'t get the joke.

00:30:09.836 --> 00:30:13.004
But it\'s a comedy.

00:30:13.004 --> 00:30:15.103
Well, we have to talk about
the relationship

00:30:15.103 --> 00:30:19.337
between comedy, love, and sex.

00:30:19.337 --> 00:30:22.504
Love is not funny. Sex is funny.

00:30:22.504 --> 00:30:24.671
Would you like me
to seduce you?

00:30:24.671 --> 00:30:27.836
What?
Is that what you\'re
trying to tell me?

00:30:27.836 --> 00:30:29.904
I\'m going home now.

00:30:29.904 --> 00:30:33.903
The relationship between
Benjamin Braddock

00:30:33.903 --> 00:30:37.671
and Mrs. Robinson
is nothing but sex.

00:30:37.671 --> 00:30:41.238
There\'s no love in this story
at this point.

00:30:41.238 --> 00:30:45.404
I wouldn\'t even call their first
sex scene a seduction scene.

00:30:45.404 --> 00:30:46.971
You\'d understand what I --
Let me out!

00:30:46.971 --> 00:30:49.571
Benjamin, he\'s trapped.
Yes, yes. Let me out!

00:30:49.571 --> 00:30:52.903
It demonstrates
that memorable stories

00:30:52.903 --> 00:30:54.903
revolve around power.

00:30:57.803 --> 00:30:59.970
And I\'ve defined power

00:30:59.970 --> 00:31:02.670
as the ability
to change the world

00:31:02.670 --> 00:31:04.903
or to prevent change.

00:31:04.903 --> 00:31:06.804
What are you doing?

00:31:06.804 --> 00:31:09.903
Well, it\'s pretty obvious you
don\'t want me around anymore.

00:31:12.570 --> 00:31:14.169
Well, look. Uh...

00:31:15.737 --> 00:31:20.337
[ Sighs ] I was
kind of upset there.

00:31:20.337 --> 00:31:22.804
I\'m sorry
I said those things.

00:31:22.804 --> 00:31:25.237
Suber:
The men often don\'t get it.

00:31:25.237 --> 00:31:28.304
It\'s the woman\'s sexual power

00:31:28.304 --> 00:31:30.504
confronting the impotent --

00:31:30.504 --> 00:31:34.836
either literal, physical,
or psychological --

00:31:34.836 --> 00:31:36.836
inability to love

00:31:36.836 --> 00:31:39.970
that\'s the tension in the scene.

00:31:39.970 --> 00:31:43.803
And the women win every time.

00:31:43.803 --> 00:31:45.636
May I stay, then?

00:31:48.203 --> 00:31:51.370
Yes, please.
I want you to.

00:31:51.370 --> 00:31:56.637
It\'s an irresistible force
meeting an implacable object.

00:31:56.637 --> 00:32:01.470
There\'s no question which way
this is going to go.

00:32:01.470 --> 00:32:06.304
In \"Big,\" one of Tom Hanks\'
first big hits,

00:32:06.304 --> 00:32:09.637
he\'s a 13-year-old boy
in the body of a man.

00:32:09.637 --> 00:32:11.470
Of course,
the people who deal with him

00:32:11.470 --> 00:32:14.903
don\'t know that he\'s really
a 13-year-old boy.

00:32:14.903 --> 00:32:17.536
I-I still don\'t
get it.

00:32:17.536 --> 00:32:20.037
What?!

00:32:20.037 --> 00:32:21.470
What don\'t you get,
Josh?

00:32:21.470 --> 00:32:23.071
Well -- [ Sighs ]

00:32:23.071 --> 00:32:27.470
So when a woman who thinks
he\'s in her age bracket

00:32:27.470 --> 00:32:29.237
tries to seduce him,

00:32:29.237 --> 00:32:31.803
his reaction
is one of puzzlement.

00:32:31.803 --> 00:32:34.237
[ Grunts ]

00:32:34.237 --> 00:32:37.370
This is a very old gag.

00:32:37.370 --> 00:32:41.370
It goes back
to the ancient comedians,

00:32:41.370 --> 00:32:44.537
where an old man or a young boy

00:32:44.537 --> 00:32:47.970
is experiencing
the sexual powers

00:32:47.970 --> 00:32:51.203
of a woman
who\'s come on to him...

00:32:51.203 --> 00:32:55.370
but just doesn\'t understand
what\'s going on.

