A little 2 or 3 year old girl is left on a swing in a park with a note in her pocket saying the mother will return. It becomes dark, and the woman who found her takes her home to keep her warm and give her food and a place to sleep. The woman and her husband who have a little run down circus, grow to love the child although the husband worries how they are going to stretch their already limited resources; he gripes about it, but he is truly concerned and connected to the little girl. After many unintelligent efforts to find the mother, especially after a female suicide by drowning is reported, making them wonder if that could have been the mother, they first began to hide her from authorities who might take her away from them and then ask the teenage neighbor to help them understand the adoption process, which won't work because they are outside the age guidelines. Finally, they receive a note from the supposed mother that she will pick the little girl up in two weeks. The woman buys the little girl new clothes and fixes her up so that she will look very pretty for her mother. The neighbors stage a going away party for her with cake and champagne. Hours pass, the neighbors go home, and finally, the cold, hard realization that the mother isn't coming sets in. The movie ends with the woman holding the little girl and looking down at her with an expression of sadness that the little girl could have her hopes raised in this way combined with worry about how they will support her, combined with determination that they will. The winner of several international prizes, it is a film that shows that a slowly unfolding unsolvable situation can be as intriguing as high drama.
Reviews
19 Reviews
Until September
(1984)
Spoilers! Until September
12 December 2012
Warning: Spoilers
At first I was uncomfortable with the infidelity theme. However, there are subtle clues that will enable you to put aside your Puritanical judgment and see that there are contributing circumstances and there really is a love growing between Mo and Xavier.
Mo is genuine, impulsive, self-sufficient horticulturist who was divorced by her husband because he didn't love her anymore. When she becomes stranded in Paris after her plane leaves without her she thinks of Chantal, a friend from her college days who has an apartment in Paris.
Xavier is a international banker caught in a loveless marriage of convenience to a reserved housewife because it was decided that it was beneficial to both of them to be in and stay in the marriage (presumably by their parents). Xavier has stayed behind in Paris while his wife and children (a boy and a girl) go on vacation until September.
It turns out that Chantal has also gone on vacation until September, as Mo learns from Xavier when she mistakes his apartment for Chantal's and him for Chantal's husband. When he turns and she sees him full face for the first time, he is so gorgeous that it makes Mo catch her breath. She tells him on the spot that he has the most beautiful eyes she has ever seen. He mistakes this as a come on instead of American forthrightness.
Mo leaves in a pouring rain to look for a hotel, with only the clothes on her back, since her luggage was flown on to her ultimate destination. He catches up with her with an umbrella and shows her the location of a hotel. They attempt to go out to dinner but the restaurant is closed until September. He says he will cook dinner for her and attempts to act upon her perceived come on. Mo is infuriated and accepts invitations extended by a fellow American, a musician. Xavier follows her, and she spots him watching her from a distance.
We also learn that Xavier's bank is in trouble and there is a meeting of the bankers to try to gain a loan from a Saudi entity, but there is to be a week's delay in the decision, so Xavier invites one of his banker friends to dinner. His friend laughs laughs and asks why Xavier doesn't use that opportunity to spendwith Xavier's mistress, Natalie. Xavier says under his breath that Natalie left him. He accepts the friend's invitation to join his family at their château.
Xavier then asks Mo if she would like to accompany him to the banker friends château and she agrees. The banker's wife makes clear that they don't like Xavier's wife. Xavier and his friends are impressed when Mo demonstrates humanity by dancing with a midget with whom none of the other women would dance and resourcefulness when the friend's daughter is injured.
Mo and Xavier realize that they are in love, but Xavier is reluctant to upset his marriage. Mo books a flight back to America. Xavier, meantime, has phoned his wife to summon her back home; she asks him if the bank is as bad as ever. When she arrives at the apartment, he confesses his feelings for Mo to her, and they are shown clasping hands and his eyes scanning all around the apartment as if memorizing it.
Xavier goes to the airport, asking for a ticket to New York. Mo is heading to the satellite area of the airport to board her flight for New York. She hears him call out for her to wait for him and turns and runs down the up escalator, they embrace, kiss and the movie ends, leaving us to suppose that they live happily ever after.
Mo is genuine, impulsive, self-sufficient horticulturist who was divorced by her husband because he didn't love her anymore. When she becomes stranded in Paris after her plane leaves without her she thinks of Chantal, a friend from her college days who has an apartment in Paris.
Xavier is a international banker caught in a loveless marriage of convenience to a reserved housewife because it was decided that it was beneficial to both of them to be in and stay in the marriage (presumably by their parents). Xavier has stayed behind in Paris while his wife and children (a boy and a girl) go on vacation until September.
It turns out that Chantal has also gone on vacation until September, as Mo learns from Xavier when she mistakes his apartment for Chantal's and him for Chantal's husband. When he turns and she sees him full face for the first time, he is so gorgeous that it makes Mo catch her breath. She tells him on the spot that he has the most beautiful eyes she has ever seen. He mistakes this as a come on instead of American forthrightness.
Mo leaves in a pouring rain to look for a hotel, with only the clothes on her back, since her luggage was flown on to her ultimate destination. He catches up with her with an umbrella and shows her the location of a hotel. They attempt to go out to dinner but the restaurant is closed until September. He says he will cook dinner for her and attempts to act upon her perceived come on. Mo is infuriated and accepts invitations extended by a fellow American, a musician. Xavier follows her, and she spots him watching her from a distance.
We also learn that Xavier's bank is in trouble and there is a meeting of the bankers to try to gain a loan from a Saudi entity, but there is to be a week's delay in the decision, so Xavier invites one of his banker friends to dinner. His friend laughs laughs and asks why Xavier doesn't use that opportunity to spendwith Xavier's mistress, Natalie. Xavier says under his breath that Natalie left him. He accepts the friend's invitation to join his family at their château.
