Two recent movies of note, both Deb's picks. From 1942 comes the revised version of Chaplin's The Gold Rush (1925). He dispensed with the title captions, instead choosing to use voice-over (his own). He also wrote his own score for it. In its original form that is one of the best silent films ever made. His does no real harm to it in the revision, but the voice over wears thin after a time. Highlights include anytime spent in the bush cabin, as well as the "dance of the bread rolls." We hadn't seen this in a while, and it was great fun watching it again.
From the leaving soon file Deb chose Lilith, a strange b & w drama starring Warren Beatty, Jean Seberg, and Peter Fonda, about patients in a high end sanitarium. Beatty is a war vet looking for a job with some meaning, and he falls in love with patient Seberg. Most people's distorted views about mental illness likely stem from Hollywood, and this film is no exception. It's a good movie, dealing with subject matter that most studios wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole (incest, lesbianism, patient/health-worker sex, and even pedophilia, though the young boys Seberg is attracted to are mostly reminding her of her brother, who killed himself after she pressured him to have sex with her. Fonda is good as a young man who needs constant approval in order to survive.
An early Flemish landscape print is on offer this time, from the DIA collection. I do not remember ever having seen this print on display. The subject matter certainly calls for a seascape of some sort, but certainly not the lavish background and detail presented to us. Gotta love those early Flemish artists!
In local Homestead news, practicing continues to go well. I am anticipating my 3rd recent lesson with Philip A. this Thursday morning, and hoping he will play some Beethoven for me, too. Deb has resumed work on her latest Yorick episode, his underwater adventure to rescue and render assistance to a fair maiden mermaid. Our weather has been quite warm and humid the past three days, and more storms are expected soon. The grass continues to grow as if it is early June, and cutting continues apace.
Aside from a family visit upcoming in August, it is now likely that no other travel plans will be made. Leaving the country will just create hassles for us right now, so local it will have to be. That's okay, too, as there has been a minor explosion of breweries and began restaurants that need visiting and revisiting. Jenn G. continues to report from B.C., where rain is nonexistent, humidity levels rival the desert of NM, and smoke is perpetually in the air. Sad times.
Mapman Mike
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