00:32:55.370 --> 00:32:58.704
We think that\'s funny.

00:32:58.704 --> 00:33:01.704
Speaking of ancient
Greek and Roman comedy,

00:33:01.704 --> 00:33:05.437
cross-dressing has always
been considered funny,

00:33:05.437 --> 00:33:08.203
when men dress up as women.

00:33:08.203 --> 00:33:10.703
Ow!

00:33:10.703 --> 00:33:12.037
What\'s the matter now?

00:33:12.037 --> 00:33:13.370
How do they walk
in these things, huh?

00:33:13.370 --> 00:33:14.938
How do they keep
their balance?!

00:33:14.938 --> 00:33:17.137
Must be the way the weight
is distributed. Now, come on!

00:33:17.137 --> 00:33:20.703
But when women
dress up as men...

00:33:20.703 --> 00:33:23.870
well, when Marlene Dietrich

00:33:23.870 --> 00:33:26.704
put on a man\'s tuxedo,

00:33:26.704 --> 00:33:30.370
it caused outrage in the \'30s.

00:33:30.370 --> 00:33:34.704
There\'s a power relationship
that explains this.

00:33:34.704 --> 00:33:40.170
When people who have the power
pretend that they don\'t,

00:33:40.170 --> 00:33:42.270
it\'s considered funny.

00:33:42.270 --> 00:33:46.871
When people who don\'t have
the power pretend they do...

00:33:46.871 --> 00:33:51.670
it\'s considered by the people
who have the power threatening.

00:33:53.870 --> 00:33:56.504
Love is one of those paradoxes.

00:33:56.504 --> 00:34:00.436
The more you give,
the more you get.

00:34:00.436 --> 00:34:02.170
But...

00:34:02.170 --> 00:34:05.370
most important word
in storytelling.

00:34:05.370 --> 00:34:08.604
Something does die in love,

00:34:08.604 --> 00:34:12.671
which is why the French refer
to sexual love sometimes

00:34:12.671 --> 00:34:16.770
asla petite mort,
\"the little death.\"

00:34:16.770 --> 00:34:20.370
What dies is individualism,

00:34:20.370 --> 00:34:24.937
the kind of individualism
which is narcissistic,

00:34:24.937 --> 00:34:27.771
which can only
contemplate itself

00:34:27.771 --> 00:34:31.437
and sees the world
only through itself.

00:34:31.437 --> 00:34:34.770
When there is genuine love,

00:34:34.770 --> 00:34:37.870
\"I\" becomes \"we.\"

00:34:37.870 --> 00:34:42.404
Kids! Janie!
Janie! Tommy!

00:34:42.404 --> 00:34:44.071
Where have you...

00:34:44.071 --> 00:34:48.836
Suber: And when children
enter into that equation,

00:34:48.836 --> 00:34:51.903
\"we\" takes on another level,

00:34:51.903 --> 00:34:54.604
an intergenerational level.

00:34:54.604 --> 00:34:58.903
It is not just
we who are in bed together now

00:34:58.903 --> 00:35:00.771
and love each other.

00:35:00.771 --> 00:35:04.337
It is we who are
of different generations,

00:35:04.337 --> 00:35:07.837
and our children are
our connection to the future.

00:35:07.837 --> 00:35:12.604
Our children are the way
we transcend death.

00:35:12.604 --> 00:35:17.070
So even if one or both
of the lovers die,

00:35:17.070 --> 00:35:19.103
if there are children,

00:35:19.103 --> 00:35:23.671
the love continues onward
through time.

00:35:23.671 --> 00:35:27.337
At the end of \"Toy Story 3,\"

00:35:27.337 --> 00:35:30.837
Andy, our human protagonist,

00:35:30.837 --> 00:35:35.337
has grown up from the young boy
he was in \"Toy Story 1.\"

00:35:35.337 --> 00:35:38.636
He\'s now preparing
to go off to college.

00:35:38.636 --> 00:35:40.202
Oh. Andy.

00:35:42.571 --> 00:35:45.237
But neither the film
nor the series

00:35:45.237 --> 00:35:47.403
is really Andy\'s story.

00:35:47.403 --> 00:35:48.736
Mom...

00:35:48.736 --> 00:35:50.404
As is so often
the case,

00:35:50.404 --> 00:35:53.571
the title tells us
whose story this is.

