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Category Archives: Film Analysis
Ageing and Bond OO7
I was told that in Skyfall the last Bond film Judy Dench has the role of a powerful old woman, M boss of MI6. I am still reeling from the excess of explosions, dead bodies, train, cars and helicopter crashes … Continue reading
Posted in Ageing, Film Analysis
Tagged Ageing, Bond, escapism, Judy Dench, M, OO7, Skyfall
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QUARTET (2012) : a work of art
My second film at the BFI London Film Festival. A most intelligent, sensitive, enjoyable film about old people. A work of Art. Further post when it is released. DO NOT MISS IT.
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Little Old Rich Ladies
The Brent U3A term has started. Another member of the group has taken over the monthly programming. The Lexi still advertise the afternoon sessions as “Hidden Gems” as if Senior Matinees would deter some viewers. To be fair when they … Continue reading
FACT AND FICTION – BEVERLY AND KIMBERLY – THE IMPOSTER AND THE CHAMELEON
I was curious to see how the mother is portrayed in The Chameleon (2010) based on Christopher d’Antonio Bourdin’s authorized biography. The film’s genre, is classified in IMDB as biography, drama, thriller. The title sequences state ‘Based on a True … Continue reading
Miss Marple and Mr. Stringer
During all these years of researching films featuring an old woman I have dismissed, ignored Miss Marple. Why? My immediate excuse was that the films had been made for TV and I had confined my studies to feature films. I … Continue reading
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ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER LIFE. ANOTHER FILM?
A difficult film, a very difficult film for me. When I saw it at the London Film Festival I disliked it intensely and that was the reaction of at least one member of the audience at the Lexi when I … Continue reading
Posted in Ageing, Ageism, Film Analysis
Tagged Another Year, counselling, isolation, lasting marriage, loneliness, Mike Leigh, physical ageing
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THE STRAIGHT STORY.
I decided to diverge from my choice of films featuring old women and offer our film group at the Lexi a screening of The Straight Story (1999). As I remembered, it was about an end-of-life serene journey and visually beautiful. I do … Continue reading
Caramel or Do You Think that you are the only one to live a lie?
When I first saw Caramel I loved it because I recognised my life in Beirut. I relished hearing Lebanese Arabic, the exuberance of conversations and the outspoken banter. It reminded me of the family waxing sessions when as I child … Continue reading
Posted in Film Analysis
Tagged beauty salon, Beirut, dementia, hair, periods, seamstress, waxing
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Late Bloomers (2011)
Oh dear. What can I say? Another film that is likely to divide audiences. But in this case as opposed to The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel which is a well-directed and structured film with great performances I will express what I … Continue reading
Posted in Film Analysis
Tagged care home, death, fear of ageing, grandmother, intergeneration, marital conflict, marital reconciliationo, separation
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Pather Panchali : Witch or Grandmother
Because of a mix up in dates by the cinema, the U3A audience at the Lexi was small but very appreciative. I had forgotten how woman-centered was Pather Panchali and remembered only the visual and music emotional impact it made … Continue reading
Posted in Film Analysis
Tagged aunt/niece relationship, death, family, grandmother, intergeneration, mother, mother/daughter, old aunt, old woman, representation old woman
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Gosford Park (2001)
A friend told me : “I have seen the film and did not like it. It was glossy and full of famous names and not a good whodunnit”. This demanding film with its overlapping dialogues when important information could easily be … Continue reading
Who is Mrs Henderson?
The U3A December screening at the Lexi was “Mrs. Henderson Presents”. It might be churlish to criticise a film that seems to be so ‘feel good’ and in which the actors had such fun performing. A film where the age … Continue reading
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Tagged film genres, film reception, judi dench, old woman, representation old woman, war
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Narayama, Dendera, The Lady Vanishes.
