It was also one of those times where my younger son gets to experience some of the glitz and glamor of me being a film critic. I guess I sort of mean that literally, as there was a "purple carpet" at the screening, which you could walk while having your picture taken in front of a large backdrop that was a modified version of the movie poster. Also, free popcorn and drinks upon entering the theater, and fairy floss -- a.k.a. cotton candy -- for the kids. The fairy floss was purple, naturally.
But the thing that really impressed him, I think, was me telling him that the movie didn't open until Thursday. At first he thought I was joking -- I'm a kidder -- but a repetition of the fact assured him that it was true.
"So we're going to be the first people in the world to see it?" he asked.
Yep, Dad has a cool job sometimes -- even if that "job" does not actually pay him.
I explained that there were preview screenings in lots of cities but that yes, we would be seeing it before the members of the general public. I didn't remember until later that the movie has actually been out in most parts of the world since August, and in the U.S., since very early August. So we're actually some of the last people in the world to see it. But he doesn't need to know that. (The late release date in Australia is so it will still seem fresh for the start of school holidays, which begin a little more than a week after its release.)
Another thing we were invited to do is wear our "finest purple." This was easy for my son, whose school colors are yellow and purple, and who therefore has a rich purple sweatshirt with the school emblem on the breast.
My wife doesn't, and would never, participate in these sorts of shenanigans, but of course I wanted to participate. The only trouble is, I've gone off purple a bit lately -- see this post if you want more of a discussion of that -- and the purple t-shirt I used to have, which showed a bear watching TV in the woods, was lost to one of the occasional clothing purges my wife forces me to do.
I did have one shirt that would work, but whether it qualified was the source of a little bit of controversy.
The t-shirt is one of the oldest in my collection, having survived all the clothing purges, as it dates to early 2000s -- before I left New York in 2001, anyway. It's one of the shirts the transit authority made, and probably still do make, to show your affection for whatever subway line you travel the most.
At least, you hope that's what the shirt does. In a story that now embarrasses me, a friend of mine got me this shirt as a present because she knew I liked the design of these shirts -- but she got it for me for a subway line I never actually rode. So I asked if she would exchange it for a line that did have some meaning for me, the Manhattan to Queens 7 line, which went out to the old Shea Stadium where I would see Mets games. She did it but she didn't seem too pleased about it, which I certainly get.
So the 7 line has this icon appearing on all its trains, and so does my shirt:
That's me. Still look good at 50, don't I?
Unfortunately, after nearly 25 years, this is how my shirt looks today:
I'm not showing my face in this one. You already saw it in the previous photo. Once is enough.
My son and my wife, who will not give me an inch of slack in any situation where a little razzing is called for, both told me that this is pink, not purple.
Looking at those two photos next to each other, I can't really argue with them. But in the moment, I did. In fact, I googled "what is the color of the 7 train to queens" and the answer provided was "purple." I also showed them an image of the logo on screen. I suppose if this did anything, it only showed them that I was not crazy in thinking of this as purple -- though it did nothing to convince them I was wearing a shirt that was actually appropriate cosplay for the movie.
Well, there were supposed to be prizes, potentially, for the best purple outfit, though realistically, neither of us ever had a shot at that.
I couldn't really let go of the idea that I was wearing a purple shirt, so when the plot takes the characters out of their storybook and into the real world, and they land in a park that looked like it could have been Central Park, I was hoping, praying, that the story would see it fit for them to ride the 7 train because of its telltale purple color -- thus providing me the ultimate vindication. Of course, I soon realized that the movie actually takes place in another former home of mine: Providence, Rhode Island.
We really enjoyed the movie. My wife and I especially laughed a lot at the line readings of Jemaine Clement in the villain role, but the whole thing was pretty charming -- a lot better than these movies usually are. (I'm thinking of something like Lyle Lyle Crocodile, though we did sort of like that one as well.) The whole thing has a little bit of an Elf vibe, a comparison you might not have been inclined to make were it not that Zooey Deschanel plays essentially the same role in both films. I'll have a review up in a couple days if you want to hear my more detailed thoughts about what works here.
I'm sorry to see that the rest of the world who have already seen it aren't quite so fond of it, as the average rating on IMDB is only 5.7. Oh well, can't please everybody all the time. I guess most people just aren't as tickled by Clement as we are in this part of the world.
Before I leave you I should explain what the title of this post means.
It dates back to when a friend of mine was at a camp with another friend of mine, though the second friend was not my friend at the time and only became so later. The second friend, a bit of an unintentional goofball, was watching one of the camp counselors make up a vat of artificial grape drink by stirring it until it was ready for consumption by the campers. Unable to wait any longer for his grape drink, my friend asked, completely unaware of anything incorrect about the question, "Does it taste purple yet?"
The bit is funny because purple is, of course, a color, not a flavor. However, it's also sort of an apt commentary on these artificial sugar drinks, whose flavor bears so little resemblance to the alleged fruit flavor of the drink that a color is as good a descriptor of the flavor as the fruit.
One final thought:
How did all the purple in this movie play on me, when you know, if you followed my previous link, that the color purple has started to nauseate me a bit when used in Dreamworks movies and the like?
I'm glad to say I liked the purple in this movie. It did not offend or nauseate me. I suppose it helps to like the movie itself, which may not have been the case in some of those Dreamworks movies.
So maybe it's time for me order a new 7 line transit shirt, which will surely be purple for at least a couple decades, and will be just the attire to wear to Harold and the Purple Crayon 2.
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