What Movie Stars Can Never Be
Modern poetry modern verse contemporary poetry contemporary verse modern poem contemporary poem
Enchantment is a slavery to stars
Of sweatless screens, the cinema, tv,
Or Netflix, or on smartphones. Out on Mars
They walk around, and though that’s stupid, we
Watch on. We know that we are lacking like
Some Sad Sack clown. An Emmet Kelly springs
To mindless mind. He rides a pint-sized bike
In circles making hollow laughs. From strings
The studios are dangling us, puppets
For gods’ amusement. Movie stars of course
Are gilded marionettes. They are Muppets
Controlled by magnates giggling above, coarse.
Both we and stars will never be a flick
On celluloid. We’ll never be that slick.
~ Phillip Whidden