Xavier then asks Mo if she would like to accompany him to the banker friends château and she agrees. The banker's wife makes clear that they don't like Xavier's wife. Xavier and his friends are impressed when Mo demonstrates humanity by dancing with a midget with whom none of the other women would dance and resourcefulness when the friend's daughter is injured.
Mo and Xavier realize that they are in love, but Xavier is reluctant to upset his marriage. Mo books a flight back to America. Xavier, meantime, has phoned his wife to summon her back home; she asks him if the bank is as bad as ever. When she arrives at the apartment, he confesses his feelings for Mo to her, and they are shown clasping hands and his eyes scanning all around the apartment as if memorizing it.
Xavier goes to the airport, asking for a ticket to New York. Mo is heading to the satellite area of the airport to board her flight for New York. She hears him call out for her to wait for him and turns and runs down the up escalator, they embrace, kiss and the movie ends, leaving us to suppose that they live happily ever after.
The Good Wife
(1987)
A baby
14 July 2012
Warning: Spoilers
****SPOILERS*****At one point the wife very emphatically states that she wants a baby. The couple must have been married for quite a while at that point and that he had been unable to impregnate her. I think that the husband agreeing to let his backward brother to have sex with the wife was perhaps a desperate hope of giving her a baby. But the brother is a premature ejaculator. Disappointment is written in the expression on the wife's face as she urges "Wait! Wait!" Maybe with the near rape by the barman, she saw a vital man who could possibly provide her with a baby. Women who want babies have been known to do some pretty crazy things. There are many psychological disparities about the movie, but if you consider the urge to reproduce as the primary motivation of the wife, it may answer a lot of questions. Very good performances by all. I love being dropped into a time and place totally unlike anything I've ever known and being asked to believe it. All the costuming, environment, and supporting cast helped me to do just that.
The Prince of Hearts
(1997 TV Movie)
Again, IMDb doesn't list Penry-Jones as a star!
25 February 2011
Warning: Spoilers
We decided to take the afternoon off today, and picked this film to watch. When the initial credits began to roll, my husband said, "Oh, now I see why we're going to watch this: Rupert Penry-Jones !" He doesn't seem to ever get his due...why do they leave him off the star list? I've been watching him be first a human radio antenna (adorably bumping his head coming back in the window), then a human TV rabbit ears as the untalented brother of the super-talented sisters in Hilary and Jackie, then fighter pilot Peter Gregory in Charlotte Gray. Charlotte Gray is a dark movie, but Rupert Penry-Jones made it memorable, and the comments of Charlotte's roommates gave us some of our favorite comeback lines ("That bloody airman ate all my rations again!" "Mine, too!") Then there was Persuasion which I've watched until I've worn it out, and the MI-5 episodes in which he played Adam, and on and on.
The Student Prince brought some unexpected laughs and we found it delightful. Robson Green and Rupert Penry-Jones gave engaging performances. Green, of course, has been a star for some time. A star was born in this movie, and IMDb didn't recognize it. His name is Rupert Penry-Jones.
The Student Prince brought some unexpected laughs and we found it delightful. Robson Green and Rupert Penry-Jones gave engaging performances. Green, of course, has been a star for some time. A star was born in this movie, and IMDb didn't recognize it. His name is Rupert Penry-Jones.
Awarding my first 2. Spoilers below!
25 January 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Spoilers! The film is very disappointing. The lack of chemistry between the two stars, the insertion of the modern story with the lack of chemistry between the players within the modern story, the overacting by all the actors (or is it poor directing?) the length of the film, the assumption that we would believe Sarah a virgin when Charles finds her at the hotel, that we would believe Jeremy's character would be so gullible and go against very inflexible norms of Victorian behavior, the fact that the heroine should have been an English actress, the attempt to too literally adapt the novel to film, and then the overlay of Darwin, Freud, and the Pre-Raphealite Brotherhood just made a totally unengaging, wearing film.
Persuasion
(2007 TV Movie)
A second chance
23 January 2011
Rupert Penry-Jones's Captain Wentworth behaved as a military man would be expected to behave. He is intelligent, disciplined, decisive, ego-driven. We aren't given histrionic acting, but a performance where a slight widening of the eyes, twitching of a jaw muscle, a gaze held a little long, convey what we need to know about Captain Wentworth's inner thoughts. His blondness contrasts with the darker coloring of the other young males and lends him a golden air. I think Penry-Jones is a fine actor, and found it sad that he writes in his quotes on his profile that "I've worked for years to get the career I have now, so to find I need a break is quite disappointing!". He has won two acting awards to date and he has several projects in the works, so I hope that he has received the break he wished for.
Some see Persuasion as a book of a revenant made human, others as a second chance at love in a time of social change.
If I had written the explanation of how Anne's home became Captain Wentworth's wedding gift to her, Sir Walter would have been totally bankrupt and forced to sell, William Elliot so disgraced that he renounced his entailment, and the duplicitous Mrs. Clay out of the Elliot's life forever.
Some see Persuasion as a book of a revenant made human, others as a second chance at love in a time of social change.
If I had written the explanation of how Anne's home became Captain Wentworth's wedding gift to her, Sir Walter would have been totally bankrupt and forced to sell, William Elliot so disgraced that he renounced his entailment, and the duplicitous Mrs. Clay out of the Elliot's life forever.
Sweet Land
(2005)
Why isn't Tim Guinee listed as starring role?
12 January 2011
Tim Guinee's young Olaf was the male star, not Patrick. Give him the credit he is due.
Tim Guinee was thoroughly believable as the reserved, thoughtful, thrifty Norwegian settler who gets more than he bargained for in his mail order bride. His portrayal of the devout Lutheran's struggle to keep his male hormones under control provides some of the most comic moments in the film. His wonder when Inge and the preacher share Keats poetry, the gradual shifting of the balance of power when Inge shows what a strong and headstrong woman she is, his courage when faced with crooked bankers were all perfectly rendered.
