List 100 people I admire

If his name doesn’t sound familiar to you, Matthew Bellamy is the lead singer and lyricist for the fantastic British rock band, Muse.

Not only does he sing, write, and play guitar, he is also a stunning pianist. I have been overflowing with inspiration these past few days, just watching the genius at work. Just search his piano solos on YouTube, and you’ll know what all of the fuss is about—it’s absolutely breath takingly brilliant to watch. After viewing every possible clip of his piano-playing, I’ve literally stood up from the computer and gone to practice piano. Now, if that isn’t inspiration, I don’t know what is…

I’ll admit that I just got into Muse this year, but I feel like I’ve been a fan of them forever. There isn’t one song that doesn’t make me stop, listen, and just admire their musical ingenuity. I admire how most of Matthew’s lyrics are quite simple, yet they’re still written very, very well, and despite their simplicity, they’re usually written about complicated/deeper topics.

I would put all of the members of Muse on this list, but I just felt that Matthew Bellamy was the most prominent one of them all, inspiration-wise. Out of all of their albums, at the moment Absolution is my favourite— however, there isn’t one Muse album that I don’t love. They’ve explored countless nooks and crannies of possibilities for their music, all while sounding absolutely amazing.

Matthew Bellamy and Muse never fail to leave me absolutely speechless. I love every one of their songs, and will forever regret the day that they came to my city and I failed to buy the tickets in time!

Many of my friends do not ‘approve’ of Hunter S. Thompson, because my friends and I are all strictly against drugs and alcohol. You may be thinking “How can an anti-drug/alcohol sort of person admire Hunter S. Thompson, who’s practically the King of it all?”, and that’s okay, because I’m going to answer your question now.

It all started when I decided to read the original book, before watching the movie Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, now one of my favourite Johnny Depp movies. I like reading books before watching films based on them, because I enjoy picturing characters and settings my way before having images from the film stuffed into my brain. I borrowed my sister’s friend’s copy three months ago, and to this day I still haven’t given it back—of course I’ve finished reading it, but I’m now re-reading it; because it’s such an ingenious piece of writing that you have to read again.

Even though Hunter’s head was full of drugs and other unidentifiable substances while he was alive, his head was also full of amazing ideas, ideas so crazy that they actually make sense if you think twice about them. His writing is quirky, but eerily easy to get pulled into, and unexpectedly poetic. He has a wonderful sense of humour that everyone can enjoy, and he has a strong opinion about everything.

So far I’ve read two of his books, and both of them have drastically changed the way I think. Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas made me think not only outside of the box—but as far from ‘the box’ as possible! It greatly inspired me to live life to its fullest (minus all of the drug experiences), and it was such a joy to read. The Rum Diary was written in an entirely different style, however I enjoyed it just as much. It was a beautifully written drunken romp about Paul Kemp’s life fading away before his eyes—a fantastic read as well.

He was such an intriguing person, if he were alive today I’d do anything to meet him and just have a cup of coffee (or in his case, a few bottles of beer and a smoke…) and talk about his fantastic life. You can just tell that his mind was bursting at the seams with ideas and thoughts. He was a genius overflowing with brilliance, adventures, and opinions, and may he rest in peace.

So I’ve bought the ticket, and I’m taking the ride! Here’s one of Hunter’s most beautiful quotes that I’m going to leave you with:

“As an afterthought, it seems hardly proper to write of life without once mentioning happiness; so we shall let the reader answer this question for himself: who is the happier man, he who has braved the storm of life and lived or he who has stayed securely on shore and merely existed?”

Danny Elfman’s name may ring a bell in the back of your head—or it may be an entirely new name to you. His name is very familiar to me, for he’s number three on my list!

A question for you, have you seen any of the following movies: The Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, Sleepy Hollow, Batman or Batman Returns, Mars Attacks!, Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, Beetlejuice, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, etc.—any of Tim Burton’s films (besides Ed Wood)?

The movies Spider-man, Men in Black, Forbidden Zone, Nacho Libre, Mission: Impossible? Any episodes of The Simpsons or Desperate Housewives?

