Rage Page #2

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I do believe that life

will become difficult for some people

in this country in the near future.

Indeed...

It already is difficult,

and that is what the people outside,

yes, that's what

they're protesting about.

OK, OK, OK, OK, Michelangelo.

One second, Michelangelo.

(Sighs)

It is true the collection

is not inexpensive. OK.

But you have to pay for beauty.

One way or another, you have to pay.

In this case, OK, with money.

OK?

I must go now.

Wait, wait.

Except... the point is,

my work influences everyone

even if they cannot afford it.

You see, it is like

a secret research laboratory.

In that sense, I am a scientist.

Yes, I make discoveries!

You see, a dress is not just a dress.

It is a...

...a revelation.

It is like a sacred vessel

for the... miraculous.

In that sense, I am also a priest.

Yes, fashion is very spiritual. Very.

OK? Now I must go.

Rhoda, she's my agent.

She said, like, if I work really hard

this year, I can make it big.

But, of course, she said in order

to be big, you have to be little.

That's Dorothy.

She's crying cos she thinks

she looks too fat in the dress thing.

But that's Dorothy.

Like, she's always crying. She...

I think that's enough now,

Lettuce.

There's one other thing. This...

This Dorothy girl who's, er...

who's riding with me on the back,

she's... she's always crying.

And she's also very, very thin,

very thin. Like an insect.

I don't think...

I don't think she is well, actually.

Actually, I am quite worried about her.

No, I don't wanna sit. Ready?

My name is Frank and I take pictures.

Mona Carvell.

Writer.

Critic.

My name is Diamonds.

Er... they call me Tiny.

I have no idea why.

My name is Jed,

and I'm Mr Diamond's bodyguard.

Is that OK, kid?

You want me to do it again?

Well, I have no idea what I'll write.

I haven't seen the collection yet.

Merlin does not share

his creations in advance.

More's the pity.

One could help. One could advise.

You see, sadly,

he believes he's making art.

But fashion is not an art form.

If it's anything at all,

it's pornography.

To which millions are addicted.

Hopelessly addicted.

Take the look in a woman's eyes

when she's shopping.

It's a crazed lust

of a desperate junkie,

who can't afford the real thing,

so will settle for any rubbish

they sell on the street.

It's much worse than heroin,

take it from me.

Oh, have I shocked you? Good!

And as for the designers,

they're mostly desperate,

deluded individuals,

who all think

they're doing something new.

But nothing's new in this game.

If you think you're in,

you're already out.

You started already?

OK.

I did Afghanistan, the Gulf War.

I was one of the first embedded

with our boys in Iraq.

That's my job.

It's more than a job,

it's a vocation.

I shoot.

Not with a gun, though I know how to.

You have to. Places I've been,

the things I've seen.

You don't know what danger is

till you've been in a war zone.

You don't know what death is.

You know something, kid?

If somebody told me that I could

never take another picture,

I would go right home

and put my head in the gas oven.

If I had a home. Or an oven.

But I live in a hotel.

Actually, it's a dive.

That's the best kind of place to live.

I don't bother to unpack.

I keep a bag by the door, ready,

just in case I get the call.

Things.

You don't need things in this life.

You need mobility and chances.

Now, when you get a chance, kid,

you should take it,

cos you wake up a minute later

and they say you're too tired

to see action.

Tired? Do I look tired?

What they mean is old.

But this is experience in my face.

Experience.

See, you're young

but you won't always be young.

That's the thing, kid.

Hello again.

I've been thinking, Michelangelo,

and I would like to give you

some more advice.

There are two things in this life

which are important.

Money and fame.

All the rest, frankly,

I would not bother with.

Mr Andy Warhol said everybody

will be famous for 15 minutes

but some people will be

more famous for longer.

The beautiful ones,

and if you are not beautiful,

you better be rich.

So... no offence,

but I think you better start

making plans, Michelangelo, hmm?

OK.

What?

Afraid?

Afraid of what?

Am I afraid of... getting old?

Is that what you're asking me?

Do you think I'm old?

Look.

Look at my face.

Look at the light on my face.

Some people,

the light makes big ugly shadows.

Me?

It's a f***ing caress.

The light loves me

and I love the light.

Together we can do anything.

Is there anything I like about fashion?

Well, of course.

It's a brutal, amoral business.

Issues of right and wrong, good

and bad, simply don't come into it,

which in this current climate

of political correctness

is extremely refreshing.

You see, in evolutionary terms,

morality is irrelevant.

Beauty is worshipped

infinitely more than goodness.

And why? Because without it

there'd be indiscriminate copulation,

or even none at all.

Beauty attracts, my child.

Beauty is power.

Which is unfortunate,

because, in fact,

it is surface, Michelangelo.

Surface through and through.

And when the bloom of youth fades,

only those graced

with the right bones will survive.

That's what beauty has become

in this age of photography. Bones.

Bones that will one day

lie in the dusty earth.

The people that work for me?

What about them?

Well... I like to... encourage talent.

They get the chance

to express themselves and to develop,

and, then, of course,

I own the product.

And the designers with talent,

they move on to the next thing,

and if there's no talent,

then, they sort of disappear.

It's a natural selection,

survival of the fittest,

in a fashion jungle.

Life can be...

Life can be so insecure.

Which I why I am fond of permanence.

Which is why I collect.

And a collection must grow.

That is its nature.

Right now, I'm collecting women's

magazines and cable television.

Miss Carvell, I believe you've met.

A very dear friend of mine.

Her writing is so brutal.

Marvellous!

Well, she doesn't know it yet

but the journal she writes for...

... I just bought it.

Shh!

All right.

Being a bodyguard, it's different.

It's different.

I know some people probably tell you

it's a step down from being

in the police department,

but I wouldn't agree.

Mr Diamonds has been

very good to me.

I mean, he let me talk to you,

for instance, right?

Now he's seated in the front row,

where he belongs, of course.

Yeah, but he knows I got the eye.

Oh, yeah. Gotta have the eye.

You know, he says to me, "Jed, hey,

watch my back. You can't miss!"

He's a jokester!

That's cos he's relaxed. He's relaxed

cos I take care of the anxiety for him.

Cos we travel a lot.

We travel from place to place.

We go to Milan, Paris...

Beijing, New Delhi.

Stay in some fancy hotels.

Very fancy.

I mean, I sleep in the corridor,

but that's if I sleep.

You know, I gotta stay alert 24/7

so I drink tons of coffee.

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