'Blow' Touches Iraq

I kept seeing this story about the war in Iraq come through the news alerts for Johnny Depp, so I finally made time to read it and figure out why. Turns out it’s a very personal, very powerful story about Marines dying in the line of duty, and no matter your politics, it’s a story that deserves to be read. But what on Earth could that possibly have to do with Johnny? Here’s the connection –

From Fayetteville Online:

The fallen leave behind many things. Their gear. Belongings. Memories.

By the 3rd Platoon’s barracks at Hurricane Point, troops still sit on the bench Procopio made and hang out as the sun goes down. On the back of it is written Procopio’s name, rank, date of death and “RIP.”

Nearby, four wooden crosses wrapped with dog tags rise from a bank of sand-filled barriers. A wooden board below the crosses is inscribed with words from “Blow,” a movie starring Johnny Depp:

May the winds always be at your backs
The sun upon your face
And may the winds of destiny carry you aloft to dance with the stars.

They’re not Johnny’s words, obviously, but those of George Jung, the person on whom the movie “Blow” is based. Jung wrote them; Ted Demme envisioned them in a movie; Johnny Depp helped deliver them to the masses; and now they serve as comfort to men and women who fight and die every day in service to their country.

People often consider Hollywood a wasteland — but in this particular case, film is a powerful thing.

May these words and others like them never have to be used for such a purpose again.