Song For Marion (2012)

Marion (Vanessa Redgrave) and Arthur (Terence Stamp) play a married couple, who love each other very much, despite being very different.  She is outgoing, cheerful – and terminally ill.  He is reserved, unable to show his feelings, and well…grumpy.  She is a member of a choir of pensioners known as the OAPz (with a ‘z’ to make it street, as explained by the choir leader Elizabeth, played by Gemma Arterton), which Arthur adamantly refuses to get involved with.  Is it too late for Arthur to change his mind and honour his wife’s wishes by becoming involved with the choir, and mend his relationship with their son James (Christopher Eccleston)?  Time will tell in this sad, but ultimately uplifting film.

I saw this on a whim, and expected to quite enjoy it – but I absolutely loved it.  It is by turns hilarious (the free concert in the park where the choir showcase their talents to the locals is so funny that I was crying with laughter) and heartbreaking (Stamp conveys so much feeling with just one look or one small gesture).

With a cast that includes Stamp, Redgrave and Eccleston, it will come as no surprise that the acting is truly excellent.  I was not familiar with any other films featuring Gemma Arterton, so I was not sure what to expect, but she was actually lovely as the young lady who is much more able to connect with the pensioners than people her own age.

People will sometimes describe a film as unbelievably sad, but this is better than that – it is believably sad.  Stamp and Eccleston are truly marvellous as the devastated husband and son of Marion.  Their heartbreak manifests itself as resentment, withdrawal and anger, and you just can’t help rooting for these people to find some relief.

I cried several times throughout, but the comical scenes complemented the sad ones perfectly, and as mentioned above, despite the subject matter, the film is really very uplifting.  Totally, definitely recommended.

Year of release: 2012

Director: Paul Andrew Williams

Producers: Christian Angermayer, Marc Hansell, Sean Kelly, Tara Moross, Alistair Ross, Ricky Sans, Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Ken Marshall, Philip Moross, Christopher Billows, Rachel Dargavel, Caroline Levy, Jens Meurer, Jona Wirbeleit

Writer: Paul Andrew Williams

Main cast: Vanessa Redgrave, Terence Stamp, Christopher Eccleston, Gemma Arterton

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‘The Snow Child’ by Eowyn Ivey

Set in Alaska in the 1920s, this story (based on an old Russian fairy tale) is about Jack and Mabel, a couple who move to live in a farm in a remote part of Alaska, to escape their pain at not being able to have children.  One night they create the figure of a small girl out of snow, and the next morning the snow child has disappeared, but soon a young girl who looks remarkably like their creation appears in the area where they live and befriends them, so that they become almost like parents to her.

I wanted to like this book.  I really did.  People recommended it to me, and I read reviews of it prior to reading it, all of which praised the book highly.  So maybe it’s me, but…it just didn’t grab me.  The writing was really quite lovely in places, but the whole thing had an air of detachment and isolation to it – I never really felt engaged in the story.  The detachment and isolation perhaps reflects the isolated location where the story takes place (and certainly the author’s descriptions of the snowy, remote and lonely place where Jack and Mabel are evocative and atmospheric), but for me it also had the unfortunate effect of me not really caring about any of the characters one way or the other.

I did prefer the parts with Faina, the young girl who may or may not be real.  However, there was a large part in the middle of the story where she is not present, and I found that that portion dragged.  As descriptive as the passages of Jack and Mabel’s work at their farm were, it seemed all quite repetitive.  The story picked up pace in the last 100 pages or so however, and I liked that part more.

Certainly I can see the value of this story, and the eloquence in the writing, and it is understandable that so many readers seem genuinely touched by it.  But unfortunately, it just wasn’t for this reader.

(Author’s website can be found here.)

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Penny Serenade (1941)

This 1941 films pairs Cary Grant and Irene Dunne, in one of three films they made together. However, whereas the other two (My Favorite Wife and The Awful Truth) are out-and-out comedies, this is more of a drama, with few laughs.