This one is a keeper. Beautiful in every way.
Tim Guinee was thoroughly believable as the reserved, thoughtful, thrifty Norwegian settler who gets more than he bargained for in his mail order bride. His portrayal of the devout Lutheran's struggle to keep his male hormones under control provides some of the most comic moments in the film. His wonder when Inge and the preacher share Keats poetry, the gradual shifting of the balance of power when Inge shows what a strong and headstrong woman she is, his courage when faced with crooked bankers were all perfectly rendered.
This one is a keeper. Beautiful in every way.
The Return of the Soldier
(1982)
Which love is the truest?
12 March 2010
Warning: Spoilers
This movie has been poorly received and badly reviewed. The book by Rebecca West was written in 1918, soon after WWI, when shell shock and trauma-induced amnesia were not clichés, as the reviewers call it many books and movies later. It is difficult to go back in time and live, as the characters lived, the realities of the time: the war and the horror of the experience of the first war to use lethal gas, the British class system the wife thought all-important, the hopeless spinster, and the lover from the past still seen with the eyes of love being as young and as beautiful as she was 20 years ago.
Alan Bates as the amnesiac soldier who "will die" if he isn't allowed to see Margaret, the girl of his youthful dreams, builds on the devotion his character showed in "Far From the Madding Crowd". Having seen that performance, it is possible to sense his strong romantic attachment to the girl who didn't live up to the family's and society's expectations. Margaret says, "We quarreled, and as you rowed away, you turned your face away from me." So we know that the breakup was something that he instigated, that it brought him shame, but that he forgot the shame in his memory of his time with Margaret. I haven't seen all his films, but in the ones I've seen, he imparts a strong masculinity, which shines through even in this role as the disabled soldier.
I didn't even recognize Ann-Margaret at first and feel that her performance has been underrated. Not having read the book, I wondered whether the child who died was the result of acting on a borderline incestuous feeling between Jenny and Chris, though Jenny does state that she "is a cousin". The way Kitty keeps Jenny in the nursery in the hair-drying scene, the fact that Kitty says she always dries her hair in that room seems more a way for Kitty to keep the coals of anger hot than the orientation of the room to the sun, or sentiment about a lost child, and the statement she made that she wished Chris hadn't felt it necessary to preserve the room exactly as it was when the child was alive made her seem uncaring toward the memory of the child. Also, Jenny is shown as living in the house in a subservient role, as high society would have done to a fallen member at the time.
Having recently been the recipient of the intense fantasy of a lover (non-sexualin keeping with the mores of the time) from 50 years ago, I couldrelate to Margaret's and her husband's dilemma. I, too, was cast aside because I wasn't good enough for his family, and upon his rediscovery of me via the internet, I was burdened with helping him deal with his still very horrifying Vietnam experiences and a marriage to a woman above his class whom he didn't believe he loved. My husband, like Margaret's was very understanding, but the strain was very real. The lover was finally able to reconcile his real-life situation with his fantasy of loving only me.
I thought that it was a good decision to show very little of the reliving of the war experience that was happening in Chris's mind. I thought of "Mrs. Dalloway" with the WWI soldier who acts out very violent memories and commits suicide versus Chris's joy in his fantasy of Margaret. In contrast, the actiona of the soldier in "Mrs. Dalloway" seems overwrought.
Showing that the psychiatrist understood very little of what was happening to Chris underlines what a major problem the whole group faced. Everyone seems to get their life back, but was it the right choice?
Alan Bates as the amnesiac soldier who "will die" if he isn't allowed to see Margaret, the girl of his youthful dreams, builds on the devotion his character showed in "Far From the Madding Crowd". Having seen that performance, it is possible to sense his strong romantic attachment to the girl who didn't live up to the family's and society's expectations. Margaret says, "We quarreled, and as you rowed away, you turned your face away from me." So we know that the breakup was something that he instigated, that it brought him shame, but that he forgot the shame in his memory of his time with Margaret. I haven't seen all his films, but in the ones I've seen, he imparts a strong masculinity, which shines through even in this role as the disabled soldier.
I didn't even recognize Ann-Margaret at first and feel that her performance has been underrated. Not having read the book, I wondered whether the child who died was the result of acting on a borderline incestuous feeling between Jenny and Chris, though Jenny does state that she "is a cousin". The way Kitty keeps Jenny in the nursery in the hair-drying scene, the fact that Kitty says she always dries her hair in that room seems more a way for Kitty to keep the coals of anger hot than the orientation of the room to the sun, or sentiment about a lost child, and the statement she made that she wished Chris hadn't felt it necessary to preserve the room exactly as it was when the child was alive made her seem uncaring toward the memory of the child. Also, Jenny is shown as living in the house in a subservient role, as high society would have done to a fallen member at the time.
Having recently been the recipient of the intense fantasy of a lover (non-sexualin keeping with the mores of the time) from 50 years ago, I couldrelate to Margaret's and her husband's dilemma. I, too, was cast aside because I wasn't good enough for his family, and upon his rediscovery of me via the internet, I was burdened with helping him deal with his still very horrifying Vietnam experiences and a marriage to a woman above his class whom he didn't believe he loved. My husband, like Margaret's was very understanding, but the strain was very real. The lover was finally able to reconcile his real-life situation with his fantasy of loving only me.
I thought that it was a good decision to show very little of the reliving of the war experience that was happening in Chris's mind. I thought of "Mrs. Dalloway" with the WWI soldier who acts out very violent memories and commits suicide versus Chris's joy in his fantasy of Margaret. In contrast, the actiona of the soldier in "Mrs. Dalloway" seems overwrought.
