“¿Esto lo que tu queria?”
The scene with Bad Bunny in the Spike Lee-inspired Double Dolly shot was the wink to the audience that pulled his Super Bowl half-time show together. For those who haven’t watched any of Lee’s most prized cinematic works (Malcolm X, 25th Hour, Crooklyn, to name a few), the shot serves an important purpose. Rather than the more passive viewing of the film, the double dolly forces the viewer to sit with the protagonist’s stream of consciousness.
For educators who watched, it might feel difficult to peer through this 13-minute sample of Bad Bunny’s art in this way. As with any piece of this kind, accessibility and cultural translation matter just as much as language translation. In this case, Bad Bunny takes the opportunity to open a window into his process for the show. The violinists break from the raucous “EoO” into a melodramatic “Monaco,” a song in which Bad Bunny discusses the gift and curse of rising to fame. He addresses his fans (“I’m here at Super Bowl 60 because I never stopped believing in myself. You, too, should believe in yourself. It matters more than you think.”) and his dissidents (“Is this what you wanted?”).
But you’re not supposed to turn into Bad Bunny in the classroom. You’re supposed to learn how to see. That’s the difference.
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