Last and First Men: The Movie

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.

Now showing on Mubi. 

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.

Now showing on Criterion. 

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.

Now showing on Criterion.  

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!

Leaving Criterion January 31st. 

Mapman Mike

 

  

London Weather Arrives In Amherstburg

Indeed it has.  After finally crawling out of the deep freeze, temps have rebounded to around 50 F, and not even going below freezing during the night.  One week ago it was certain death to be outside for any length of time, while today we managed a drizzly and warm long walk outdoors.  It felt like our past walks did in London during the month of November.  No snow or cold forecast through next week.  The coast guard ice breakers have been busy, however.  Last Thursday night the river was ice free, but by Saturday morning it was jammed up tight.  Early in the week a strong south wind drove the ice up into the shipping channel in the Detroit River, and several ships got stuck.  Everything is finally moving normally today, as the ice is rotting quickly now.  It's been an interesting week of weather; we no longer have any snow left.  

I am just finishing up my 14th novel for December.  It's been a good month for reading, with the usual amount of gems being stumbled across.  My next blog entry, likely the first one of 2023, will deal with material read in December.  Piano pieces continue to improve, though some of them very slowly.  I am once again trying to form a group of dedicated pianists to meet informally in the new year to try out pieces for one another.  Some of my audience these days is not that literate musically, though they do love and appreciate hearing classical pieces.  It's a different experience to play in front of colleagues, and in some ways more rewarding.  So we'll see if anything comes of that.  I am playing around with the idea of working on a major Beethoven Sonata, too, once the current set of pieces has been mastered and performed.  At first it would take up all of my daily two hour practice sessions, so it is a major commitment.

In viewing news, there are four films to report.  The first one is Isle of the Dead, from 1945 and starring Boris Karloff.  A small group of people have to quarantine on Bocklin's famous island, due to an outbreak of plague.  Superstition battles science, with Karloff siding with superstition.  The film has a creepy atmosphere and good cast, and the writing is fairly intelligent.  Black and white has never looked better, either.

Showing on Criterion for two more days. 

Ghostbusters Afterlife was released in 2021, and is great fun to watch, especially for fans of the original movies.  The granddaughter of one of the originals takes up arms against evil spirits in this very funny and somewhat scary hommage to Harold Ramis.  She is 12, and is aided by Podcast, who is also 12.  big brother also helps out, and his female friend.  By the end, the original boys are back for the final showdown.  Not to be missed!

 

Streaming on Prime Video.    

 

We rewatched Gattaca, a SF film from 1997.  We had not seen it in many years.  Ethan Hawke plays the part of an in-valid, someone who had a natural birth with no genetic interference.  He wants to become an astronaut, which is impossible under current rules, restricting upper level tasks to valids, those who have a much more perfect genetic makeup.  Lots of ethical questions arise from this film, and it was well worth seeing over again.

Now streaming on CTV. 

 

Next came Tokyo Story, from 1953 and directed by Yasujiro Ozu.  It is rated as #4 on the recent Sight and Sound best movies poll.  It is one very good film.  The story is very simple; elderly mom and dad visit two of their children in Tokyo.  The man is a doctor and the woman is a hair dresser.  Both are married, and the doctor has two boys.  Also there is a daughter in law, whose husband (youngest son) was killed in the war.  As it turns out, the two Tokyo children have no time to spare for the visitors, so the daughter in law takes them around Tokyo.  Upon returning to their hometown after their Tokyo adventure, mom becomes ill and dies.  Again, after the funeral no one has much time to spare for dad except youngest daughter, a teacher who lives at home, and the daughter in law.  Another son, a railroad worker, is also a busy guy.  Probably the best picture ever made about a typical family, this one happens to take place in post war Japan but could just as easily be transplanted to anywhere.  The themes, problems, and issues are all the same.  Everyone is busy with their lives once leaving home.  The acting is superb, the camera work outstanding, and the simple story will leave viewers with lingering memories for a long time to come.

 

Now streaming on Criterion.

 

We are currently amidst my Ozu 3-film festival.  The next two are earlier works from the 30s, one a silent film.  More later.