When the impulsive Roger and the more sensible Julie meet, they fall in love and get married – their happiness seems complete when Julie becomes pregnant, but tragedy strikes when Julie suffers a miscarriage. However, delight, happiness, and unexpected sorrow await the Adams, and we see them navigate their way through the joys and setbacks that life brings.

This is a strange film for me, because I really believe that Cary Grant did his best acting in this film and yet it is one of his least enjoyable films (from my point of view). The start of the film is interesting enough, where we see how Julie and Roger meet, and get together. However, after about the first 45 minutes, the film really started to drag, and although it is only a couple of hours long, it felt much longer! It was definitely what I would call a plodding film, but there is no denying that there were some genuinely touching moments. Without giving anything away, there is a scene where Roger is talking to a Judge, and this was very touching and filled with emotion. It certainly showed that there was more to Cary Grant than just the suave and charming gentleman which he played in so many of his films. Irene Dunne was also terrific, showing a real range of emotions. Also worth mentioning is Edgar Buchanan, as Applejack Carney, Roger’s friend who becomes a real support to the couple.

It’s such a shame – this film had the potential to be a gorgeous love story – and it certainly had its moments – but there were just too many scenes that added nothing to the storyline, and which slowed it down for me. I’m glad I saw it, but I won’t be rushing to watch it again. Despite showcasing the talents of both Grant and Dunne, this film just didn’t hit the mark for me.

Year of release: 1941

Director: George Stevens

Producers: George Stevens, Fred Guiol

Writers: Martha Cheavens, Morrie Ryskind

Main cast: Cary Grant, Irene Dunne, Edgar Buchanan, Beulah Bondi

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‘French Lessons’ by Ellen Sussman

This book covers one single day in Paris, when three French tutors each walk around Paris with their student for that day.  Sensitive poet Nico’s student is Josie, who has come to Paris to try and mend her broken heart.  Womanising Phillipe’s student is Riley, who has moved to Paris when her husband’s job relocated him there.  She feels lonely and disconnected in Paris, and even more so when she is with her husband.  Elegant and graceful Chantal’s student is Jeremy, the loyal husband of a movie star who finds his wife’s way of life too hectic and noisy for him.

The stories of the three tutors and their respective students are all told separately, so that the book reads more like three short stories than a novel.  Apart from the fact that the tutors all work for the same language school, and that relations between the three of them are complicated (Chantal and Phillipe are in a relationship, but his constant unfaithfulness led to her ending up in bed with Nico), there is little connection between the three stories, except that at some point in the day they separately end up at the same location.

As well as learning or improving their French language skills, each student – and certainly one, possibly two of the tutors – learn somethng about love, passion and loss. 

I wasn’t too sure what to make of this book – the cover image led me to believe it would be in the chick-lit genre, but I wouldn’t class this book as chick-lit.  It is easy reading, but there are some deep insights within the stories.  Paris itself is portrayed subtly but beautifully (with each story there is a map showing where that particular student and tutor walked).

There is some beautiful writing contained within the pages, especially in Jeremy’s story, while Riley’s story contained some sharp humour (and a fairly explicit bedroom scene).  However, as each character is only shown for a few hours of one day - providing little more than a snapshot - I never felt that I got to know any of them particularly well, and therefore felt unable to connect with any of them.

Overall, I would call this undemanding and enjoyable read, but I’m not sure that it’s one that will linger very long in the memory.

(I would like to thank Judging Covers for sending me this book to review.  Judging Covers’ website can be found here.  Ellen Sussman’s website can be found here.)

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The Country Girl (1954)

In this 1954 film, William Holden plays Bernie Dodd, director of a new musical who wants to hire Frank Elgin (Bing Crosby) to be the main character.  Elgin used to be something of a big star, but due to tragedy in his life has become an alcoholic.  Neither Elgin nor anybody else knows if he will have the commitment or ability to see the role through, but Dodd is determined to give Elgin a chance.  Elgin’s wife Georgie – “just a simple girl from the country” – seems to have too much control of her husband – and clashes with Dodd, who thinks that Elgin would be better off if she wasn’t there. But as the irascible director comes to know Frank and Georgie better, he starts to realise the truth behind their situation.

