What I mean when I say GOOD.

William Hunt & Edward Hughes Lady of Shalott

I went to see Morning Glory with my parents and husband this weekend, and it was great. Harrison Ford makes a fabulous curmudgeon, and Rachel McAdams is a wonderfully naive and perky go-getter. And of course I can't say no to Jeff Goldblum. For a drama, Morning Glory was punctuated with the perfect number of laugh-out-loud moments (none of which depended upon a gratuitous pot-smoking scene thank goodness), and I walked out of the theater feeling like I wanted to go back in and see it again.

But I also walked out of the theater feeling like I needed to write, and wishing I'd remembered to bring my purse with its ever-ready notebook to dive back into my current project. All I could think about was getting back to my book. And in my opinion, this is the critical element of what makes any movie, any book, any song, GOOD. For me, it isn't about story, or plot, or the nit-picking of lyrics. It isn't about what actors are in the film. It's about walking out of the theater with the compulsion to create!

 Spring by Pierre August Cot

Tolkien talks about sub-creation in his essay "On Fairy Stories" where he suggests that sub-creation is a natural compulsion spawned of our own original creation. God created us in his image, and clearly a large part of his image was the compulsion to create, which we inherited and translated into art, writing, imagination, Fantasy. Let me quote you the quote*:

"Fantasy remains a human right: we make in our measure and in our derivative mode, because we are made: and not only made, but made in the image and likeness of a Maker" ( page 75).

So, the art, music, literature that draws this part of us out, puts us back in touch with that compulsion--there is nothing better than that. And certainly the fact that it reaches us there is the most important element, the most magical element. I'm not sure we can ask for anything more from any kind of art than that. I'm not sure that there is more to want.

So, what movies, books, songs, paintings inspire you? What is your definition of GOOD? I've included some of mine in this post. 

Drops of Jupiter by Train

I don't even dare to start listing books and movies, or I'll never stop, but I think it goes without saying how much I enjoy the original Star Wars trilogy in film, and Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold and The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley.

*Source: Tolkien, J.R.R. "On Fairy Stories." The Tolkien Reader. New York: Ballantine Books, 1966. 33-99.