glorious 39

Friday Flick:

First of all, the film has Bill Nighy in it. We are fans in our household, so he's enough for us.  The drama has a strong cast overall, led by Romola Garai's passionate performance, but all helping to illustrate the emotionally (and politically) contrasting time for the youthful main characters just before WWII in England. The camera work is lush and gently moves the suspenseful story along through a rich English landscape and into grand vacant interiors.  It's been twenty years since I've been in that landscape, and I found myself wanting to strap on some Wellies and walk through the screen right into it.  While a nostalgic depiction of the setting, the film treats wartime corruption with scrutiny and critique. 

The story surrounds a female lead who's personal discovery takes a dark turn into a conspiracy theory of the English upper class's conspiring efforts with Hitler to buy a version of peace for themselves.  Ultimately the film could have been smarter, I imagine with the cast, and faster like modern thrillers as critics have said rather than the slower, naive old-school unfolding that it is. In the end though, I think it is well done and the departure from common patriotic nostalgia into the shushed decomposition of wartime is worth exploring.

 

on the beach

This well-crafted 1959 post-apocalyptic fictional film is set in Australia five years into the future.  Posing a 'what if' scenario after a nuclear war, the film's main characters play out varying reactions to the tragic situation.  Based on Nevil Shute's novel of the same name, Stanley Kramer thoughtfully directs the story with elegant camera choices and long takes with stars Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Fred Astaire (very different from how you usually see Fred) and Anthony Perkins all performing at their best.

Even though the topic is obviously grim, I appreciate how the film maintains a sense of hope and confidence in humanity.  The complex sentiment felt appropriate for  marking Earth Week.  Kramer, the director, (known for other great films like High Noon - though apparently an uncredited Producer of it) is  quoted saying, "I'm always pursuing the next dream, hunting for the next truth."  I clearly felt his passionate pursuit in On The Beach. He also directed 14 different actors in Oscar-nominated performances in his career which is no surprise after watching this film.   

Here is a scene from the film.