"I HAVE always had the courage for the new things that life sometimes offers," said the Duchess of Windsor, shortly before she and the Duke were shipped off to the Bahamas by the British government in 1940. The Duke became governor and the Duchess his first lady. (Their Nazi sympathies caused them to be essentially exiled for the duration of World War II.)***THE MORE Madonna talks about the next film she’s going to direct, "W.E.," the more I worry. She has the inevitable strike against her of simply being Madonna and any association of her and movies is an excuse to deride the project before it even begins. The initial word on "W.E." was that it would tell, in some fashion, the amazing tale of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor – he, as Edward VIII, gave up the throne of England for "the woman I love." She was the thin and rather plain divorcee Wallis Simpson. (But Wallis had "stacks of style!" as our old friend Stella Dallas was wont to say.)First reports said it was a musical. Now Madonna has put it straight in the new issue of Interview.
It’s not a musical. She has no idea where "that" came from. And the movie won’t really be about the Duke and Duchess, although they play a vital part. It’s really about "this other woman’s journey." Madonna has been writing the script for two years and says it’s "very complicated and a labor of love."
Hmm … complicated. That’s never a good way to describe something, even if it’s true. Madonna will not act in this movie, so her critics won’t have that aspect of her to kick around. The pop icon’s first directorial effort, the little indie, "Filth and Wisdom," showed promise. And she is nothing if not dedicated to her vision – whatever vision she’s working on. "W.E." is bound to be interesting. I just hope it’s not too "complicated."Madonna says she has put music on hold for a while. Raising her four kids and preparing for "W.E." keeps her busy enough. She also said that since she has no record contract anymore – she parted ways with Warner Records after 25 years – she has no idea how her music will get out to be heard. Her fantastic multimillion-dollar deal with Live Nation depends mostly on her touring. Madonna has no idea how her music will be heard? Wow, what have iTunes, downloading and the iPod wrought?!The great big P.S. to Madonna and her music is the wild success of the recent homage to her on TV’s hot series, "Glee."
Not only was the CD from the episode a big hit – with cast members singing Madonna’s greatest hits – but Madonna’s own catalogue numbers jumped 40 percent. People love to say she’s all washed up, but she never is. At 51, she might not be as "relevant" to radio listeners as once upon a time, but there are still a few musical reinventions left. And she is not on drugs, drink, falling into the street, broke, etc. All the things people imagined, 25 years ago, that she would be today. Now, the worst that can be said is she takes herself too seriously at times.
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