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...somewhere becoming rain.
December 22, 2011 1:49 PM   Subscribe

Arrows is a documentary by a genius, John Samson, whose flame burned briefly but brightly, about another genius, Eric Bristow, whose career followed a similar trajectory. The film reflects a twilight world of pub sports satirised by Martin Amis in his masterpiece London Fields. Last link may cause discomfort.

More from Samson here and here. More from Bristow here.
posted by tigrefacile (7 comments total) 8 users marked this as a favorite

 
I got an Eric Bristow for a birthday back when in the 80s.
I'm pretty sure it's still down in my parents basement on a wall that testifies that I was no world-class darts player.

I remember coming back to the U.S. after visits and complaining to my friends, "Not only do they only have 3 channels, they show darts! In the middle of the day!"
posted by madajb at 1:58 PM on December 22, 2011


"When Alexander of Macedonia was 33, he cried salt tears because there were no more worlds to conquer... Bristow's only 27." - Sid Waddell
posted by fullerine at 2:20 PM on December 22, 2011


More about Samson.
His are not strictly observational documentaries.. From the piece linked

". “John hated that notion,” says his son Robin. “He didn’t believe in just switching on the camera and letting it run. He thought that to look at something is to change it; why bother disguising that fact?”
posted by Ideefixe at 2:40 PM on December 22, 2011


I found this funny:

Martin Amis is considered Britain’s number one, top drawer, literary heavyweight. His reputation rests on a fancy prose style and an intellectualism that is nonetheless within the reach of the majority of readers, who are flattered into feeling clever and so credit Amis with being profound.
posted by KokuRyu at 4:00 PM on December 22, 2011


Fantastic post. Thank you.
posted by motty at 6:08 PM on December 22, 2011


I used to be a dart player like Bristow, then I took an arrow in the knee
posted by Hoopo at 7:07 PM on December 22, 2011 [2 favorites]


Huh - I loved London Fields, and now I'm wondering if that's OK!

I guess that's what critical theory is for, so...go team!
posted by freebird at 8:33 PM on December 22, 2011


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