Showing that the psychiatrist understood very little of what was happening to Chris underlines what a major problem the whole group faced. Everyone seems to get their life back, but was it the right choice?
The Man from Elysian Fields
(2001)
Another rehash of the deal with the devil
27 July 2008
Warning: Spoilers
How does Hollywood love the Mephisto story? Let's count the many ways. It has been done and redone and it has long since ceased to be shocking. Are there any new stories out there? Who wouldn't like to take the easy way out of a career that is going nowhere? Andy Garcia has his usual long, pouty face. Mick Jagger proves he is a good musician. Angelica Houston proves she can light up any story. Juliana Margulies is a good mother. James Coburn is intriguing as the dying author contriving to have a legacy, but Olivia Williams isn't beautiful enough to carry off the part of his wife and co-conspirator. Very disappointing.
Monster's Ball
(2001)
Art is truth, truth is beauty
6 July 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Monster's Ball is art. It is a love poem. "Art should not mean, but be," to paraphrase Archibald MacLeish's poem. It is very courageous that the makers of this film found a way to tell the truth, to let their creation be. They found a way to unambiguously describe Hank's awakening , when Leticia's unleashed force of nature meets with his emptiness and need. Without depicting unabashedly Hank's experience of abandoned sex with Leticia, we couldn't comprehend his joy, his happiness, his emancipation at this moment of his life, and why he could change his whole life for this woman. He is like a new religious convert, so deeply is he changed, and Leticia is archetypal Woman, the Goddess of his new religion.
The prisoners weren't the only ones who were imprisoned where Hank worked; so was Hank. The imagery of the prison cells (cages), was repeated in the lovemaking scene, when in Hank's imagination the bird in the cage is removed from its cage and set free. Those of us who have ever endured a long and loveless marriage recognize this symbol, know this movie is true, and know that truth is beauty.
The prisoners weren't the only ones who were imprisoned where Hank worked; so was Hank. The imagery of the prison cells (cages), was repeated in the lovemaking scene, when in Hank's imagination the bird in the cage is removed from its cage and set free. Those of us who have ever endured a long and loveless marriage recognize this symbol, know this movie is true, and know that truth is beauty.
Lolita
(1997)
Evocative
8 June 2008
Warning: Spoilers
The genius of Nabokov's novel is that it makes us sympathize with the monster. The movie has managed to capture that aspect of the novel, making us feel that Delores was the aggressor and Humbert the victim.
The duplication of his given and surnames is a hint that Humbert is probably a paranoid schizophrenic. Many of the things we see happened only in his mind, much like Russell Crowe's depiction of John Nash's imaginings of a nemesis in "A Beautiful Mind". Quilty was the manifestation of the hated side of himself. When he killed Quilty, he finally in a lucid moment realized what a monster he was, and in the final imaginary scene overlooking the village, he felt remorse.
The evocation of the seedy motels and desolate landscape of 1940s America reminded me of many such scenes from my childhood. I knew that Mr. Irons had the depicted the character to perfection because the performance evoked a long-forgotten memory of an over-rapt neighbor who frightened me when I was ten years old.
The duplication of his given and surnames is a hint that Humbert is probably a paranoid schizophrenic. Many of the things we see happened only in his mind, much like Russell Crowe's depiction of John Nash's imaginings of a nemesis in "A Beautiful Mind". Quilty was the manifestation of the hated side of himself. When he killed Quilty, he finally in a lucid moment realized what a monster he was, and in the final imaginary scene overlooking the village, he felt remorse.
The evocation of the seedy motels and desolate landscape of 1940s America reminded me of many such scenes from my childhood. I knew that Mr. Irons had the depicted the character to perfection because the performance evoked a long-forgotten memory of an over-rapt neighbor who frightened me when I was ten years old.
The 13th Warrior
(1999)
Reasons to watch The Thirteenth Warrior
16 May 2008
It is so very rare in film or stage to have the serendipity of a very fine actor physically, vocally, and energetically, melded with the character he is depicting to become one of the few who elevate acting into something mystical and deeply memorable. It could be compared to the philosophy at the heart of the movie, "Camelot": for one brief shining moment an apex is attained. Dennis Stohoi's Herger the Joyous in "The Thirteenth Warrior" accomplished that.
It is also a travesty that such a performance is not given its full recognition and stature in the world of film-making. I would like to see it listed as one of the great performances of all time. Or at least to have a 10th Anniversary extended DVD.
There are ten reasons to watch this film:
1. Dennis Storhoi 2. Dennis Storhoi 3. Dennis Storhoi 4. Dennis Storhoi 5. Dennis Storhoi 6. Dennis Storhoi 7. Dennis Storhoi 8. Dennis Storhoi 9. Dennis Storhoi 10. Dennis Storhoi
In my opinion, his "Herger the Joyous" is one of the luminous portrayals in film, and certainly my all time favorite.
Dennis Storhoi's Storhoi Norwegian official site is: http://www.kjentfolk.no/skuespillere/dennis/
It is also a travesty that such a performance is not given its full recognition and stature in the world of film-making. I would like to see it listed as one of the great performances of all time. Or at least to have a 10th Anniversary extended DVD.
There are ten reasons to watch this film:
1. Dennis Storhoi 2. Dennis Storhoi 3. Dennis Storhoi 4. Dennis Storhoi 5. Dennis Storhoi 6. Dennis Storhoi 7. Dennis Storhoi 8. Dennis Storhoi 9. Dennis Storhoi 10. Dennis Storhoi
In my opinion, his "Herger the Joyous" is one of the luminous portrayals in film, and certainly my all time favorite.
Dennis Storhoi's Storhoi Norwegian official site is: http://www.kjentfolk.no/skuespillere/dennis/
Howards End
(1992)
Feels like home
25 September 2006
Warning: Spoilers
By the end of this movie, you feel as if the characters are part of your family. You want to know more about them, and what happens to them, and to the wonderful old estate of "Howards End". Every time I watch it, I find new details that escaped my notice before.