This is the film which controversially won Grace Kelly the Oscar for Best Actress – beating the favourite Judy Garland (for A Star Is Born – apparently there were just six votes between them).  I have often thought that Kelly is over-rated as an actress, but she actually is terrific here, playing against type.  It isn’t often that she looks frumpy or anything less than beautiful, but here she plays the weary Georgie Elgin, disappointed in life, disappointed in her husband.  She brings all of the character’s pent up frustration to the role and really sets her scenes alight.

Crosby is also great as the desperate Elgin – who wants so much to get his life back on track, but doesn’t know if he has the required strength to do so.  Holden really shines as the blunt but decent Dodd.

Terrific acting all round then, but still the storyline seemed a little clunky and disjointed at times – in the hands of three lesser actors, the film would not have worked for me at all.  The film is adapted from a play, and maybe the storyline plays better on stage.  However, the ending is somewhat downbeat, but still satisfying, and overall while this is not a film I would rush to watch again, I’m glad that I have seen it.

Year of release: 1958

Director: George Seaton

Writers: Clifford Odets (play), George Seaton

Main cast: Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, William Holden

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‘The House of the Wind’ by Titania Hardie

This book tells the story of two women, separated by centuries.  In Tuscany in 1347, 13 year old Mia hasn’t spoken a word since her mother died, and now lives with her loving aunt in a villa where they take in pilgrims and travellers.  One night a young couple come to them seeking refuge, and soon become friends.  The woman, Signora Toscana believes that she can help Mia find her voice again, but is hiding a secret of her own.  Rumours surround her, and Mia and her aunt have to try and help their new friend to a safe future.

In San Francisco in 2007, Madeleine Moretti is grieving after the death of her fiancé.  She throws herself into her work at a human rights lawyers firm, defending people who have developed illness through their unsafe workplace.  However, her own grief threatens to overwhelm her, and her grandmother sends her to stay with a friend in Tuscany.  There, Maddie grows to love the life and the people, and becomes entranced by the mystery of an old ruined villa which was destroyed centuries earlier.

Centuries apart, Mia and Madeleine will both have to find their way through their pain, to find a future for themselves…

There were so many good things to like about this book.  The writing itself flowed well, and was at many times really gorgeous (even if it occasionally trod the fine line between eloquent and too-flowery, with lines like “her eyes shone him an answer” or “she looked into her eyes and into her soul.”).

I also really liked both of the main characters – Madeleine (Maddie) sometimes seemed almost too good a person to be true; seemingly a character without the flaws that can make characters so interesting – but she was the kind of person that I knew I would like in real life.  Her grief for her fiancé was portrayed beautifully and believably and almost moved me to tears at times.

Mia’s story contained so much detail about life in Tuscany in the time period described, and I really enjoyed those parts of the story.  I also very much liked her Aunt Jacquetta – a modern woman in a world where women were supposed to be subservient and only have the opinions of the men of the time.

The separate but parallel storyline technique worked well; overall I probably enjoyed the historical narrative slightly more.

My only wish for this book would have been for the story to move along quicker.  At times it seemed so slow that it almost seemed to stop, and sometimes events happened which seemed to serve little or no purpose in the book.  I felt that it would have been a better ‘read’ if it had been tightened up – the same story told in fewer pages.

The writing was lovely however, and although this is the first book I have read by Titania Hardie, I would certainly look out for more work by this author.

(I would like to thank the publishers for sending me this book to review. For more information about Titania Hardie’s first book, The Rose Labyrinth, please click here.)

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‘The Year of Magical Thinking’ by Joan Didion

On 30th December 2003, Joan Didon’s husband John sat down to dinner, had a massive heart attack and died.  This book is Didon’s account of the year that followed - which she dubbed the year of magical thinking, because she spent the year thinking that John might return; for example, she refused to throw away his shoes, because she thought he would need them if he came back.

