This atypical Christmas …

I suppose that we all feel that we are not living just our usual Christmastime. Most cities have put up their Christmas lights and decorations everywhere as if we kept on leading our ordinary lives and in a way we do so but at the same time we can´t pretend that life goes on as usual. Our everyday lives are now shaped by the social restrictions that are imposed on us, we must avoid meeting friends, especially the friends we haven´t seen for a long time and we must also avoid having family gatherings, both types of gatherings are typical of this time of the year.

I could write about other small pleasures we have been deprived of during this rainy and cold weather which is usually the festive season but I prefer to write about the comfort we can find in the cinema in order to counteract the consequences of this horrendous pandemic. Even if you don´t feel like going to the cinema – because it doesn´t matter how often others tell you that going to the cinema is safe, you must feel it yourself – you can always resort to a good story which is told from the point of view of a new or an old film-maker. It seems that the pandemic has made many people become hooked on films thanks to the numerous TV and digital platforms which are now available so a new way of watching films has become even more popular over the last months. The other day I read an interview with Isabel Coixet –  recipient of the 2020 National Film Award – in  which she spoke about this. She welcomed the idea but I couldn´t agree with her more when she said that the experience will never be the same, that is, going to the cinema is a complete experience which involves watching a film but goes beyond that. I guess that´s really what the term cinemagoer means, what´s the term for someone who enjoys watching films but never goes to the cinema? Is there a term for that? Of course, “cinema buff ”or “cinemaphile” or just “film lover” are inclusive or general  terms but I just hope we´ll continue to use the term “cinemagoer” in the future. 

If you decide to go to the cinema, you can watch one of the few releases of the last months: The Father, a film about living with senile dementia. It is a drama performed by two wonderful British actors – Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Coleman – and the subject matter of the film may be not appealing to you but according to reviews, if you can bear to watch a story which may resemble your family life too much, then the experience will stay with you.

 I hope you will invest in new cinematic experiences in the future – and not just in binge-watching at home – because it will endow you with lasting and vivid memories and life´s about memories. And above all, I wish you new ordinary Christmases in the future.

Merry Christmas and happy and healthy New Year!!

Christmas scene from Little Women (1994), one year ago we could watch the new version by Greta Gerwig in our cinemas.

Goodbye to Sean Connery!

 

“Cinema is a safe place”

Some of the people who were attending the 68^th edition of San Sebastian film festival were wearing face masks with the message “cinema is a safe place” because obviously the priority of the organisers of the festival was to make clear that cinema was a safe environment and the second priority was “to offer as pleasant a cinematic experience as possible”, which is the main aim of any film festival in the world.  Fewer attendees, fewer journalists, fewer spectators, fewer venues, fewer screenings, a completely different red carpet, a carpet without fans asking film stars for autographs or selfies… regardless of all that, the festival has been held as usual and that´s the best way of knowing that we´re really going back to normal. The 77^th Venice International Film Festival also took place at the beginning of September but the 73^rd Cannes Film festival which was to take place last May had to be cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic; that´s why José Luis Rebordinos – the director of the festival – can be pleased and even proud as they have managed to keep the spirit of the festival alive and make the public become interested in the films that have been shown in the same way as in the previous editions.

Rifkin´s Festival, which was shot in San Sebastián last year, was premiered on 18^th September. The Spanish actress Elena Anaya plays one of the main roles of the film and as she explained in a recent interview, Woody Alllen´s last film is a real tribute to cinema. 

This year Viggo Mortensen has been presented with the Donostia award. The American film star has also made his debut as a film director thanks to Falling, a family drama whose leading roles are played by Lance Henriksen and the actor himself, who also wrote the screenplay.

Perhaps you haven´t been able to attend the film festival but the films which have been premiered these days will be on at your local cinema very soon so you´ll have the opportunity of watching them if you feel like discovering other people, other lives and even other countries. As for me, I´m looking forward to watching Woody Allen´s new film, a film which was being shot while I was visiting the city.

 

These atypical days of summer

At the end of our summer holiday, we start to get ready for what lies ahead. Returning to our daily tasks or obligations – work, studies, projects of different kinds – is the usual thing at this time of the year. Most people are usually reluctant to do so; summertime tends to offer us a break from our everyday lives and very often, resuming our ordinary lives doesn´t seem to be such an appealing option. However, this year is completely different. I dare say that most people have discovered the true meaning of words such as “ordinary” and “normal”. The phrase “going back to normal” has acquired a new connotation: going back to normal is a great thing, going back to normal is what everybody is looking forward to. It may seem strange but all of us have found out that there is something extraordinary in leading our ordinary lives, full of habits and daily routines that we used to take for granted. Going for a walk, going shopping, touching the books of your favourite bookshop, enjoying a cup of coffee in one of the coffee-shops of your neighbourhood, meeting a friend regardless of the meeting point, meeting your classmates or your colleagues, attending a course, a meeting, a lecture, a concert or just going to the cinema … All those things, almost meaningless or even repetitive things of our everyday lives have proved to be much more important than we thought and in a way they are the scaffolding  on which we build our lives and without them our lives lack the necessary solidity.

These days we learn about the latest news in the different mass media and we get uneasy because by this time of the year we would have expected to have some reassurance that life was going to be different, which here means that life was going to be the same as before the day our lives changed for ever. TV and radio programmes as well as newspapers articles have been full of the same news items: the development of the pandemic and its effects on our societies, which are as worrying as the disease itself. The picture that we have in front of us is so dark that we aren´t allowed to see any light brushstrokes and when we needed them most we were deprived of many of the things that lighten up our mood. Cinemas, like so many places, were closed for a long time but when now they are allowed to be open again they remain empty in most places. We have stopped doing many of the things that we used to do and now we go back to the old ways but we do so slowly and carefully bearing in mind all the medical restrictions that have been imposed on us for our sake. Film studios and cinema owners are also afraid of making a loss if the new and most-awaited films are released so they are postponing the release of those films. What´s the outcome of this situation? Empty cinemas in most cities and small towns. Going to the cinema is associated with our spare time but it is also a cultural habit which is based on an industry, the film industry thanks to which many people make a living. I think that it is important to be aware of it – have a look at one of my old entries “It´s such a difficult business”(12^th October, 2013) where I drew attention to this fact.

I don´t wish to sign off without making reference to two important facts related to cinema which have taken place this summer: the demise of Olivia de Havilland on 26th July at the age of 104 and the birthday of Sean Connery who turned 90 last Tuesday . Even if it doesn´t seem so, the two facts are closely related because reaching such ages is a feat that we shouldn´t take for granted.

Olivia de Havilland starred in the role of Melania in Gone with the Wind and was one of the last icons of the golden age of Hollywood. She was also the winner of two Oscar awards for her leading roles in To Each His Own (1946) and The Heiress (1949).

Sean Connery, who will always be associated with the role of James Bond, turned 90 on 25^th August. In a survey carried out to seek the best portrayal of the character of James Bond, Sean Connery was voted the best actor, being Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan the runners-up. He won the Oscar award for his supporting role in The Untouchables (1987).