The River Why

Just watched the movie The River Why which was a peculiar and interesting indy film about fishing in Oregon. The hero is a very Thoreau type character having a Walden experience while fishing for 14 hours a day. Why don't we have Presidents that fish anymore? Fewer speeches, more time being observant and in tune with the universe. It would do this country good.

The River Why is about philosophy as much as angling, the why of angling. There's also a pretty blonde named Amber Heard who's far too perfect to be a fisher-woman. She's also somewhat insane. Like Luna Lovegood insane. I can understand why the hero falls for her. She's very pretty, after all. I would spy on her skinny dipping too.

The great strength of the hero is he's apparently immune to hypothermia and water-borne infections. Always ready to dive in after a fish, or swim to keep the line from breaking. Its like A River Runs Through It without all the death and misery. Its more about fishing and the universe. The characters are amusing, particularly Titus the Philosopher and his dog, Descartes.

The Hero is also a highly skilled angler, with both bait and fly, which if you don't know are completely different methods of fishing. I own both types of pole and reel and have fished in both methods. Alas, I took up fly fishing after California stopped stocking rivers and lakes before opening day. They just stock opening day and that's pretty much it. So the rivers and lakes are largely empty of fish. And if you're unlucky enough to catch one it tastes like bait, not like trout. Sad panda. This is one of those things I would fix about California if I could. Massively increase the amount of hatchery fish planted in streams and lakes, and plant them at least a week before opening day to give them a chance to adapt and at least taste good. Its not just sporting, its good wildlife management. Oregon has way more and usually cleaner water than here, except the Willamette which is toxic with agri-chemicals and phosphorus which kill fish, but the other rivers are a lot better.

I suppose it was time for another movie about fishing. River Runs Through It was 20 years ago, after all. And Amber Heard is lovely eye candy for a story about people who get covered in mud and smell like rotting fish, which is the real truth of fishing. I used to know some that wore waders. Rank. Still, if you love to fish then that's something you put up with. That and being really cold. Its a peculiar sport and is a special case study example for psychologists for people who do low success activities obsessively rather than give up. Of course, psychologists are also people who have something wrong with their heads, the reason they got into the major in the first place; they figured it would be cheaper than paying for therapy.

Fishing IS therapy, but its also communing with nature like hiking or photography or bicycling. You're there, surrounded by everything. A good fisherman isn't really there about the fish, provided one comes along eventually. He or she is there to Be There. Know what I mean?