Just five days before her husband died – in fact on Christmas Day – John and Joan’s daughter Quintana was admitted to hospital severely ill with pneumonia, and it was not known whether she would live or die (in fact, she spent much of the following year in hospital).

Didion talks about her process of grieving, from the initial stage of denial, through stages of anger, and finally to a stage where she accepts that he is dead and will not be coming back.  She talks about how she avoids going to places where she went with John, as she tries to run away from happy memories which now make her sad, but how certain things will often and unexpectedly remind her of something John said to her, or somewhere they went, and she feels herself being pulled down into the vortex again.

I thought the writing was very eloquent, and although there are a number of technical medical terms which I did not necessarily understand – when she discusses the causes of John’s heart problems, which were known about before his heart attack, and also when she talks about their daughter’s condition – this did not mar the flow of the words.  some of the lines Didion uses are beautiful, and she certainly managed to put across how she was feeling.

However, as talented a writer as the author clearly is, I never really felt able to connect with her feelings on any level.  I sometimes felt that I just didn’t want to pick the book up, but that wasn’t because I felt empathetic towards the author, but rather because I knew that such sad subject matter might reflect upon my own mood.  (After finishing it, I longed for something light hearted or escapist to read.) 

Overall though I’m glad I read this book, and probably would, cautiously, recommend it.

 

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Photographing Fairies (1997)

Warning: If you are thinking of watching this film, DON’T watch the video clip above, as it pretty much tells the whole story!  I did try to find a clip of just the trailer, but incredibly was unable to do so.

This story is based on the novel of the same name, by Steve Szilagyi.  The book in turn was inspired by the real life events surrounding the Cottingley Fairy pictures.  However, the events shown here are fictional, and names and circumstances have been changed.

Toby Stephens is excellent as Charles Castle, a photographer who is devastated and loses the will to live after his wife dies on their honeymoon in 1912.  After fighting in Word War 1, he sets up a photography business, and is initially cynical when shown photographs which appear to depict two young sisters playing with fairies.  However, as he digs a little deeper into the mystery, he starts to question his initial disbelief and wonder if indeed fairies do exist.  His investigations take him to the village where the girls live, where he discovers that eating a specific flower slows down time and allows him to see the fairies for himself.  In exploring the phenomena further, Charles finds himself becoming obsessed with finding out the truth…

(If all this sounds slightly ludicrous, it’s worth remembering that many people fully believed that the Cottingley Fairy pictures were genuine, including none other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, who is also a minor character in this film.)

I loved this film…I confess I only initially watched it because I am a fan of Toby Stephens, but I soon found myself wrapped up in this lovely story.  It really doesn’t matter whether or not you believe in fairies (I don’t), because the story is beautiful enough to carry you away, at least for its duration.

The supporting cast were all excellent – Phil Davis as Charles’ friend Roy, Emily Woof as Linda – the nanny to the two girls, and especially Ben Kingsley who was magnificent in a very disturbing turn as an intolerant Reverend and the father of the two girls.  The Reverend despises Charles and his presence in the village, and his anger is pivotal to the plot.

Stephens depiction of a grieving man who feels dead inside, is touching and sad, and beautifully realised.

The film works is a lovely looking period drama, and makes lovely use of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, II. Allegretto, as a recurring piece of music throughout the film.  The excellent cast raise this from a good to a great film.  Unfortunately the film is nigh on impossible to find on DVD, and only pops up on television very rarely, meaning that it is largely unknown.  However, if you ever get the chance to see this magical poetic story, I would highly recommend it.

Year of release: 1997

Director: Nick Willing

Writers: Steve Szilagyi (book), Chris Harrald, Nick Willing

Main cast: Toby Stephens, Ben Kingsley, Emily Woof, Phil Davies

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Wuthering Heights (2009)

This review relates to the 2009 two-part adaptation of Emily Bronte’s novel, which starred Tom Hardy as Heathcliff, and Charlotte Riley as Cathy.  (Minor spoilers for the storyline may be contained herein.)

