On misunderestimation.

I saw W. today.

I wasn't going to see this, ever. Because I haven't appreciated an Oliver Stone movie since JFK, because I especially didn't want to see a movie about W. no matter how good all the impersonations allegedly were, because Burn After Reading sounded more interesting... the "because"s go on and on.

But my in-town-friends left a little earlier than expected, and a matinee sounded nice but the timing of Burn After Reading would not have allowed a much needed after-in-town-friend's-visit gym session, and it turns out someone I went to high school with was in the movie.

So I saw W. today.

At some point during the movie, I actually felt bad for the man I have actively hated for the past eight years. And that made me mad, which was good gym fodder.

Everything else* aside, I'm pretty sure the paragraph above means that the combination of Stone and Brolin was pure genius.

_______________
*Stellar performances by everyone. And I mean everyone, like I couldn't figure out who Cheney was for an embarrassing number of minutes. And there were eventual pointed Stone-like critiques at Bush's administration and gritty war Stone-like truthiness that left quite a few of us in the theater teary (if post-scene sniffles count as evidence).

But, man. I closed my eyes during one of the speeches and I would not have known that was Josh Brolin.