You’ve most likely answered ‘yes’ to at least a few of these titles. Well, Danny Elfman has written the music for all of them, as well as the themes for The Simpsons and Desperate Housewives! I noticed his name when I was nine years old while watching The Nightmare Before Christmas. Danny Elfman provided the entire score for the film, the lyrics for all of the songs, associate produced it, and sang the lead of Jack Skellington himself.

He’s collaborated with Tim Burton on every one of his films except for Ed Wood, which is another great thing about him—his music is dark, quirky, and haunting… but very beautiful and well-written. I was often teased for obsessing over Danny when I was younger (actually, I still am now!), because it isn’t very often that someone admires at film composer.

Personally, I think without film composers, movies would be nothing. It’s the scary music in horror movies that make your hair stand up, the heartbreaking music during sad scenes that forms lumps in your throat, and the upbeat music during happy scenes that make you smile along with the cast. Even though we tend not to pay attention to music, it plays such a crucial role in the world of films.

Danny Elfman was also a member in the great band Oingo Boingo which retired in 1995. Some of their songs include “Weird Science,” “Just another Day,” and “When the Lights Go Out.”

He’s done music for nearly every movie genre—sometimes it just seems impossible that he can produce such ingenious pieces of work, one after another. I own many of his movie soundtracks, and plan on expanding my collection over the years.

So, start keeping your eyes peeled during the credits of a movie, because it may just be Danny Elfman! Don’t take film composers for granted.

Johnny Depp, my close number two on my list. Okay, so most of us love to drool over his impossibly, flawless, good looks—and I’m not saying I don’t, haha—but I also love to drool over her impossibly, flawless, good acting as well, which is what most people tend to forget about while gushing about his prettyboy looks.

Following Tim Burton about one year later, I began my obsession and admiration for Johnny Depp when I was ten years old when I saw his breath-taking performance in Edward Scissorhands. As Tim Burton has explained in his autobiography, Johnny has that rare ability to act with his eyes. Fact: Johnny only says 169 words in that whole film, yet he does such a superb job getting his emotion across.

Even in his movies that didn’t make such a huge, flashy, box-office hit, Johnny hasn’t failed to astound and touch me with his flawless roles. He really knows how to choose them, and I really admire an actor that chooses roles he wants because he wants it for the experience and love for acting—not for the cash and dough involved with it.

It’s hard to believe that John Waters’ Cry-Baby, Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, Hunter S. Thompson’s Raoul Duke, FBI agent Donnie Brasco, Pirates of the Caribbean’s hero Captain Jack Sparrow, etc. are all the same person. He hasn’t played a role that’s been even an ounce the same as the last, he’s so diverse with his roles.

I also admire how despite that now he’s a huge celebrity with a box-office movie (and perhaps more to come), he’s still the same Johnny he was so many years ago. He doesn’t fall into the starry-eyed Hollywood loop, and he keeps a clear line between his acting life and his family life.

As you may have noticed, I could go on forever about my admiration for Johnny, but I will stop now! I’d have him as number one along with Tim Burton, but I guess that’d ruin the whole order… so, in a close second place, Johnny Depp, another person I insanely admire.

Tim Burton, love him or hate him, you’ve got to admit that the guy’s impossibly creative and quirky. When I was a mere nine years old, I watched The Nightmare Before Christmas a great kid’s film and a great work of art. My second one of his films that had a significant impact on me was Edward Scissorhands, the first film that ever made me cry, and now one of my favourites. My admiration and obsession for him then grew over the years, and hasn’t ceased since. I can’t get over how amazing he is, imagination and ideas just seem to pour out of him.

I’ve now seen all of his short films and movies (and simply can’t wait for his upcoming projects), read all of his poem books, and I’m currently reading his autobiography, Burton on Burton. His dark, ingenious ways of thinking make expand my mind and increase my creativity every day in many different ways.

His poems and drawings are bittersweet, and his films never fail to form a twisted laugh, a thought in my brain, or a lonely lump in my throat.

I have not a single doubt saying that Tim Burton is definitely number one on my list of 100 people I admire.