Being There Strong Response
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Hal Ashby's film, "Being There", is a comedic tale of a mentally disabled gardener, Chance, who after living his entire life inside the walls of a beautiful estate, is forced to leave and embrace the real world. Chance encounters a series of accidental incidents that lead to him becoming a guest at the house of the fabulously rich Rand family. Chance has an interesting affect on people at the Rand house who take his uttering about his garden as serious metaphorical wonders. "Being There" is a gentile reminder of the stupidity of society, illustrating how people look into things far too deeply creating what they want, rather than understanding the true meaning of things.
The people in the film treat Chance like a well-to-do man because he looks the part. Dressed in his benefactor's expensively tailored suits, people assume Chance is wealthy man. Ben Rand, the ailing owner of the house, takes a particular liking to Chance. At dinner, Ben questions Chance of his occupation, and Chance replies that he is a gardener. Ben misinterprets Chance's literal meaning "gardener", stating that every productive businessperson is a laborer in his own vineyard. He sees Chance as this astounding philosopher whose words should be valued...