Another lovely sunset tonight, as our temps finally rise to more normal levels. It's been a cold two weeks, with more to come mid-week. But for now things are thawing here at the Homestead. We have no snow, unlike most of Ontario.
Taken from our front porch Saturday evening. No ice on the river yet. And no snow.While outdoor plants have finally gone to their winter resting places, our indoor plants are doing well. During the late summer of 2023 Deb saw a flowerpot on the road with red flowers. It had fallen off someone's truck or trailer. She went out and rescued it and we kept it outside, where it blossomed all autumn. It continued blooming over the winter, and we put it out again last summer. It nearly died, but one part of it managed to survive. I planned to leave it out and let it die when the cold came. However, when we returned from our trip in late October, the thing was blooming again. So it's inside with us for the winter yet again, and is full of flowers.
In movie news, we just finished watching Case For A Rookie Hangman, an obscure but restored Czech film from 1970, directed by Pavel Juracek. Try to imagine a Kafka version of Gulliver's Travels. No luck? Then I can't really help you much more. A very strange film. A man has a car crash and seems to awaken in another dimension or reality. He is a stranger and the people all have different customs, such as being silent on Mondays. The film reads much like a bad dream, or series of them, as the man visits not one but two strange worlds. He is off to see the third one as the film ends. It sort of reminds me of Iain Banks' novel "The Bridge." Not for everyone, but its strangeness makes it quite watchable. Once. No need for a special gummy for this film; it seems to provide its own.
Deb's leaving choice was Martin Scorsese's The Age of Innocence from 1993. Based tightly on Edith Wharton's novel, the film might be the director's best. Filled with beautiful costumes, sumptuous sets, flawless acting and endless minute detail, the story concerns 19th C. New York society. At the time it was doing its best to mimic high European and British society. With its strict moral codes, a man finds it impossible to pursue the woman he loves, after he has erred by marrying a lovely but vapid society girl. No matter how the story might have ended, either by going with the woman he loves or not going with her, the end result would be a tragedy. The scandal would have ruined the family if he had succeeded, but by not succeeding he has ruined his chance for a happy life. Filled with cynicism and sharp criticism of the rules of the game, the film is a breathtaking achievement. Only people who read novels would likely enjoy the film; it is long and fairly slow moving. This is a good thing, as there is so much to see and take in. A cinema triumph. Watch for the remarkable men in bowler hats scene, as a strong wind blows.
As a practicing animated filmmaker, Deb has access to a special channel that sometimes shows just released films. We watched Memoir of a Snail, a gut-wrenching story (definitely not for kids) from Australia. Released in 2024, it is all done using stop motion. The story concerns two emotionally bonded twins, a boy and a girl, who are separated when both parents die and placed in foster homes on either side of Australia. Though they write to one another, they seem destined to never see each other again. Both their lives are living hell, moreso the boy. There are many funny parts in the film, but the dramatic parts are quite devastating. The animation and sets are totally brilliant. The film often sparkles with wit, but when it has something to say (for instance, against religious fanatics), it pulls no punches. Highly recommended. I loved the film festival scene near the very end. Should be winning a lot of awards soon. Directed by Adam Elliot.
Before that came my leaving choice from last week. I chose three short films, two of which were watchable, whereas the third, alas, was not. What If is a 2012 film (they all were, actually), based on Kipling's poem of the same name. Aimed at trying to save a few boys from being in gangs, it stars Noel Clarke as a kind of guardian angel to a boy going through a difficult time on and around his estate housing. The second one was Mike Leigh's A Running Jump, a funny film about a man who hustles goods for a living, such as junk cars. He is a good character for a short film; in a feature film he couldn't be tolerated for any length of time. The third film is called Big In Vietnam. It is a film about absolutely nothing, and seems to wander from scene to scene with no plan in mind. Somehow we managed to sit through it (28'), I guess assuming that at some point it might make sense. Nope.
Sunday is scheduled to be a Detroit day, so I may be writing again soon.
Mapman Mike
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