Springlike weather continues, though near the Detroit River it has been perpetually foggy. I haven't seen a ship pass by in days now, but they can certainly be heard. Foghorns are sounding nearly every minute at certain times.
In music news, I have succeeded in gathering a small group of performing pianists to meet occasionally to try out pieces on one another. So far there are 3 of us, but this could easily grow larger quickly. First meeting is tentatively scheduled for the morning of January 23rd. Looking forward to it!!
In further music news, we were able to locate a recent film based on Olaf Stapledon's 1930 novel First and Last Men. Conceived originally as a multimedia presentation with images, a narrator, and music, the film worked its magic for us from the opening shot to the closing one. The film and music is by Johann Johannson, from Iceland in 2020. He shot the incredible black and white (!) photography mostly in Yugoslavia, at a sculpture park in the mountains, and composed ambient music that is nothing short of alien and futuristic. Tilda Swinton narrates, speaking words of Stapledon's that give a sense of the final part of the book. There is no way that the entire book could have been filmed in one go. Johannson died shortly after the film was made, thus destroying any hope for more chapters from the most incredible SF book ever written. Now it has a suitable film companion.
We made some fun discoveries this week as a result of chasing down a copy of this film. One of them is a streaming service called Mubi. It is a good partner for Criterion, though this one does not have as large a library. Still, there are enough films now in our queue to keep us going for months, even if we stopped watching Criterion (which we hopefully never will). Another discovery we made was Spotify (I know, but we're old; these things take time for us). Here we found the album of music from the film, and have now hooked the computer via Bluetooth into our stereo.
We originally got into Spotify by reading a recent article in the Guardian. One of the writers has selected a different short piece of music to listen to every day in January, and in the article there is a direct link to the piece on Spotify. Except that yesterday's (the 3rd) was on Youtube, and it came with an accompanying animation. Fun stuff!! So we now have a long listening list awaiting in favourites on Spotify.
Getting back to films, I finished up my December Film Festival with two more by Jasujiro Ozu. Tokyo Chorus is a silent film from 1931 that follows the life of a young man. Seen first as a student in a military type school, he is later encountered as an insurance salesman who loses his job when he stands up to the boss over the firing of an older employee. There is comedy mixing with drama, and the picture is easy to watch.
Lastly came a 1936 film called The Only Son. Leaving his small village for Tokyo, a young man goes to seek his fortune. His mother has sacrificed everything to pay for his education. When she pays a surprise visit to him, she finds him married, with one child, and teaching night school. She is not impressed, until she sees him act kindly towards a poorer neighbour. She goes back home with good memories of her visit. Back at home, the young man has decided to continue his education so that he can get a better paying job. Ozu's films are always intelligent, and never stretch things beyond what might likely happen in a certain situation. He is excellent at establishing character, and at getting across emotions in people who are usually reluctant to show what their true feelings really are.
Deb's going away choice for this week was a Sam Fuller western called Forty Guns. It stars Barbara Stanwyck as a rancher with forty hired guns as helpers, and she mostly gets her way in the world. The opening scene, with Stanwyck riding hard and followed by her tribe, is very much like watching the opening to Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. The characters of both are very similar, too. A Federal marshal comes to town to arrest one of her helpers for robbing the mail. Things get tense, people get shot, and the bad guys stir things up. An unusual western, with Stanwyck doing her usual fine job in the leadership role. Unusual scenes include the outdoor town baths, complete with singer and guitar player, and dinner time at Stanwyck's ranch, among others. Filmed in b & w Cinemascope!
Mapman Mike
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