The first version I saw of this movie had Henry, Anthony Hopkins' character, on the verge of asking Margaret, Emma Thompson's character, to be his mistress. This would have, in the morals of the time, required an end to the relationship. In her quick-witted way, she responded, "Yes!!", and he asked, "Yes, to what?" She said, "You were about to ask me to marry you. I said, yes, I will!" This was changed in subsequent versions and I think it made for less understanding of the dynamics of the characters.
The English family who don't realize that the are dinosaurs, in effect. The social norms which allowed them privilege are crumbling. We hear Ruth saying she is personally glad that women don't have the vote to the astonishment of the younger women. This leads you to wonder whether this was really her own thought, or whether Henry was so overbearing that she was never able to think for herself. Another instance is when Charles, after he has caused the death of Bast, blithely assuming he will only be the star witness in the case because he thinks his social standing will protect him.
The German family are more adventurous, inquisitive, and adaptable. In one bedroom scene, Margaret is shown reading "Theosophy", and Henry, turning to a picture in the book, says, "And what is this?" When Tibby admits to Charles that Bast is the father of Helen's child, he has no idea that Charles will charge forth to defend the family honor with a sword as in days of old.
To me, the name of the estate of "Howards End" is symbolic of of the end of the family as well as the era.
This is a visual treat as well as an intellectual adventure.
The first version I saw of this movie had Henry, Anthony Hopkins' character, on the verge of asking Margaret, Emma Thompson's character, to be his mistress. This would have, in the morals of the time, required an end to the relationship. In her quick-witted way, she responded, "Yes!!", and he asked, "Yes, to what?" She said, "You were about to ask me to marry you. I said, yes, I will!" This was changed in subsequent versions and I think it made for less understanding of the dynamics of the characters.
The English family who don't realize that the are dinosaurs, in effect. The social norms which allowed them privilege are crumbling. We hear Ruth saying she is personally glad that women don't have the vote to the astonishment of the younger women. This leads you to wonder whether this was really her own thought, or whether Henry was so overbearing that she was never able to think for herself. Another instance is when Charles, after he has caused the death of Bast, blithely assuming he will only be the star witness in the case because he thinks his social standing will protect him.
The German family are more adventurous, inquisitive, and adaptable. In one bedroom scene, Margaret is shown reading "Theosophy", and Henry, turning to a picture in the book, says, "And what is this?" When Tibby admits to Charles that Bast is the father of Helen's child, he has no idea that Charles will charge forth to defend the family honor with a sword as in days of old.
To me, the name of the estate of "Howards End" is symbolic of of the end of the family as well as the era.
This is a visual treat as well as an intellectual adventure.
Psycho
(1998)
I liked it
12 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Come to this movie with fresh eyes. Read the biography of Ed Gein online. Read the novel by Robert Bloch. Keep your time frame in mind. This movie claims to be 1998, but retains the morality of the early 1960s. Remember the roiling feminism . Think back to the psychedelic colors. Forget you ever saw the original.
Then think of the performance of Anne Heche as a nervous, hopeless, getting-to-the-end-of-the-biological-clock Marion, in a boring job in a boring town faced with too much temptation. Her face is already lined and her anorexia becomes a metaphor for emotional and sexual deprivation, with only the occasional meetings at a squalid hotel with her boyfriend Sam to hope for. Watch her as she spirals downward from twitchy to terrified. Her elation at her impulsive act turns to paranoia as her guilty conscience is picked up by the patrolman, her eyes frantically watching the rear view mirror as he trails her. See how the headlights blare on her face and her eyes reach that stage of fatigue where to continue driving would be suicide. See the motherly instinct that Norman unexpectedly elicits turn to alarm by his change in affect.
Watch Vince Vaughn as Norman, fleshier, like the original character in the novel, and as would be expected of a muncher of candy corn and white bread sandwiches (but not like the real Ed Gein, who was gaunt). A consumer of pornography accustomed to gaining sexual gratification by his own hand, but with effeminate mannerisms: Ingratiating toward Marion, then infuriated when she suggests a mental hospital for his "mother". Watch him change to the psychotic killer as he rails against the cold eyes and thick clucking tongues in those "places". Places he seems to have been before.
William Macy, as Arbogat, gives a reptile-eyed performance as the private detective who proves to be too nosy for his own good. Not a beat is missed here as he follows his leads to their final conclusion.
Julianne Moore portrays Leila as a kick-ass feminist hooked up to a Walkman . It gives her a detachment from the sexuality of Marion's boyfriend, Sam. The scene where she and Sam are walking from the motel office and she shrugs off his arm on her shoulder nailed the character. Kicking Norman when he was down was inspired. She never lets us down.
Viggo Mortenson as Sam with a cowboy drawl seemed overdone, but since he was supposed to be from The West, it was plausible. His inflection when he asks if Marion's sister looked like her was oily enough to give most women pause. He's gorgeous enough to make a woman who had worked in the same place for 10 years with only the occasional Monday morning tardiness steal to get him. His overreaching familiarity toward Leila upon their first meeting convinces us that our first impression of duplicity might have been correct. His excuses to Mariam were in reality a way to buy more time for freedom.
Color is very important psychologically in driving the movie. Red is the color of life and the color of guilt, as in "red-handed". Before the theft of the money, Marion wears a pink suit with her screaming underwear colors hidden, like her desires. She wears red when she decides to leave with the money, and the use of red filters and lights signal anger, guilt, and danger After she is killed and desanguinated, the red fades to the white tiles of the bathroom and the pale lifeless body. Thereafter, except for the cleanup scene where Norman is shown with "blood on his hands" to symbolize his bloodthirstiness, with the mop spreading red blood across the white tiles, and the scene when Leila goes into "mother's" room, which has red curtains to express the rage Norman felt, the colors are all more natural, with the ending shot of a peaceful, isolated paradise like the one Marion thought she was running to.
