45 Years

The film moved me. I stayed in my place for quite a while after the last scene of the film while credits were rolling. It finished abruptly and I had to adjust to the reality. It took a while. My attention was totally with the film from the first scenes, but I must have been simply spellbound at the end of it. Charlotte Rampling is really an exceptional actress; she has aged magnificently and with dignity. As one should; age with dignity, I mean. I did not know her early career, but looking at old photos she was extremely sexy and beautiful. It looks that she must have raised some eye brows and scandals. Now in her late sixties she is beautiful in a mature way and she can be sexy as well. A role model, really.

Before

and now

The film is about a 45 years relationship of Kate and Geoff. The couple is planning their 45 anniversary party. They are a happy couple. Geoff is a bit absent at times and Kate active and confident. Then, Geoff receives news about his first love body being discovered frozen in the icy glaciers. He withdraws into his inner world of memories. Kate is disturbed by the situation. Her confidence is slowly turning into concern and confusion. The story of her husband’s first love happened a very long time ago, but Geoff’s present preoccupation with the past surprises and bothers her.  She questions solidity of the basis of their long happy marriage. Can she really consider it a happy marriage? The last scenes of the film show Kate desperately lonely among friends attending the anniversary party and dancing in the arms of her love, Geoff. They dance to their music – Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

                             

For me 10 out of 10 for the film and both actors Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay. Oh, OK;  maybe 8 for Tom.

My personal experience is that we create image of people close to us so they meet our needs, fulfill our dreams and reflect our own values. If we are lucky and blind for sufficiently long time we can live happily ever after. Otherwise, we are faced with disillusionment. It may lead to pragmatically staying in the relationship or moving on hoping that the next relationship will be the happy one. Choosing life on one’s own is another option, not such a bad one, it seems to me.

There have been friendships and relationships in my life that I idealized and depended on. Not many happy endings, I must say, but I have experienced many happy years.  This is how I see it now. We travel though life together with somebody. Sometimes even 45 years. We are happy with our partners enhanced by our imagination. It depends only on how long they play their role well and how long they want to play the role of our ideal partners. Then some of us change the life travel companions… and so it goes. This seems a bit naïve but it happens to idealists before they decide to travel solo and only for short trips with some coincidental companions. I like this model. Some idealism is still preserved this way. 

Post Oscars musings

Finally Oscars are behind us. The decisions have been made. I got carried away this year with seeing maybe too many nominated films.  In fact I have seen many more films than I had intended. If I was not that enthusiastic I perhaps would not have seen either The Spotlight or The Big Short. As it turned out they had been two of my very favourite films. Then I saw 45 Years and now this is my absolutely favourite film. Still I would have been surprised if it got an Oscar. Maybe except for Charlotte Rampling. She was nominated for the best actress, but I somehow would not have expected her to win. I will write about the film in one of my future posts. The film moved me and made me think about human nature, life and relationships in particular.

My personal approach to films is hinged on their messages and psychological content. Aesthetics also have big value to me. I like to learn from films and clarify some complex life issues. I like to me moved, I appreciate subtle humour and  enjoy sharp, intelligent dialogue. I do not know much about technical aspects of making films.  I could not appreciate the fact that The Revenant was filmed only in natural light. After this year, however, I may extend my observations to some technical issues. Who knows?

I made very clear in my previous posts that I am not a fan of The Revenant. Just the opposite. I even do not like Di Caprio. I do not think Oscars should be given to recognize actors’ physical tortures. It was Di Caprio’s personal choice to play horrifically hard scenes. Was that dictated by his overgrown ambition? If so, this is not pretty. Just at the beginning of the film we are faced with the tremendously brutal scene of a bear mutilating the hero. This turned me off the whole film. I even did not have a chance to get to know the film characters and identify with any of them. I was not given a chance to like them or dislike them. I had to face brutal physicality and I coped with it badly so I may have missed more important aspects of the film.

I recently heard that The Revenant is a spiritual film. Coelho and Garcia Marquez  are mentioned as inspiration. Even if I missed the whole point, I am not going to see the film again. It was too painful an experience to repeat it.

I am very happy for recognition of my two favourites The Spotlight (the best film award) and The Big Short (the best adapted screen play).  And of course I am very happy that Morricone  got his Oscar for The Hateful Eight best original music score.

I have not seen The Mad Max or The Martian. For some reason I do not like fantasy or science fiction as a genre of literature or films. I tried to read some fantasy books and I even enjoyed it. Then it became all too much for me. It seemed to be an exercise void of value to me, waste of time really. Maybe time of appreciation will come later?

I have not seen The Trumbo or The Room. At least not yet. This means that my opinion on Oscars for the best actor and actress are not based on sufficient data. Nobody, in my mind, was really good enough. Maybe Eddie Redmayne? Maybe Kate Blanchett?

There are views that Eddie Redmayne played the role of Einar/Lili with only three facial expressions. A sharp comment and, to some extent, I accept it. Except for the scene when Einar realizes that in some way, deep down, he is a woman. This scene was played subtly and masterfully without help of the criticized faces.  Einar was scared, surprised and confused. The playful cloth changes suddenly become more… Great acting.