Showing posts with label Art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Art. Show all posts
Friday, December 31, 2010
A Film You Must See
What makes a compelling movie? That is a difficult question to answer. The only thing I can do is look at films I have seen and can see over and over again. Then the answer begins to come into focus. The words responsibility and respect start to ring.
A compelling movie has someone who, no matter what his position or responsibility, must stand up and face challenges greater than himself and, while doing it, earns respect and also learns to give respect.
The King's Speech is such a film. It is the story of Albert, Duke of York, the second son of King George V. The Duke spoke with a stammer since he was a young boy. Inasmuch as he was the second in line for the throne, the stammer was more of a family and personal embarrassment than a national problem. He is fortunate in having a loving, devoted wife who believes in him. After exhausting just about every mainstream therapist, she finds a controversial one. His name is Lionel Logue. When the Duchess interviews Logue, she at first does not let on the true identity of her husband. When Logue finds out, he agrees to take on the Duke as a patient, as long as there is trust and equality between them.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Don't Dream It's Over
Pandora has yielded it's first reward for me.
A haunting melody sung by a severe and beautiful woman is the perfect antidote to the various poisons floating about.
This song, originally performed by Crowded House in the twilight of the Reagan era, is covered here by Sixpence None the Richer.
Where did they get that name?
A haunting melody sung by a severe and beautiful woman is the perfect antidote to the various poisons floating about.
This song, originally performed by Crowded House in the twilight of the Reagan era, is covered here by Sixpence None the Richer.
Where did they get that name?
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Some Film Glimpses of World War II
World War II has been the subject of many films over the years. It would take months to write extensively on the subject, so I thought I would just jot down some thoughts on some films that you may have missed.
Hollywood got into the fray even before the United States did, starting with “Confessions of a Nazi Spy” in 1939.
Hollywood got into the fray even before the United States did, starting with “Confessions of a Nazi Spy” in 1939.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
The Actors' Art
In one film, a group of Samurai defends a poor farming village. The warriors are led by a strong man-among-men leader whose strength and intelligence make him stand out among others. For the most part he leads with quiet dignity, but can be loud and forceful when he needs to be.
In another film, a doctor works in a slum, dealing with the human innocence and human scum. He is not the man he dreamed of being; the bottle became too important in his life. That is how he deals with the social decay he sees every day. While he can be kind, he is generally loud, vulgar, and often abusive.
A third film is the story of a man who lets life defeat him. To look at him, you know he is a broken man. Despite his position as a manager in a government bureaucracy, he is afraid of his own shadow. He stoops and shuffles through his day. To add another indignity to his meaningless existence, he finds that he is dying of cancer. At first he takes to drinking – something he has never done before. That does not help. After further searching, he finds meaning in his life: cleaning up the land and building a playground on what used to be a polluted swamp. People who know him are at a loss to explain the changes they see. The man dies half-way through the film – found dead at the newly completed playground. The second half of the film is filled with flashbacks from people at his funeral. The final flashback is from a policeman who stops by and tells that earlier in the man’s last evening that the man was sitting happily on a swing in the playground and softly singing an old song.
Three completely different roles. Each one would take a great actor to bring the part to life. But these roles were all played by one actor: Takashi Shimura.
In another film, a doctor works in a slum, dealing with the human innocence and human scum. He is not the man he dreamed of being; the bottle became too important in his life. That is how he deals with the social decay he sees every day. While he can be kind, he is generally loud, vulgar, and often abusive.
A third film is the story of a man who lets life defeat him. To look at him, you know he is a broken man. Despite his position as a manager in a government bureaucracy, he is afraid of his own shadow. He stoops and shuffles through his day. To add another indignity to his meaningless existence, he finds that he is dying of cancer. At first he takes to drinking – something he has never done before. That does not help. After further searching, he finds meaning in his life: cleaning up the land and building a playground on what used to be a polluted swamp. People who know him are at a loss to explain the changes they see. The man dies half-way through the film – found dead at the newly completed playground. The second half of the film is filled with flashbacks from people at his funeral. The final flashback is from a policeman who stops by and tells that earlier in the man’s last evening that the man was sitting happily on a swing in the playground and softly singing an old song.
Three completely different roles. Each one would take a great actor to bring the part to life. But these roles were all played by one actor: Takashi Shimura.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Photography...
What a stupendous invention. Yes, I'm secretly a B&W fan. But oh my, color can be so... vivid. A collection taken by Albert Kahn from the early 20th century.
H/T= 'Good Shit'
Friday, January 29, 2010
"Child Prodigies"
A genius in the making? Extremely mature art from a seven year old in England. If you'd like one of his paintings you'll be number 681 in line
Thursday, January 28, 2010
"Bad Apple"
"Bad Apple"
To my mind a highly creative animation film made from 6,657 black and white photographic stills. Though really I like the coloring of the blog Pink Tentacle itself as well. Crisply designed.
To my mind a highly creative animation film made from 6,657 black and white photographic stills. Though really I like the coloring of the blog Pink Tentacle itself as well. Crisply designed.
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