Then think of the performance of Anne Heche as a nervous, hopeless, getting-to-the-end-of-the-biological-clock Marion, in a boring job in a boring town faced with too much temptation. Her face is already lined and her anorexia becomes a metaphor for emotional and sexual deprivation, with only the occasional meetings at a squalid hotel with her boyfriend Sam to hope for. Watch her as she spirals downward from twitchy to terrified. Her elation at her impulsive act turns to paranoia as her guilty conscience is picked up by the patrolman, her eyes frantically watching the rear view mirror as he trails her. See how the headlights blare on her face and her eyes reach that stage of fatigue where to continue driving would be suicide. See the motherly instinct that Norman unexpectedly elicits turn to alarm by his change in affect.
Watch Vince Vaughn as Norman, fleshier, like the original character in the novel, and as would be expected of a muncher of candy corn and white bread sandwiches (but not like the real Ed Gein, who was gaunt). A consumer of pornography accustomed to gaining sexual gratification by his own hand, but with effeminate mannerisms: Ingratiating toward Marion, then infuriated when she suggests a mental hospital for his "mother". Watch him change to the psychotic killer as he rails against the cold eyes and thick clucking tongues in those "places". Places he seems to have been before.
William Macy, as Arbogat, gives a reptile-eyed performance as the private detective who proves to be too nosy for his own good. Not a beat is missed here as he follows his leads to their final conclusion.
Julianne Moore portrays Leila as a kick-ass feminist hooked up to a Walkman . It gives her a detachment from the sexuality of Marion's boyfriend, Sam. The scene where she and Sam are walking from the motel office and she shrugs off his arm on her shoulder nailed the character. Kicking Norman when he was down was inspired. She never lets us down.
Viggo Mortenson as Sam with a cowboy drawl seemed overdone, but since he was supposed to be from The West, it was plausible. His inflection when he asks if Marion's sister looked like her was oily enough to give most women pause. He's gorgeous enough to make a woman who had worked in the same place for 10 years with only the occasional Monday morning tardiness steal to get him. His overreaching familiarity toward Leila upon their first meeting convinces us that our first impression of duplicity might have been correct. His excuses to Mariam were in reality a way to buy more time for freedom.
Color is very important psychologically in driving the movie. Red is the color of life and the color of guilt, as in "red-handed". Before the theft of the money, Marion wears a pink suit with her screaming underwear colors hidden, like her desires. She wears red when she decides to leave with the money, and the use of red filters and lights signal anger, guilt, and danger After she is killed and desanguinated, the red fades to the white tiles of the bathroom and the pale lifeless body. Thereafter, except for the cleanup scene where Norman is shown with "blood on his hands" to symbolize his bloodthirstiness, with the mop spreading red blood across the white tiles, and the scene when Leila goes into "mother's" room, which has red curtains to express the rage Norman felt, the colors are all more natural, with the ending shot of a peaceful, isolated paradise like the one Marion thought she was running to.
Poldark
(1996 TV Movie)
Is that all there is?
15 June 2006
We were left waiting for the next sequence. The VHS tape started to crackle and we knew there was no more! What happens next? Surely they aren't going to leave us up in the air like this! The actors who played Poldark and Sir George could have been played by twins. We couldn't tell them apart. The scenery and costumes are lovely, but the "gentlemen" are all like cardboard cutouts. The flaming red hair of Clowence made for some spectacular photography, but she didn't have a range of expression. The most interesting character was Mrs. Poldark, full of fire and intelligence, and you wondered how she and the stuffed shirt Poldark ever got together! Like eating popcorn, it left us empty.
Reilly: Ace of Spies
(1983)
Just discovered Reilly: Ace of Spies
14 May 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This for us was one of those things you pick up because your satellite is out and instantly become transported the the early 20th century and the machinations and one-upmanship of international intrigue. We did nothing else until we had seen all the episodes we own. Unfortunately, we can only find four of the twelve episodes.
It is excellent in every respect. A young Sam Neill was nuanced, complex, and fascinating to watch. The rest of the cast play their parts with gusto.
There are two scene which rang less than true. One was the one where a man commits suicide at a party and Nadia is splashed with his blood. The blood is speckled on her face, heavy on her neck and chest, but not a bit on her dress. She leaves to go to a restaurant in the same dress!
The other one that bothered me a bit was the hunting scene. Nadia trails behind the men in her long skirt, heels, and feathered hat. I have pictures of my grandmother on a hunting trip from that time period, and she was dressed out in pants, boots, albeit high heeled, a proper hat, and a long rifle. She looked as if she could actually shoot a "pig" or wild boar, as it were.
The way that Reilly dealt with women immediately made us think of Bond, James Bond, and we see that Ian Fleming readily admits that Reilly was indeed the prototype for Bond. Their is speculations as to whether he was a sociopath. I think the portion dealing with his half-sister should settle that question for anyone.
We have run out of episodes and don't want to leave Reilly yet. We wish we had the other eight. speedo58@juno.com
It is excellent in every respect. A young Sam Neill was nuanced, complex, and fascinating to watch. The rest of the cast play their parts with gusto.
There are two scene which rang less than true. One was the one where a man commits suicide at a party and Nadia is splashed with his blood. The blood is speckled on her face, heavy on her neck and chest, but not a bit on her dress. She leaves to go to a restaurant in the same dress!
The other one that bothered me a bit was the hunting scene. Nadia trails behind the men in her long skirt, heels, and feathered hat. I have pictures of my grandmother on a hunting trip from that time period, and she was dressed out in pants, boots, albeit high heeled, a proper hat, and a long rifle. She looked as if she could actually shoot a "pig" or wild boar, as it were.
