This has been a sad day for me. I found out that Nora Ephron passed away last night. I didn't even know she was sick. I feel pretty blind-sided. For me, Nora represented--and still represents--an amazing writer, who, years back, paved the way for female journalists and writers and filmmakers.
She was a damn good writer in general, gender aside. And her films especially have been such a huge part of my life. Her films have been emotional crutches for me.
When I subconsciously asked myself as a 14 year old, "what is romance, and what do I want for myself, romantically-speaking?" I saw When Harry Met Sally and wanted that friendship with the person that I would eventually fall in love with. I also remember sadly watching When Harry Met Sally one New Year's Eve when I had no other plans. The film ends with a lovely New Year's Eve scene.
When I moved up to Seattle as an 18 year old, Sleepless in Seattle became an instant favorite, just for the novelty of it. When the film first came out in 1993, I remember my mother loving it and the soundtrack played constantly in my family's minivan. I still know all the songs like the back of my hand. I feel bad for the character of Walter (played perfectly by Bill Pullman), because he's just so nice. I covet Meg Ryan's cozy wardrobe. And I fall in love with the very 90s looking Tom Hanks as he gazes at Meg Ryan, coming off of the plane. When I need to be alone, I watch Sleepless in Seattle. Which coincidentally is what I did last Saturday night, paired with boxed mac and cheese and red wine. It's always a sacred time for me.
You've Got Mail also grew on me in a big way in college. Days of feeling like the most single person in the world will do that to you. Through You've Got Mail, Nora made me fall in love with New York, even if her portrayal of it was borderline sunny. And I hoped that someday I would be just like Kathleen Kelly, with a quaint children's bookstore on the Upper West Side. Today I quote the movie with the best of my friends.
Julie and Julia came out during my full-fledged foodie stage of life (which obviously I am still in) and so I turn it on whenever I want to get hungry, get inspired, and I always end up in the kitchen afterwards, trying to make something French and complicated.
Nora created lovable characters. Characters that wanted magic out of life. Nora told good stories. Stories dealing with love, the most elevated of subjects. And stories about people trying to figure out what to do with their lives, however measly they sometimes felt. These are the types of stories worth passing on and "re-experiencing" again and again.
1 comment :
I don't know if you've already seen this but Meg Ryan paid a beautiful tribute to Norah yesterday.
“Nora was an era. We pictured ourselves inside her dreams and they became ours. All wisdom, wit and sparkle lights, what a treat she was, what a blessing. I marvel again and again, what a life… To have created a simple happiness in people, to have added to the sum of delight in the world.”
— Meg Ryan
Rest in peace Norah.
Post a Comment