00:35:53.571 --> 00:35:56.404
It\'s Woody\'s
and Buzz Lightyear\'s,

00:35:56.404 --> 00:35:59.737
and it\'s about
the agonizing sense of loss,

00:35:59.737 --> 00:36:02.571
obsolescence,
and rejection

00:36:02.571 --> 00:36:06.070
that these toy people feel.

00:36:06.070 --> 00:36:08.170
At its core,

00:36:08.170 --> 00:36:12.737
\"Toy Story 3\"
is about resurrection,

00:36:12.737 --> 00:36:17.469
the greatest desires the human
mind and heart can conceive.

00:36:21.137 --> 00:36:24.470
The toys are given
to the neighbor girl,

00:36:24.470 --> 00:36:29.803
and there is the passing on
from one generation to the next

00:36:29.803 --> 00:36:33.304
so that nothing dies.

00:36:34.804 --> 00:36:38.404
That idea is one of
the most powerful ideas

00:36:38.404 --> 00:36:43.637
in the world\'s myths,
religions, and movies.

00:36:43.637 --> 00:36:48.537
Nothing dies.
There\'s no permanent separation.

00:36:48.537 --> 00:36:52.536
There is, if you will,
a resurrection.

00:36:52.536 --> 00:36:54.736
Life continues.

00:36:58.070 --> 00:37:00.803
We\'ve seen a good share
of the most respected

00:37:00.803 --> 00:37:03.571
American films in this series,

00:37:03.571 --> 00:37:05.637
but as far as I can tell,

00:37:05.637 --> 00:37:09.703
no film is more loved
than \"The Wizard of Oz.\"

00:37:11.637 --> 00:37:13.137
Dorothy: \"Follow
the Yellow Brick Road\"?

00:37:13.137 --> 00:37:14.970
Suber: So that\'s where
we\'re going to end.

00:37:14.970 --> 00:37:16.571
Follow the
Yellow Brick Road!

00:37:16.571 --> 00:37:19.470
\"The Wizard of Oz\" contains
many of the elements

00:37:19.470 --> 00:37:21.571
that are contained
in a great number

00:37:21.571 --> 00:37:23.970
of memorable
popular films.

00:37:23.970 --> 00:37:28.537
It\'s about a family,
real and surrogate.

00:37:28.537 --> 00:37:32.970
Its central character
is trapped, is lost,

00:37:32.970 --> 00:37:34.637
and she is an altruist

00:37:34.637 --> 00:37:39.038
who works to help others
realize their own power

00:37:39.038 --> 00:37:42.336
and many of the other elements
that I\'ve talked about.

00:37:44.537 --> 00:37:47.270
I have devoted more than
60 years of my life

00:37:47.270 --> 00:37:49.203
to studying American films,

00:37:49.203 --> 00:37:52.037
and I\'ve found that
a very large proportion

00:37:52.037 --> 00:37:55.637
of those that become
memorable and popular

00:37:55.637 --> 00:37:59.771
are about
the fulfillment of desire,

00:37:59.771 --> 00:38:04.037
the desire not merely
of the characters in the films,

00:38:04.037 --> 00:38:05.770
but of the audience.

00:38:05.770 --> 00:38:12.038
♪ Somewhere over the rainbow ♪

00:38:12.038 --> 00:38:16.970
Suber: Let\'s take
\"Somewhere Over the Rainbow.\"

00:38:16.970 --> 00:38:20.971
Young, innocent Dorothy
sings this song.

00:38:20.971 --> 00:38:24.704
And look at the lyrics,
and I think you understand

00:38:24.704 --> 00:38:30.603
why this makes the movie itself
so powerful.

00:38:30.603 --> 00:38:32.203
♪ Over the rainbow ♪

00:38:32.203 --> 00:38:37.137
\"Somewhere over the rainbow,
bluebirds fly.\"

00:38:37.137 --> 00:38:39.337
Why can\'t I?\"

00:38:39.337 --> 00:38:41.603
♪ Why can\'t I? ♪

00:38:41.603 --> 00:38:43.770
Desire.

00:38:43.770 --> 00:38:46.937
This deep desire

00:38:46.937 --> 00:38:49.437
to get out of here,

00:38:49.437 --> 00:38:51.504
to get out of this trap.

00:38:51.504 --> 00:38:54.771
She\'s the female equivalent
of George Bailey.

