# The Most Misunderstood Book/Movie/Song Ever **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 25, 2000, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486 "2000-06-25T19:30:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/21 "2000-06-26T18:59:33Z")
Here’s the lyrics Bolding mine > [@](#): > > Every Break You Take > The Police > > every breath you take > every move you make > every bond you break > every step you take > **i’ll be watching you** > > every single day > every word you say > every game you play > every night you stay > **i’ll be watching you** > > **oh can’t you see > you belong to me** > how my poor heart aches > with every step you take > > **every move you make > every vow you break > every smile you fake > every claim you stake > i’ll be watching you** > > since you’ve gone i’ve been lost without a trace > i dream at night i can only see your face > i look around but it’s you i can’t replace > i feel so cold and i long for your embrace > i keep calling baby, baby please > > **oh can’t you see > you belong to me** > how my poor heart aches > with every step you take > > every move you make > every vow you break > every smile you fake > every claim you stake > i’ll be watching you > > \*\*every move you make > every step you take > i’ll be watching you > > i’ll be watching you\*\* And in your world all that is a declaration of love? That’s just frightening. I mean, what else does he have to do? Threaten to shoot you? Isn’t it enough that he’s going to watch everything you do? Is stalking your Love how you show your devotion? ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/22 "2000-06-26T19:31:37Z")
I believe I win this round: THE BIBLE. stoid ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/23 "2000-06-27T02:18:43Z")
The Dolly Parton/Whitney Houston song “I Will Always Love You” is played at weddings, despite that it is one of the most gentle break-up songs ever. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/24 "2000-06-27T02:40:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Years ago, Sting used to bitch and moan that everybody misunderstood the meaning behind “Every Breath You Take”. Seems he had hoards of people thanking him for this moving love song that perfectly described their relationships, and he was thinking, “Hey, that’s a song about OBSESSION, not love!” I thought (still think) that if everybody was misinterpreting it, it couldn’t have been a very well-written song, could it? Pepper, I am totally with your responses. I have always thought even the music and vocals were creepy in themselves. When I picture the woman he’s singing to, I always picture the same kind of woman Mick sings about in You Can’t Always Get What You Want. These are men looking at beautiful women they can’t have with contempt. Romantic, huh? ---
**Author:** ![BigGiantHead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b4bc9f/32.png) [@BigGiantHead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigGiantHead)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/25 "2000-06-27T03:41:43Z")
Except, more specifically: “Money is the root of all evil.” NO, it’s NOT!!! If yer gonna quote, quote right. Money is a tool (oh God, don’t let me cross into that thread). It’s the LOVE of money that causes the problems. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/26 "2000-06-27T06:16:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > And in your world all that is a declaration of love? That’s just frightening. I mean, what else does he have to do? Threaten to shoot you? Isn’t it enough that he’s going to watch everything you do? Is stalking your Love how you show your devotion? > > \*\* I didn’t say **I** bought that crap as a love song…don’t get me wrong. But if he’s got millions of people telling him what a wonderful love song that was, and it describes their relationships perfectly, then he’s being a little too subtle for his audience (considering the typical Sting fan, that’s entirely possible), or he attracts stalkers. Either way, the sender of the message has to be partially responsible for the misinterpreted message. ---
**Author:** ![Brunetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@Brunetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brunetter)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/27 "2000-06-27T19:39:59Z")
The song Shiny Happy People by Michael Stipes and that chick from the B-52s. REM was getting too much bad press that they only did sad and depressing songs. So Michael made Shiny Happy People, a meaningless fluffy song if ever there was one. People lapped it up … completely misinterpreting the ironic message Michael was trying to send. I laugh every time I hear it. Oh yeah, and the people who were angry about “Natural Born Killers” cause it glorified violence. We glorified violence all by ourselves people. Quentin Tarantino just showed us our future. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/28 "2000-06-27T19:50:08Z")
Iron Maiden’s Number of the Beast. most people think its about saten worship but it’s not. it’s about a dream that Steve Harris had after seeing the movie the Omen. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/29 "2000-06-27T19:59:11Z")
Brunetter writes: \> Oh yeah, and the people who were angry about “Natural \> Born Killers” cause it glorified violence. We glorified \> violence all by ourselves people. Quentin Tarantino just \> showed us our future. Except that Quentin Tarantino didn’t direct _Natural Born Killers_. Oliver Stone did. Tarantino only wrote the first draft of the film, and he didn’t like the subsequent changes made to it. ---
**Author:** ![Falcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/49beb7/32.png) [@Falcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falcon)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/30 "2000-06-27T20:17:06Z")
In the vein of “Every Breath You Take” – Sarah McLachlan’s song _Possession_. Which everyone thinks is a nice love song about two lovers kept apart, so they can only be together in dreams. She wrote it about a STALKER. Lyrics follow: > [@](#): > > Listen as the wind blows from across the great divide > Voices trapped in yearning, memories trapped inside > The night is my companion, and solitude my guide > Would I spend forever here and not be satisfied? > > And I would be the one to hold you down, > Kiss you so hard – I’ll take your breath away > And after I’d wipe away the tears, > Just close your eyes dear… > > Into this world I stumble, so many times betrayed > Trying to find an honest word to fight the truth enslaved > Oh, you speak to me in riddles and you speak to me in rhymes > My body aches to breathe your breath - your words keep me alive… > > And I would be the one to hold you down, > Kiss you so hard – I’ll take your breath away. > And after I’d wipe away the tears, > Just close your eyes dear… > > Into this night I wander, it’s morning that I dread > Another day unknowing of the path I choose to tread > Into the sea of waking dreams I follow without pride > 'Cause nothing stands between us here, and I won’t be denied > > And I would be the one to hold you down, > Kiss you so hard – I’ll take your breath away. > And after I’d wipe away the tears, > Just close your eyes dear… ---
