Ok, I promised you rambling, I've given it to you. Bad dark poetry- check. Rants about my phone company- that'll probably happen soon. So now, here are a few of my semi-regular movie mini-reviews. I like to talk in generalities about the themes, and not plot specifics. Can't stand movie spoilers!!! (One time, I was reading an LA Weekly article shortly after Million Dollar Baby came out, which I hadn't seen. The writer revealed the ending. Fire that hack!)
Anyway, I caught the afternoon matinee of Evening (ironic, huh?) It is a lovely story with the best casting of any film this year. Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Claire Danes, Toni Collette, and numerous others. The film is beautifully shot. The structure of the story reminds me of Titanic in a way. It deals with unrequited love, class distinctions, and absolution from sins of your past. It is a very wistful and touching story. The skill of the actors keeps it grounded without becoming sappy. I loved it.
In a strangely similar vein, I caught a new adaptation of Lady Chatterley last week. It also explores a story about star-crossed lovers. Like Evening, this film has striking imagery and cinematrography. The movie is cast with French actors and has subtitles. Proving that film is a visual medium, my viewing experience was hampered in no way by a language barrier. And, YES, it has sex scenes, ok? The story is more about emotional intimacy and exposing your inner self. I am not familiar with the novel upon which this is based, but this seemed to take a period story and superimpose a somewhat modern sensibility over it. Bump this story up several decades and you could have an episode of Desperate Housewives. "Lonely wife, neglected by emotionally distant husband, begins a secret romance with sensitive gardener." Like Evening, Chatterley demonstrates that underneath it all, everyone just wants to love and be loved.
I give both an A+. So make that a "Double A."
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