In Haste: A Mighty Wind

Whilst bellowing little ruptures of insanity during today's annual allocated time for last minute tax payment hell, I decided to try and alleviate my burden by inviting Christopher Guest into my home once more.

A Mighty Wind is not my favorite of Guest's mocumentaries, but it's a pleasant voyage, never slugging the viewer with anything approaching real drama. It's like taking a melatonin. It giggles down and soothes the innards without ever a stir.

Perhaps because it's Sunday, perhaps because my job is about concentrating on similar issues, or perhaps it's simply an open point of comparison that could be connected to many-a topic and concern, I found the delightful jettison of a folk reunion concert to be in concert with the big and little C(c) c(C)hurch.

 

Church. What is it, exactly?

Folk music. Exactly what is it?

At the end of the day, Christianity has a litany of forms and delegates, all wanting and eager to exclaim their methodology as the most profound, the lightest and purest. This is an overstatement, of course, but it's close enough to a reality to make due.

The film centers around three groups coming together to play at this reunion night. One group is disparage by the others as a "toothpaste commercial"; they are seen as something less than true folk.

Then there's the male trio that seem overly nervous and conceited. They go on-stage as if they're the true form of the genre, but after a guffaw or two, they end up leading their audience in a round of animal quacks and quirks. It's ugly and trivial.


Finally comes the duet of Mitch & Mickey. When they come on, everyone listens. There's no bickering over these two. They are folk, everyone sees that much.

After the twosome perform, all the performers take the stage to sing the movie's namesake. They do so gaily and wonderfully.

This is the Church. I hope.

We have many differences, and sometimes we descend into pettiness or even vile sin, but we are brothers and sisters. We are singing the same genre.

These thoughts are not profound.