Dispatches from the Fury Road: Steady Hands

These are anxious times.

If you’re a religious zealot you must be feeling like Andy Samberg in this Lonely Island film clip. The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse are preparing to win all the racing derbies and nothing will stop them. Fires, floods, pestilence…none of these handicaps will slow them down. The exciting part to contemplate is that we’re just ticking over into March. How is 2022 only two months old? As my friend’s baby likes to say: WWWWAAAAAAHHHHH!

Old 80s nuclear anxieties have returned with a vengeance as Vladimir Putin has suddenly made Kenneth Branagh’s performance in Tenet appear understated. That feeling of helplessness has been acute and while I do have an idea for a satirical song parody (Putin on the Blitz anybody? Anybody? Is this thing on or even plugged in?) I will leave that to the comedians and cabaret performers who will gladly accept an audience’s enthusiastic cheers in a stinky tent at the Adelaide Fringe.

Earlier in the year I was contemplating what I might do for my 50th birthday in September. Now I’m hoping to make it to September. That would be a nice birthday present. Between the war in the Ukraine, the insanity present in support of the invasion by certain members of the American media and now the possibility to be murdered by a random mosquito, making it through the next few months is no longer a fait accompli. I’m also on a diet so I can’t even eat my way through this stress. Add high end work stress and a long list of friends who are struggling in their own ways, I felt emotionally cooked. I needed a time-out to regain some sense of equilibrium.

With that in mind I decided to celebrate another 50th birthday. On Sunday I went to see The Godfather at the cinema, a movie I have seen many times and love even more than a catch-up with a friend being cancelled at the last minute. This movie is so good that when a friend told me they watched it for the first time and thought it was boring, I didn’t argue with them but I did make the decision to never invite them to anything with me ever again. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but if you can’t enjoy The Godfather then you and I are on different journeys in life.

When you see a film over and over, different scenes will stand out and make that viewing experience unique. On Sunday, I became obsessed with one such scene. If you have seen the movie, I will not be pointing out anything new to you. This is just a blog looking for a mate sharing some love for a moment in time.

It is the scene when Michael checks in on his father at the hospital and notices the protection that was supposed to be present has suddenly disappeared. In this moment Michael knows that the police have been paid off and there are killers coming to finish the job by assassinating the Don. Michael enlists the help of a nurse and moves his father to another room. He then bumps into the family baker Enzo who has come to pay his respects. Michael convinces Enzo to stand outside with him, collars up, heads down, hands moving slowly towards the inside of their coats as if they have guns concealed within. A car pulls up, surveys the scene, deduces incorrectly that the hospital must be protected and drive on.

We feel relief and watch as Enzo tries to light a cigarette but his hands are shaking, the flame flickering so violently he can’t make this simple action happen. Michael takes the lighter from Enzo’s hands and lights the cigarette. It is here when we see Michael notice his own hands. They’re as steady as a rock. Even Michael is amazed. He learns something about himself in that scene and so do we. If you’d like to watch that moment, you can watch it here.

I can remember the first time Michael’s hands were pointed out to me as a young man and I still love this scene now. That was the scene that stuck with me as I walked home alone. It was the scene that I contemplated over dinner. It was the scene I thought about before I fell asleep. It reminded me why I will always consider Michael Corleone one of my favourite characters in cinema. I also love Enzo the baker. That poor guy was making cake only an hour ago and suddenly he’s acting as if he’s as capable with a Smith and Wesson as he is with a cream gun. Big props to Enzo!

It is all about the steady hands. What a relief to have an old friend turn 50 with such dignity and grace, to still have the ability to amaze and inspire even at this ripe age. This scene inspired a new goal for the remainder of the year and that is to remain steady even as the world continues to lurch like a rusted car on a rickety roller coaster. There will be moments when it all becomes a little too much. That much is a given. When that time comes, I think I will take myself away and once engage with The Godfather, a movie that I am proud to call a friend. Not knowing which scene will delight me on the next occasion is a surprise I can happily embrace.

Justin Hamilton

Surry Hills

March 2022