Quote of the Day (Jesse Eisenberg, on the Benefits of ‘Struggling Over Futility’)

“Perhaps struggling over futility prepares us for the struggles that actually matter. The search for a parking spot allows us to learn about our neighborhood, the snow shovelling prepares our bodies for the day that the snowplough doesn’t arrive, the family debates sharpen our critical thinking, and the gruelling theatre schedule makes performing in a high-pressure, commercial movie seem comparatively enjoyable.” —Jesse Eisenberg, “All the World’s a Two-Inch Screen,” The Financial Times, Sept. 12-13, 2015

I was okay with this until I got to that part about the “high-pressure, commercial movie.” I’m afraid that not just “performing” in that, but being handsomely compensated for it, is an experience that neither I nor millions of others can identify with.

Quote of the Day (Terrence Rafferty, on Joyless American Leading Men)

“What’s becoming difficult to ignore in current American leading men is a general absence of joy in their vocation. When James Franco [pictured] tries to get serious, as he does with some frequency, he’s kind of alarming to watch; his recent modus operandi has been to adapt a great American novel for the screen, miscast himself, and doggedly muddle through. Jesse Eisenberg seems to take only roles that require him to look bummed all the time. They appear to have forgotten that acting is play, a game of let’s-pretend. It starts with a child imagining himself as somebody else, trying on different roles, making faces in the mirror. When one or more other kids are present, impromptu scenarios are cooked up and parts are assigned, with the goal, always, of bringing into being something that would not otherwise have existed in the ordinary run of life—something more colorful, more vivid, something thrilling.”—Terrence Rafferty, “The Decline of the American Actor: Why the Under-40 Generation of Leading Men in the U.S. is Struggling—and What to do About It,”  The Atlantic, July/August 2015

Quote of the Day (Jesse Eisenberg, With Marv Albert, Therapist)

“ME: Hi, Dr. Albert.

MARV ALBERT: A playoff atmosphere in here tonight!

ME: Well, it’s been a tough week. My mother came to visit me.

MARV ALBERT: From downtown!

ME: And, of course, she immediately asked if I was still sleeping with Sarah.

MARV ALBERT: Out of bounds!

ME: Exactly. It’s not her business.

MARV ALBERT: Unbelievable!

ME: And Sarah won’t even return my calls.

MARV ALBERT: Rejected!

ME: I called her, like, twelve times last night.

MARV ALBERT: A dozen! Unanswered!

ME: I don’t know why I’m surprised. We haven’t been intimate in months.

MARV ALBERT: Stuck outside the perimeter!”—Jesse Eisenberg, “Shouts and Murmurs: Marv Albert Is My Therapist,” The New Yorker, March 18, 2013

It seems that, over the last 24 hours, “Dr. Albert” must have widened his practice from mere mortals (or as close to mere mortals as someone like Jesse Eisenberg gets) to the New York Knicks themselves. To their question—“Do you think we’ll ever score again?”—the resounding answer must have been “YES!!!!,” judging by the 85-75 thumping of the Pacers last night.

We’ll see if the revival continues—or if “That’s the ballgame!”