The way that Reilly dealt with women immediately made us think of Bond, James Bond, and we see that Ian Fleming readily admits that Reilly was indeed the prototype for Bond. Their is speculations as to whether he was a sociopath. I think the portion dealing with his half-sister should settle that question for anyone.
We have run out of episodes and don't want to leave Reilly yet. We wish we had the other eight. speedo58@juno.com
The Libertine
(2004)
Libertine goes to the top of our list of greatest movies
11 March 2006
Warning: Spoilers
We saw "The Libertine" at its opening here in Houston last night. We found that the theater was practically empty when we arrived, but four men in hats arrived late. One of them, dressed in a poncho looked as if he might be Johnny Depp in disguise, but of course, that was not the case. The highest spectator count was 12, and three women left the theater before the end of the movie.
We thought that all the performances were outstanding. Of course, Johnny Depp is our all time favorite, but John Malkovich is our second favorite, and we thought he turned in a great performance also. In fact, all the actors were exceptional. Our main complaint was that some of the dialog was not understandable because of other noise in the scene.
We thought that the part where King Charles enlists Elizabeth to try to gain the detailsof Rochester's upcoming play but Rochester discerns the plot immediately and reads her a different version than the actual one was symbolic of the whole of their relationship, which really boiled down to a battle of wills between two people who lived only for their art.
In many ways this was a passion play about a man whose life was the opposite of that of Jesus, but who was just as tortured. There are some parallels, Elizabeth could be compared to Mary Magdalene, Alcock to another sinner Jesus told to go forth and sin no more. Rochester died at 33, the same age as Jesus. The scene where his mother burns his drawings and poetry, when he is on his deathbed and finds to religion were upsetting. If we wondered why he so hated his mother before, it was apparent then. It reminded us of how costly religion has been to art. His conversion led to his heroicdefense in Parliament of the monarchy which preserved the laws of succession and probably to the change in perception about his life work.
It is a movie that almost requires a second viewing because of its complexity.
If Johnny Depp doesn't get an Oscar for this one, we will never watch the Oscars again
We thought that all the performances were outstanding. Of course, Johnny Depp is our all time favorite, but John Malkovich is our second favorite, and we thought he turned in a great performance also. In fact, all the actors were exceptional. Our main complaint was that some of the dialog was not understandable because of other noise in the scene.
We thought that the part where King Charles enlists Elizabeth to try to gain the detailsof Rochester's upcoming play but Rochester discerns the plot immediately and reads her a different version than the actual one was symbolic of the whole of their relationship, which really boiled down to a battle of wills between two people who lived only for their art.
In many ways this was a passion play about a man whose life was the opposite of that of Jesus, but who was just as tortured. There are some parallels, Elizabeth could be compared to Mary Magdalene, Alcock to another sinner Jesus told to go forth and sin no more. Rochester died at 33, the same age as Jesus. The scene where his mother burns his drawings and poetry, when he is on his deathbed and finds to religion were upsetting. If we wondered why he so hated his mother before, it was apparent then. It reminded us of how costly religion has been to art. His conversion led to his heroicdefense in Parliament of the monarchy which preserved the laws of succession and probably to the change in perception about his life work.
It is a movie that almost requires a second viewing because of its complexity.
If Johnny Depp doesn't get an Oscar for this one, we will never watch the Oscars again
Eye of the Beholder
(1999)
Should have a higher rating
16 November 2005
The lyrics to the theme song are very important to the lead female character in the movie.
"Goodbye, no use leading with our chins This is where our story ends Never lovers, ever friends Goodbye, let our hearts call it a day But before you walk away I sincerely want to say I wish you bluebirds in the spring To give your heart a song to sing And then a kiss, but more than this I wish you love And in July a lemonade To cool you in some leafy glade I wish you health But more than wealth I wish you love My breaking heart and I agree That you and I could never be So with my best My very best I set you free I wish you shelter from the storm A cozy fire to keep you warm But most of all when snowflakes fall I wish you love."
Since I was familiar with both the Sinatra and the Streisand renditions of the song, and knew the words, I could understand what the story line was attempting.
This is the first movie about a female serial killer with which I am familiar , and I think for that reason it required a leap of understanding,because the lead female character was not one for whom we were likely to feel sympathy , and yet, she is hurt,vulnerable, complicated, and beautiful. The back story is that the young Joanna is abandoned by her father on Christmas. She falls under the influence of the Dr. Jeanne Brault, who is reminiscent of Miss Havisham in "Great Expectations",teaching her to distrust men. Dr. Brault considers Joanna her most brilliant student, hinting that lesbianism is involved in the attraction Joanna holds for Dr. Brault. This prepares us for a psychological warp. She desperately wants security, and makes good use of her beauty and intellect to obtain what she needs from men.
Stephen enters the story when he is assigned to investigate the disappearance of large sums of money from the accounts of a high official. His son has become involved with Joanna and is giving her money and expensive gifts. The "beholder" manages to catch them together, and photographs them. She observes that he has taken the photograph. It is at this point that the maxim that obsession, beauty, love, is in "the eye of the beholder", comes into play. She sees him as her guardian angel; he sees her as a replacement for his lost daughter and becomes obsessed with her, stalking her.
Joanna meets Alex,who meets all her needs: wealthy, intelligent, fatherly, kind, and most important, because he is blind, unable to see her as she imagines herself to be: incapable of deserving his love. She is genuinely happy and in love. Stephen shoots him. Joanna flees, but he pursues her, even in to the frozen barrens of Alaska, where she is reduced to working as a waitress. When she realizes that he is the one who took the photograph and has been the pursuer, not the angel,she flees, and has a car accident. She shoots him, not fatally. As he rushes to her side, she dies, saying, "I wish you love." Which is all she wished for herself. We are left to hope that her dying wish makes him realize that he was obsessing, not loving, that he was responsible for her death, and that he can make a change in his life.
