Daily Dialogue — October 4, 2014
President “Bobby”: Mr. Gardner, do you agree with Ben, or do you think that we can stimulate growth through temporary incentives?
Long pause.
Chance the Gardener: As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.
President “Bobby”: In the garden.
Chance the Gardener: Yes. In the garden, growth has it seasons. First comes spring and summer, but then we have fall and winter. And then we get spring and summer again.
President “Bobby”: Spring and summer.
Chance the Gardener: Yes.
President “Bobby”: Then fall and winter.
Chance the Gardener: Yes.
Benjamin Rand: I think what our insightful young friend is saying is that we welcome the inevitable seasons of nature, but we’re upset by the seasons of our economy.
Chance the Gardener: Yes! There will be growth in the spring!
Benjamin Rand: Hmm!
Chance the Gardener: Hmm!
President “Bobby”: Hm. Well, Mr. Gardner, I must admit that is one of the most refreshing and optimistic statements I’ve heard in a very, very long time.
Benjamin Rand applauds.
President “Bobby”: I admire your good, solid sense. That’s precisely what we lack on Capitol Hill.
— Being There (1979), screenplay by Jerzy Kosinski, based on his novel
The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Politics.
Trivia: Originally there was a different last shot planned for the funeral sequence at the end of the film. Director Hal Ashby was chatting with another director one day about filming when he commented how well everything was going. “It’s like walking on air,” he said, then suddenly was struck with a thought. He changed the last shot to the one that appears now in the movie.
Dialogue On Dialogue: Politics is ripe for satire and Being There is one of the absolute best. This scene gets to the core of the humor: Where the President and his cronies interpret Chance’s words in a way to bolster their political machinations. Peter Sellers is utterly brilliant in this role.
If you have a suggestion for this week’s theme, please head to comments.