00:38:54.771 --> 00:38:57.670
She wants to get out
of this place.

00:38:57.670 --> 00:39:01.003
♪ Beyond the rainbow ♪

00:39:01.003 --> 00:39:04.103
♪ Why, oh, why can\'t I? ♪

00:39:04.103 --> 00:39:07.203
So the song ends
with a repeat --

00:39:07.203 --> 00:39:09.103
\"Why can\'t I?\"

00:39:09.103 --> 00:39:11.603
♪ I ♪

00:39:11.603 --> 00:39:13.537
And she does.

00:39:13.537 --> 00:39:16.837
And we go through
this story,

00:39:16.837 --> 00:39:20.537
and she gives a gift
to her friends,

00:39:20.537 --> 00:39:23.771
and the friends
give a gift to her.

00:39:23.771 --> 00:39:26.870
The Scarecrow
doesn\'t have brains.

00:39:26.870 --> 00:39:29.771
Tin Man doesn\'t have a heart.

00:39:29.771 --> 00:39:33.203
And the Cowardly Lion
is empty inside

00:39:33.203 --> 00:39:35.536
because he\'s
the Cowardly Lion.

00:39:35.536 --> 00:39:36.937
Hail Dorothy!

00:39:36.937 --> 00:39:38.604
And by the end
of the film,

00:39:38.604 --> 00:39:42.603
they have all fulfilled
their desires.

00:39:42.603 --> 00:39:44.370
But not Dorothy.

00:39:44.370 --> 00:39:46.771
She lacks the power,

00:39:46.771 --> 00:39:50.770
the thing which all
memorable films are about.

00:39:50.770 --> 00:39:53.270
And Glinda the Good Witch

00:39:53.270 --> 00:39:56.038
gives her the greatest of gifts,

00:39:56.038 --> 00:39:59.937
the belief in her own potential,
and she tells her...

00:39:59.937 --> 00:40:02.937
\"You\'ve had the power
all along.\"

00:40:02.937 --> 00:40:05.938
I have?!

00:40:05.938 --> 00:40:08.937
And we have her clicking
her ruby red slippers.

00:40:08.937 --> 00:40:10.504
There\'s no place
like home.

00:40:10.504 --> 00:40:13.370
And she\'s back
in black-and-white,

00:40:13.370 --> 00:40:15.870
back in Kansas.

00:40:15.870 --> 00:40:18.937
But she\'s
a transformed character...

00:40:21.938 --> 00:40:25.536
...with deeper understanding
and wisdom.

00:40:27.537 --> 00:40:30.937
It\'s a profoundly conservative
ending.

00:40:30.937 --> 00:40:33.604
\"There\'s no place like home.\"

00:40:33.604 --> 00:40:36.037
People become conservative

00:40:36.037 --> 00:40:39.337
when they\'ve got something
to conserve.

00:40:39.337 --> 00:40:43.170
And often when you\'re young,
you don\'t know what you\'ve got.

00:40:43.170 --> 00:40:46.103
You know
what you wished you had,

00:40:46.103 --> 00:40:49.903
but often those stories end
with something

00:40:49.903 --> 00:40:52.937
in which now
they have come to value

00:40:52.937 --> 00:40:56.003
the things they\'ve always had.

00:40:56.003 --> 00:40:57.937
We could place
\"The Wizard of Oz\"

00:40:57.937 --> 00:41:00.671
in a category we might call

00:41:00.671 --> 00:41:04.436
sacred dramas
for a secular society.

00:41:05.837 --> 00:41:09.003
Film is like going to church
on Sunday.

00:41:09.003 --> 00:41:12.837
You experience
a sense of transcendence,

00:41:12.837 --> 00:41:16.170
of being in touch
with something higher,

00:41:16.170 --> 00:41:18.003
more valuable

00:41:18.003 --> 00:41:21.337
than the petty concerns
of everyday life

00:41:21.337 --> 00:41:24.237
that millions of us face.

00:41:25.836 --> 00:41:29.437
Story creates meaning.

00:41:29.437 --> 00:41:34.003
The ones that strike most deeply
into our shared experiences

00:41:34.003 --> 00:41:36.504
are the ones that have a chance

00:41:36.504 --> 00:41:41.070
of becoming
memorable, popular films.

00:41:42.903 --> 00:41:44.304
Thank you.