Today I enjoyed my first full 2-hr. piano practice since my eye problems last weekend. The pieces are so large and require so much stretching that I have to go easy again for a few days. I am still trying to meet my memorization deadline of having four pieces in my head by next Wednesday. I plan to add two more pieces to memory in August.
It has been 8 weeks since Deb's surgery. There is still 4X that left to go, and her healing should be well advanced. About the time my piano program is memorized. She returns to physio on Thursday. We both saw doctors last week: I saw my M.D. and Optometrist on Monday, then my Optometrist again on Thursday. I am taking drops for another five days in the right eye. Deb had a regular check-in with her new M.D. We both seem happy with our G.P.s, and I've always liked my optometrist.
I'll try to do a quick film watching catch up here. We are currently amidst our fourth weekend film festival since signing on to the Criterion Channel. This time around we are watching a trio of b & w films from the 30s, directed by Alexander Korda. More on those at the end of the weekend.
Recently seen films include The Garden of Women, directed by Keisuke Kinoshita, a very long movie b & w film from 1954. It started out as a bit of a soap opera in an all-girls' college dormitory, but it soon evolved into something much better.
Garden of Women, a Japanese film from 1954.
The main conflict of the film is between the girls, who want freedom to live. The school keeps them locked up, their mail is read in-going and out-going, they cannot study after lights out, and having a boyfriend is definitely out. At times the film is hard to watch, as some faces need serious slapping. The film ends with a girl's suicide, with each side blaming the other. In my opinion neither the students nor the staff could really be wholly blamed for her death, as she was quite mad all along. A good film, and definitely worth a watch, despite the long running time.
The Hitch-Hiker is a silly noir film from 1953, directed and co-written by Ida Lupino. An escaped murder hitch hikes to escape, killing as he goes. For some reason he kidnaps two able-bodied men, but doesn't kill them. Instead, he keeps them at gunpoint for several days. they seem neither able to take advantage of him, nor escape, and it just gets dumber and dumber as the film boils itself away into the desert.
From 1953 and now showing on Criterion. This was the only American noir film directed by a woman.
The locales and cinematography are excellent. There is a lone Mexican policeman that is tracking the three men, and of course all the way through the film the viewer assumes that he will die in a gunfight at the end. However, the ending is pretty good, and definitely seems to have a woman's touch and instinct. The last five minutes are probably the best part of the movie.
Lastly comes a really strange and wonderful film called A Canterbury Tale. From 1944, it was written, produced, and directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
A memorable British film from 1944.
Sheila Sim is probably the freshest face and most "girl next door" film actress you could ever set your eyes upon. A stage actress, this was her first film role. Also giving a quite astounding performance is Sgt. John Sweet, US Army, starring as Bob Johnson, from Oregon. A small group of people come to know one another during war time in the village of Chillingbourne, along the Pilgrim's Road to nearby Canterbury. That is the main plot, and it works quite well. There is a silly sub-plot about the glue man, who pours glue on village women's hair if they are out after dark, in a twisted effort to keep them away from nearby soldiers, who are encamped nearby. We see rural England at its best, and we do eventually get to Canterbury and the cathedral.
A still from the film, a key scene featuring Sheila Sim and Eric Portman.
There are a number of short films attached to the Criterion presentation, including long interviews both with Ms Sim and John Sweet. There is also the amazing documentary called "Listen To Britain," made during the war, showing scenes and presenting sounds from Britain in the 1940s. Quite remarkable. The film is definitely worth a view, especially if you are watching the British version. We got to see parts of the American version, with a different beginning and ending, as well as shorter cuts in some of the scenes. Skip the American version if possible.
Mapman Mike
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