 

Mapman Mike

 

 

Daisies

No, the flowers of that name are not yet blooming, but soon.  An agreement between our next door neighbour and us leaves a strip of grass between our houses uncut until the daisies bloom.  They get about 18" high and make a beautiful little forest of flowers.  Once they go to seed the grass gets cut and that part of the yard goes back to being normal grass.  And as I discovered while reading a recent novel by John Christopher, where the phrase "fresh as a daisy" came up, that the original name for the flower was Days Eye.  They bloomed at sunup and slept the night, therefore giving meaning and origin to the popular phrase.  Just one of the many things one learns by reading science fiction.

Yesterday was a holiday Monday in Canada, as we joyously celebrate the birthday of Queen Victoria.  No, I didn't make that up.  Since long weekends don't matter much to retirees, especially ones under stay at home orders, we usually don't pay much attention.  But this year we took a day off, listening to music, gaming, and even baking cookies.  Really really good cookies.  Too good, I'm afraid.  This almond cookie recipe is now attached via magnet to our fridge for easy reference.

Tonight at 5 pm I am looking forward to a Facebook chat with Amanda.  I've heard nothing from her since we saw her at Christmas, other than the notice she posted of her father's death last month.  We'll soon know how her funky end of Toronto has been doing during this mess.

In movie news, my choice for last week was Variety, a 1925 film starring Emil Jannings, literally bug-eyed with jealousy.  Now, if you were a handsome male trapeze artist working with a husband and wife team, and you depended on the husband to catch you many times during every show, would you seduce his wife in secret and hope the husband never found out?  NO, I wouldn't mess around with her, either.  But one man does.  A very suspenseful film, filled with unique camera work and some crazy trapeze acts.  Criterion is showing a recently restored, flawless print.

 The restored version is showing on Criterion. 

Deb's choice was called Good Morning, a colour feature from 1959 directed by Yasujiro Ozu.  It's a light comedy about two young brothers who stop talking, to protest adults who talk for nothing, and to try and gain a TV for the household.  There are also endless fart jokes.  Aside from that aspect, this is a very fun and watchable movie, especially if Japanese home life seems like watching science fiction to you.  Small, impeccable sets, wonderful linear camera work, and many sly pokes at Japanese domestic life and getting on with very nearby neighbours makes this one a keeper.  The youngest boy really makes the picture special, however, with his cherubic chubbiness and emerging sunny personality.

 Good Morning, showing on Criterion in a beautiful print.

 Masahiko Shimazu adds much to the film's comedy.  Here he asks permission from his teacher to talk, using a sign language only he and his older brother know. 

It was supposed to rain all day Sunday, but we only had a brief shower.  It was supposed to rain all day Monday, but we only had a brief shower.  But it came down late Monday night, and we had 1.1" of rain in the gauge this morning.  There are some impressive amounts of water in our creek, and many areas of our county are either flooded today or under a watch.  Things are looking rather green out there, and soggy.

We continue to be baffled and greatly amused by the latest PC game we are playing together, called Kentucky Route 0.  We are currently in Part 3 of 5,and are sitting in a small theatre watching two plays performed simultaneously.  Weirdly beautiful, after our trip through the forest to find a doctor.  We flew on Julian, a giant eagle.   There are few real puzzles, as the game is based around exploring and conversations.

 2 screenshots from the magical PC game called Kentucky Route 0. 

Turning to the world of art, we will now examine a landscape painting that uses no lines, only dots.  Seurat used the science of how our eyes see colour to create his static view of life and nature.  In his Detroit canvas, he even includes the frame as part of his experiment.  This painting travels often, and seems to garner rave reviews wherever it goes.  It leaves me a bit cold, but it is true to itself and what it is trying to achieve.  I used to be fascinated as a child looking at comic books with a magnifying glass, and realizing that the entire comic art was made up on nothing but tiny dots, of very strange colours.  With Seurat we do not need the magnifying glass, but rather just to step back from it a bit.

View of Le Crotoy from Upstream, 1889.  George Seurat, 1859-1891.  Oil on canvas, 39" x 49" framed.  Collection Detroit Institute of Arts.

 Unframed view.

 Detail of the village.

 Detail of the church. 

It's my choice for a film tonight, and I have yet to choose.  Check back later for the exciting details.

Mapman Mike