courtesy/imdb.com
“Ancient philosophers believed that there was a language that was spoken by angels and couldn’t be translated or repeated because it could only be understood by the soul.” – JoJo
I watched this movie “Cowboys and Angels” on Netflix the other night and then I watched it again last night for review if you will. I’ve always been a bit of a sucker for “unusual” movies if you will. For example – I love “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Closer,” “Blue Valentine,” “Broken English,” and basically other Indie films. For me when I say unusual I guess what I mean is a film that the masses wouldn’t appreciate or even like. They have unusual timelines, unlikeable characters but feel more like real people, or it just doesn’t have a Hollywood feel in general terms.
I certainly like my fair share of the typical Hollywood flicks, but on occasion I like a movie that I have to watch and am not just being spoon fed the story. I have to watch for the little clues and details that help make the movie make sense. I like for my thoughts on topics to be challenged such as with “Closer.” That was a brutal movie, but excellent, at least in my humble opinion. What I love about Netflix is it does force me to watch movies I would have otherwise missed out on or have missed.
Anyway, I digress. “Cowboys and Angels” is definitely not typical, but that’s more than okay with me. This isn’t a review – I wouldn’t know how to write one of those anyway. The movie got me to thinking and wondering about the possibility of guardian angels and fate or destiny and all that crazy jazz. Okay so right off let me say that I do believe in angels because as it just so happens, I’m catholic. I haven’t been to church in a long time but my faith hasn’t gone away.
My brother is a walking, talking miracle and I know there’s been a little angel with me at times when I’ve been driving and narrowly escaped what could have been some bad situations. That definitely takes care of the driving element of my life, but what about my love life (or rather the lack there of)? The movie toys with the idea of angels and how they help “guide” a person to that right person.
I’ve always been a bit of a hopeless romantic, though often I can also be logical. I think I would say I believe in the idea of romance and concepts such as fate and destiny though I’m not so convinced any of that applies to my own life, particularly given how none of it seems to happen or if it has it hasn’t produced anything positive or tangible. I suppose not all fated or destined events are positive, but that’s a bit depressing and I don’t care to venture there right about now.
So the movie got me to thinking – do I have a guardian angel guiding me? If so, where the hell is she or he as the case may be? I’ve made some pretty big blunders so where was this angelic individual to help intervene, keep it from happening or at least help ease the pain after the fact? I do realize that even if there is an angel on the lookout for me, I do still have free will and it is still up to me to live life as I see fit. There is, after all, only so much an angel can do.
I do know that in recent years I’ve really come to believe that everything happens for a reason. I know wonder if that reason is due to an angel looking out for us. It may seem negative at the time, but what happens in the wake of a negative event is more likely the reason for things to have happened. My life is in some flux right now with certain decisions I had to make but again, there’s a reason for it. Things have happened in my life, in my mom’s life, in my brother’s life, and many others, all for a reason. Those reasons aren’t always so obvious and may be difficult to understand but it’s there. I just wonder how much of it is being influenced by angels and if so, what do they know that we don’t that they see fit to have such influence? Where will it lead?
Yep, this movie got me thinking. I like that. The music was another great element that helped make it a bit unusual but brought character to it. I hope that all my experiences will eventually lead to something more than the disappointment and hurt I’ve already seen. At nearly 32, it’s becoming more difficult to constantly be alone. It would be nice if my angel had someone in mind for me and lead me to him already. I’m pretty weary of trying on my own by now. It’s obvious I don’t know what I’m doing either haha. Poor choices. Tsk tsk.
I’ve decided to leave you all with a fantastic song written by John Hiatt and covered by many. I love this rendition by Jewel best though and it seems a little appropriate for the topic. “Have a little faith in me.” Granted it’s a love song, but I still feel it applies.
stormy musings 
I really wanted to like Blue Valventine but even though I struggled through the whole film, I just felt the director wasn’t able to connect me enough with the characters……and I’m a huge Michelle Williams fan at that; “Take this Waltz” is hands down her best film and one of my favorites…its still on Netflix if you haven’t seen it.
Eternal Sunshine….I am so mixed over that one, as far as Jim Carey films I’m not sure that it is his best but he’s made so many….
Finally, I think there is a fine line between “everything happens for a reason” and what we often refer to as free will.
I think a lot of choices are just that; choices. They are neither bad or good. So if I choose to have a cup of coffee in the morning i don’t know that it was ‘meant to happen’….
but I think I mostly agree with where you are going; that in the grand scheme of things; there is a reason behind what is going on in our lives 🙂
yeah blue valentine was a hard one for me too – i liked it but i won’t watch it again lol; she just seemed like a total jerk to me after all the sacrifices he made (not that he was perfect but still); i loved “sunshine” because of the content and the idea of intentional memory loss. very philosophical. well i did include free will of course because we do have free will. i suppose when i say everything happens for a reason im thinking grander scale things such as my brother was born with a, i dunno disorder i guess you’d call it, so that way doctors could learn more about it and help other babies after him, etc. etc. that kind of thing.
the only reason my going to subway for lunch might go beyond my free will is IF for some reason i was meant to be there at the same time as some joe schmoe, we meet, maybe not even like each other first, but through a series of events, come together (that’s a lil how it happened with my friend and her husband lol… they didn’t like each other at first but at least i can say i introduced them haha). i dunno… maybe there isn’t a reason for anything and it truly is all random. it was just some lil’ movie that got the wheels turning – of course it might have tugged at my heart strings a lil more than usual cuz i’ve been single for so long and got me all wishful thinking like lol im vulnerable darn it. tsk tsk. perhaps i should stick to action flicks for a while 🙂 it’ll be better for me.