Touch

Via the irreplaceable Rocking Vicar comes this odd and rather beautiful little film. It’s a music video, but the song is a complete nonentity—you could watch it with the sound turned down. In fact, I recommend it. Clip is Not Safe For Work, but there’s nothing leering about it; It’s warm and funny and ultimately celebratory.

And above all, it’s human. It reminded me strongly of—God, I’m embarrassed to even mention this, because I am so not the porn type (he said, unconvincingly), especially not the celebrity stuff—but last year somebody put out a version of the Colin Farrell / Nicole Narain sex tape with—and this is the genius part—all the actual sex edited out, and, gosh, I just thought it was cuter than a basket full of puppies. (The video has since been removed: worksafe transcript here.)

There’s something sweet and sorta poignant about these two attractive, slightly dim people who really seem to like each other, making inarticulate post-coital small talk. These are human beings at their least guarded, and they seem so vulnerable—even Farrell’s bluster seems a cover for shyness.

And when Narain’s face lights up as Farrell tells her she’s pretty, my heart kind of breaks a little. Human after all. Our common glory. Our common disaster.