I thought the use of scenery and costume, from the lavish days of the official's son and Alex to the impoverishment of Alaska, to the repetition of the Christmas theme, when the bad things happen to her, to Dr. Brault's ultimate act of love in warning her, and to have her hunted and dying like the frightened animal that she was within, in the frozen wasteland was very effective. I thought Stephen should have been played by an older actor, however, to make the obsessive transition from his lost daughter to Joanna more believable. But perhaps the makers meant to convey that Stephen was seeing her as the stunted child she was.
I knocked off a point for music which drowned out dialog. I found that the movie stayed with me long after I had watched it. I had not read the book, which I think was an advantage.
"Goodbye, no use leading with our chins This is where our story ends Never lovers, ever friends Goodbye, let our hearts call it a day But before you walk away I sincerely want to say I wish you bluebirds in the spring To give your heart a song to sing And then a kiss, but more than this I wish you love And in July a lemonade To cool you in some leafy glade I wish you health But more than wealth I wish you love My breaking heart and I agree That you and I could never be So with my best My very best I set you free I wish you shelter from the storm A cozy fire to keep you warm But most of all when snowflakes fall I wish you love."
Since I was familiar with both the Sinatra and the Streisand renditions of the song, and knew the words, I could understand what the story line was attempting.
This is the first movie about a female serial killer with which I am familiar , and I think for that reason it required a leap of understanding,because the lead female character was not one for whom we were likely to feel sympathy , and yet, she is hurt,vulnerable, complicated, and beautiful. The back story is that the young Joanna is abandoned by her father on Christmas. She falls under the influence of the Dr. Jeanne Brault, who is reminiscent of Miss Havisham in "Great Expectations",teaching her to distrust men. Dr. Brault considers Joanna her most brilliant student, hinting that lesbianism is involved in the attraction Joanna holds for Dr. Brault. This prepares us for a psychological warp. She desperately wants security, and makes good use of her beauty and intellect to obtain what she needs from men.
Stephen enters the story when he is assigned to investigate the disappearance of large sums of money from the accounts of a high official. His son has become involved with Joanna and is giving her money and expensive gifts. The "beholder" manages to catch them together, and photographs them. She observes that he has taken the photograph. It is at this point that the maxim that obsession, beauty, love, is in "the eye of the beholder", comes into play. She sees him as her guardian angel; he sees her as a replacement for his lost daughter and becomes obsessed with her, stalking her.
Joanna meets Alex,who meets all her needs: wealthy, intelligent, fatherly, kind, and most important, because he is blind, unable to see her as she imagines herself to be: incapable of deserving his love. She is genuinely happy and in love. Stephen shoots him. Joanna flees, but he pursues her, even in to the frozen barrens of Alaska, where she is reduced to working as a waitress. When she realizes that he is the one who took the photograph and has been the pursuer, not the angel,she flees, and has a car accident. She shoots him, not fatally. As he rushes to her side, she dies, saying, "I wish you love." Which is all she wished for herself. We are left to hope that her dying wish makes him realize that he was obsessing, not loving, that he was responsible for her death, and that he can make a change in his life.
I thought the use of scenery and costume, from the lavish days of the official's son and Alex to the impoverishment of Alaska, to the repetition of the Christmas theme, when the bad things happen to her, to Dr. Brault's ultimate act of love in warning her, and to have her hunted and dying like the frightened animal that she was within, in the frozen wasteland was very effective. I thought Stephen should have been played by an older actor, however, to make the obsessive transition from his lost daughter to Joanna more believable. But perhaps the makers meant to convey that Stephen was seeing her as the stunted child she was.
I knocked off a point for music which drowned out dialog. I found that the movie stayed with me long after I had watched it. I had not read the book, which I think was an advantage.
Damage
(1992)
Real Life
11 November 2005
Warning: Spoilers
I found "Damage" to be very authentic in its depictions. At the outset, the family seems perfectly normal, insular, self-absorbed, bored by lack of challenge and predictable patterns of action whether socially or sexually. The father is at that dangerous point in middle age, where so many men become disaffected with careers, marriages, children, past interests: The mother,whose true love in life in her son, which while not having reached the point of physical incest, is as obsessive as the father's later actions; the son, who grieves for a closer relationship with his father who knows he is second best in his wife's eyes; the daughter who is probably the sharpest one of all; the daughter's boyfriend with his headphones...all show the detachment so often seen in family relationships.
When the son introduces his sophisticated, unscrupulous girlfriend into the mix it is an impending train wreck . She is a serial man killer, probably once in actuality, we are given to believe, in the death of her brother, and figuratively many times, as warned by her mother to the father-in-law-to-be. She is the pursuer and Fleming is the pursued. She is emotionally cold but sexually insatiable. This is frequently the outcome of sexual abuse at the hands of a sibling.
The mood, scenery, and music were all well-orchestrated and the actors were all excellent. The wife's anguish is an outstanding performance.
Jeremy Iron's wonderful wreck of a face can convey dissolution better any other actor.
When the son introduces his sophisticated, unscrupulous girlfriend into the mix it is an impending train wreck . She is a serial man killer, probably once in actuality, we are given to believe, in the death of her brother, and figuratively many times, as warned by her mother to the father-in-law-to-be. She is the pursuer and Fleming is the pursued. She is emotionally cold but sexually insatiable. This is frequently the outcome of sexual abuse at the hands of a sibling.
The mood, scenery, and music were all well-orchestrated and the actors were all excellent. The wife's anguish is an outstanding performance.
Jeremy Iron's wonderful wreck of a face can convey dissolution better any other actor.
Tell Your Friends