It’s taken me a long time to see this, I admit partly because of some of the negative reviews it received when it first aired.  However, I wish I had watched it earlier, because I really enjoyed it very much.  The story is of course very well known, but briefly, it concerns the love between Heathcliff and his step-sister Cathy – a love which was all-consuming, very intense, and affected not just the two characters, but all around them as well, leading to jealousy, revenge and tragedy.

Tom Hardy was excellent as Heathcliff – it was easy to see how someone could fall in love with him as a young man, before loss and ill-treatment by other members of the family caused him to turn bitter and angry.  He was charming and likeable, but he was also entirely believable as an older Heathcliff, determined to make Cathy’s family suffer for the misery they had visited upon him.

Charlotte Riley was lovely as Cathy – a beautiful young girl with a promising future, but who seemed destined for one path in life despite wanting to choose another.  The chemistry between the two main characters was easy to see (and it’s no surprise to learn that after meeting on this production, they became a couple in real life).

Support was provided by Sarah Lancashire, who was excellent as Nelly, Cathy’s maid (and subsequently the maid to Cathy’s daughter Catherine).  Lancashire is a really amazing actress, who always brings her roles to life, and she made a big impact in this show.  Additionally, Andrew Lincoln plays Edgar, who becomes Cathy’s husband, but never the true love of her life.  He is an actor who I sometimes find quite wooden, but he was very good here.  Burn Gorman played Hindley, the brother of Cathy who always resented Heathcliff’s intrusion in their lives, and he was superb.  He totally encapsulated the cruel and spiteful nature of the character, and made me dislike him intensely.

The whole production is very atmospheric – which I think is very important in any telling of this tale – and the Yorkshire moors where the story is set is portrayed beautifully.  There is plenty of emotion – love, happiness, anger, shock, grief – and it all makes for a very moving and enjoyable production.  And it made me cry!

If you’re a fan of the book (or even if you’re not), and haven’t seen this yet, I highly recommend that you watch it.

Year of release: 2009

Director: Coky Giedroyc

Writers: Emily Bronte (book), Peter Bowker

Main cast: Ton Hardy, Charlotte Riley, Andrew Lincoln, Sarah Lancashire, Burn Gorman

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‘Legend Of A Suicide’ by David Vann

This is less a novel, and not even really a collection of short stories.  Mainly narrated by a character named Roy, at different stages in his life, it is really a series of snapshots about Roy’s father’s suicide when Roy was a young boy, the events that led up to his father taking his own life, and the lasting effects it had on Roy,  Sandwiched in the middle is a longer story (about 165 pages) about an ill fated plan for Roy and his father to spend a year living on a very remote Alaskan island.  About two thirds of the way through this story is a twist that was so surprising that I had to re-read it to make sure I had seen the words correctly.  This twist didn’t fit in with the other stories at all, and actually confused me until I realised what the author was doing.

On the positive side, some of the writing in the book is eloquent and almost beautiful.  Other reviewers have likened it to the writing of Cormac McCarthy and I can see the comparison, although I certainly prefer McCarthy’s work.  However, as good as the writing is, I just felt that I could not connect with this book on any level, and actually looked forward to when I could finish it and put it down.  While I can certainly see how the longer story set on the remote island could pack a punch for some readers, I felt that maybe I was missing the point, and actually almost gave up on reading it (it was the only the fact that I hate not finishing any book once I’ve started that made me press on).

I hope that writing the book may have been cathartic for the author, whose own father committed suicide when David Vann was a young boy.  But for me, something just didn’t click, and all I was left with after finishing the book was relief that it was finished, and a general feeling of malaise.  It’s clear from other reviews I’ve read that some readers felt very moved by this story and it had a profound effect on some people.  Unfortunately, that certainly is not the case with me.  I’d probably hesitate to recommend this to anyone, but if someone did want to read it, I’d suggest that they have something lighthearted on hand to read afterwards.

(Author’s website can be found here.)

 

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