I met two women of our ‘Older Women in Film Group’ who had seen Ballad of Narayama and Dendera. Both had been horrified by the first film and disappointed by the second. It is in these circumstances that I wish … Continue reading
Posted in Ageing, Ageism, Film Analysis
Tagged Agewise., Dendera, heatwave, Hitchcock, Spy, The Balade of Narayama
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The Night of the Hunter (1955)
Good grandmother , bad Grandmother? Both the U3A and non U3A audience were very enthusiastic about this classic and the comments were mainly on its effectiveness in making us care about the children and experience the action as seen through their … Continue reading
The Salt of Life or Gianni and Women (2011)
Gianni e le donne. Literally Gianni and (the) Women. Gianni is on our screens again. Still drinking, but less than he did in Mid August Lunch, still a good cook, still at the beck and call of his mother. But … Continue reading
Posted in Film Analysis
Tagged Ageism, carer, daughter, family, gaze, grandfather, mother, old woman, positive ageing, redundancy, role reversal, still doing it, walking the dog
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Potiche (2010)
I will borrow the single word of David Denby in the New Yorker : Dreadful. I am just dumbfounded by the fact that such an inane film has had rave reviews from French critics as well as American and British … Continue reading
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My Afternoons with Margueritte (2010)
The end of term U3A session at the Lexi. It is difficult to assess if the film was appreciated by all to the same degree. Those who contributed expressed delight and loved the film. There were some reservations about the … Continue reading
The Queen of Spades ( 1949)
Apart from a few people who were familiar with the genre, the Lexi/U3A audience this time was bemused. There are many themes one could explore in the film based on the Pushkin novella: gambling, good versus evil, greed, the supernatural, the … Continue reading
Harold and Maude
The beginning of the Easter holidays and only 8 people turned up for the screening of Harold and Maude. The intimate atmosphere made contributions easier to make and all but one person talked. All but one had seen the film before … Continue reading
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Tagged Ageism, anticonformism, death, friendship, intergeneration, oldwoman/teenager, teenager
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Volver : women’s lives and deaths
The U3A screening at the Lexi in March was Almodovar’s Volver. The audience, as usual composed of a majority of women, greatly appreciated the film. This was expressed by lively contributions by many of them. There were general comments: idealisation … Continue reading
Posted in Film Analysis
Tagged caring, daughter, death, food, grandmother, group of old women, intergeneration, mother, old woman, supernatural
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Great Expectations (1946)
The showing at the Lexi this month was David Lean’s Great Expectations. It was very well attended; whether it was due to being half-term or to the film itself is difficult to establish. It seems that the non U3A attendance … Continue reading
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All About Eve (1950)
In my previous post I had planned a comparative study of Make Way for Tomorrow, Tokyo Story and Baghban. The deaths of two people close to me interrupted my schedule, but also made me reconsider my thoughts about the three … Continue reading
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Baghban
29th November, Last week the U3A Lexi group was introduced to Bollywood. Baghban (2003) lasted 3 hours and there was no time for a measured response. However, rushed comments were: I loved it, it was too long, very moralistic, what … Continue reading
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Sunset Boulevard (1950)
October 31st. After the Feminism in London Conference, learning how to manage the Older Feminist Website (www.olderfeminist.co.uk) and the consuming London Film Festival I can finally concentrate on Sunset Boulevard. As usual the majority of women who attended and they … Continue reading
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IN HER SHOES (2005)
Before I present films at the Lexi I read a great many reviews, and study the film screen by screen. The majority of reviews were favourable, but a few dismissed the film as superficial, made by robots etc… When studied, … Continue reading
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CLOUD 9 ( 2008)
June 3rd 2010 What are the factors that affect the reception of films? The literature on the subject is sparse. Stuart Hall’s model of dominant, negotiated and oppositional decoding of texts has often explained my personal reactions. Being aware of … Continue reading
Posted in Ageing, Ageism, Film Analysis
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Central Station (1998)
This month’s film at the Lexi was Walter Salles’s Central Station. The audience loved it. Contributions were very interesting and became more challenging after I proposed that it was a very male film. In my quest to find films where … Continue reading
Tokyo Story – What is the film about ? And who is in it ?
April 1st. 2010 These are questions I am asked by some people before they decide if they will attend our U3A session at the Lexi cinema. These two questions I find impossible to answer. Trying to describe a film in … Continue reading
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Alexandra part 3
February 13th, Before coming back to Alexandra I would like to consider the specifity and generality of the film. There are some elements that are not understandable unless one knows some details of the Chechnya war. Thus the behaviour of … Continue reading
ALEXANDRA looks
February 10th In Alexandra, Galina Vishnevskaya has a formidable screen presence which is effective even when it is not known that she was a great diva. Her acting is subtle but Sokurov gives us in this film a woman of … Continue reading
Old Age and Feature Films 