**Author:** ![kellibelli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e480ec/32.png) [@kellibelli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellibelli)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/31 "2000-06-27T21:33:40Z")
Has to be “Fade to Black” by metallica. It is NOT about suicide, it is about depression, which is why some people were playing it when they killed themselves. Life it seems to fade away… Drifting further every day… Getting lost within myself, Nothing matters - no one else. emptyness is filling me, to the point of agony. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2000, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/32 "2000-06-27T22:29:29Z")
Speaking of suicide, Ozzy Osbourne’s “Suicide Solution”. Which is about drinking. It would make a lot more sense to haul Robert Altman into court for writing the theme to M_A_S\*H. And while I’m in this vien, all the goth music and movies (Basketball Diaries) that got blamed for Columbine. Stuff like that KEPT me from slaying self/others in highschool. I have an idea, let’s go after the stuff that did drive me to the brink of suicide and made me want to kill people:Phil Collins, Whitney Huston, Michael Bolton, etc., etc. “Fight Club”. It does not advocate violence. It does not advocate anything. It is a (dare I say it?) work of art, not propaganda. The problem is you have to think about it. “Heroes”, Lust for Life, pretty much every song ever used in a commercial. But the ultimate winner, thanks stoid, is of course the Bible. ---
**Author:** ![kellibelli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e480ec/32.png) [@kellibelli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellibelli)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2000, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/33 "2000-06-28T01:48:08Z")
I agree, Bolton makes me homocidal too. ---
**Author:** ![Feelyat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3be4f8/32.png) [@Feelyat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Feelyat)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2000, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/34 "2000-08-16T20:48:41Z")
I agree with most of your views. But I’m still shaking from that MIDI of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”!!! It’s like sacrilege against the Beatles! ---
**Author:** ![Ptahlis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a8b319/32.png) [@Ptahlis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ptahlis)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2000, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/35 "2000-08-16T21:41:52Z")
Besides the Bible, which has more interpretations than you could ever track down, I have to mention good old Huckleberry Finn. The scene where Huck seriously decides he will go to hell for Jim has been called by some the best moment in all of American literature. It is a scathing indictment of slavery and racism, yet is denounced as a racist book by ignorant people who mistake the package for the message. Also, the Beatles’ White Album. Sure not many people misunderstand its message, but when they do… Watch out! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ozone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e95f7d/32.png) [@Ozone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ozone)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2000, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/36 "2000-08-16T21:51:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > Speaking of suicide, Ozzy Osbourne’s “Suicide Solution”. Which is about drinking. > \*\* Right on, **betenoir**. This was going to be my example. For the most part, **ANYONE** who claims a song made their friend/child/whoever, commit suicide is just looking for an excuse. I’d also like to add Marilyn Manson to the list. I once read something where he was quoted as saying “I don’t promote devil worship, but it’s something I believe in.”. As it turns out, the WHOLE quote went like this: “I don’t promote devil worship, but it’s something I believe in. The same way I believe in the Bible, and Dr. Seuse.”. He’s just playing with people. Like they say, even bad publicity is good publicity. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nekochan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b3f665/32.png) [@Nekochan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nekochan)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2000, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/37 "2000-08-16T22:17:43Z")
I wanted to puke when Mercedes-Benz ran a commercial featuring the Janis Joplin song of the same name. Did they think they were being ironic? ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2000, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/38 "2000-08-16T23:30:15Z")
The movie 2001. Until 2010 came out the first one left the viewer clueless. I still hate 2001. Daisy, Daisy … Starship Troopers was based on a story about Klendathu writen in the earlier part of this century. A series of stories were published in the science fiction paperbacks after that. I played a game based on the story about 1982, on my Tandy Color Computer. ---
**Author:** ![Gr8Kat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gr8kat/32/18668_2.png) [@Gr8Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gr8Kat)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/39 "2000-08-17T00:06:40Z")
> [@](#): > > I played a game based on the story about 1982, on my Tandy Color Computer. The “shoot the spiders” game–I played that one, too (except my Tandy was hooked up to a b/w TV) 🙂 Sorry, I don’t have anything to add. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2000, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486/40 "2000-08-17T00:14:26Z")
Yes, shoot the spiders game. That was one of my favorite games for the time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-misunderstood-book-movie-song-ever/23486.md?page=3)