1/4/2023 0 Comments The goonies sloth![]() ![]() It is at this moment where we observe a reverse Mary Shelley moment. Not long after Chunk and Sloth introduce themselves to each other and Sloth – perhaps recognizing a kindred spirit – embraces Chunk and gives him a big wet kiss. Rather than suffer another injustice, Sloth channels his rage and literally breaks his own chains. Chunk misses but the miss is the beginning of Sloth’s liberation. ![]() They even find common ground when Chunk discovers Sloth likes chocolate and tries to toss his Baby Ruth to him. Rather than terrorize Chunk he is in fact amused by him, laughing and bouncing around. Chunk introduces himself and again Sloth roars and Chunk responds in kind. The Goonies reinforces this idea when Jeff Cohen’s character of Chunk is subsequently locked in the same room as Sloth. All of these examples tell the audience that Sloth is a terrifying goblin. Dave Grusin’s ominous score swells, Sloth roars, and the Goonies scream in terror. He’s an “It.” Minutes later when the rest of the Goonies are exposed to Sloth the reaction is pretty much the same. I mean he has to be right? If his own family is chaining him to a wall, he has to be pure evil right? Sean Astin’s character of Mikey first encounters him alone and is subsequently taken out of the lighthouse restaurant by Brand screaming about a “giant It.” Sloth at that point isn’t even a person in Mikey’s eyes. I’m glad I did because what unfolded over the next hour and a half made me see The Goonies, Sloth’s journey, and the dynamic between Sloth, Chunk, and the rest of the Goonies in a whole new light.Īs he’s presented at the outset, Sloth comes off as a terrifying monster. I told myself to relax, take a deep breath, and keep watching. Was liking The Goonies no longer acceptable? Was Woke Culture distorting my perceptions? Was I crazier than Ma Fratelli’s outfit? Seeing a man who quite obviously has some mental development issues and is presented as a “monster” be chained to a wall – by his family no less – was jarring. Honestly, that’s a fair point and the exact same reaction I had. #The goonies sloth movie#How could the movie that chained this same character TO A WALL, be a shining inclusion example?” Now some of you at this point may be saying, “Whoa wait a truffle shuffle minute Corrye. Specifically, I’m talking about the character of Lotney Fratelli also known as “Sloth,” memorably played by the 6ft 8-inch ex-NFL player John Matuszak. The Goonies is a fantastic example of otherly-abled inclusion. To my further delight, I noticed something this time around that my six-year-old self who saw it in the theater, my teenage self who watched it ad nauseam, and the cinema geek self who viewed it multiple times in my twenties, never picked up on before. (Spoiler alert for you young readers out there, things change A LOT between twenty-seven and forty-two.) Much to my delight, I had a thoroughly enjoyable time revisiting Mikey, Mouth, Chunk, and the rest of the gang and going on their crazy Goonie adventure to find One-Eyed Willie’s pirate treasure aboard the Inferno. It had been at least fifteen years since I’d seen the film and I wondered if it would hold up. This week we decided to tackle one of my childhood favorites, Richard Donner’s 1985 classic The Goonies. Over the last year, it has been my privilege to co-host a weekly movie podcast*. Life experiences had made me see this film in a whole new light. I realized that the film itself hadn’t changed (OK technically it’s gone through several cuts shut up I’m making a point here) I had changed. I saw all the little nuances in a new light – the beauty of Jordan Cronenweth’s cinematography, the deep examination of what it means to be human, Vangelis’ haunting score, Rutger Hauer’s heartbreaking turn as Roy Batty, and so much more. Fast forward ten years when I once again watched the film in college and my perspective completely changed. I thought it was slow, plodding, gloomy, and lacking in action. I recall vividly watching the film and absolutely detesting it. ![]() My personal “Aha!” moment came in the form of Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective may seem hilarious to a fifteen-year-old in 1993 only to come off horrifying in 2021 if that same person now has a transgender partner. One of the welcome insights I’ve learned about cinema is that your perspective on a particular movie evolves and changes over time. A single twenty-year-old male who watches Arrival in 2016 is bound to have a much different reaction than that same person at forty, who has subsequently married, fathered a child, and lost a parent. ![]()
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