At the end of summer

As September begins we feel shocked by the news that have hit the headlines recently. This summer will be remembered due to one of the worst migration crises that has ever taken place in Europe: desperate people who flee war conflicts which are tearing their countries apart are trying to reach European territory in search of not only the opportunity of making a living but the opportunity of staying alive. I didn´t intend to write about this on this post. I´d planned on writing about this summer´s last film releases: Paper Towns, The Fantastic Four, Mr. Holmes … and, of course, I intended to write about Venice and San Sebastián and about Emily Watson who will be presented with the Donostia Award – a lifetime achievement award – but just now I felt that I needed to mention the overwhelming reality that pervades  our news bulletins. Because we shouldn´t feel impervious to what is happening around us, don´t you think? Perhaps, that´s the problem, we have felt that way for a very long time until, last week, a harrowing image forced us to gain awareness of the terrible consequences of this crisis. The photographer who took the photo said that she was petrified but in spite of that, she felt that she needed to take it. I´ve written about the power of images very often because evidently they are the integral part, the defining element of cinematic language but images are also inextricably linked to journalism, in fact, there is even a type of journalism based on the use of photographs which is called photojournalism. Last year we had the opportunity of watching a film related to the influence of photojournalism. As you must remember, the story of the film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty pays tribute to the photographers of Life magazine who contributed to making American people aware of the most important events and conflicts of the 20^th and 21^st centuries. According to the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words” and it must be true, otherwise, how can we explain the impact that some photos make on us? It wasn´t until we saw that photo – the photo of a three-year old child lying dead on a beach – on the front page of well-known papers that we started to realize the bulk of this humanitarian crisis. We knew the data and the figures but that harrowing image spoke volumes about the plight of these people. Films help us to understand the world we live in and films helps us to broaden our minds, but they also help us to feel better and to escape from reality; however, sometimes, we need to face our daily reality so that we can change it. Going to the cinema and forgetting about current issues is good, enjoyable and even advisable but we shouldn´t forget about them completely, should we?

Goodbye to Omar Sharif

Last month we learnt about the demise of Omar Sharif, an actor whose name and work may be unknown to the youngest viewers. Omar Sharif, whose real name was Michel Demitri Shalhoub, died of a heart attack at the age of 83. He was born in Alexandria – Egypt – and he belonged to a well-off family; he had had an essentially European education which enabled him to get the role of Sherif Ali as the director of Lawrence of Arabia – David Lean – needed Arab actors who could speak English. Apparently Lean came across a photo of the actor and he was so impressed by the stunning appearance of Sharif that he called him immediately. Sharif had already made quite a lot of films in his own country and was already a star in Egypt but thanks to the role of Sherif Ali, he received an Oscar nomination and two Golden Globe Awards. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) became a worldwide success and David Lean offered him the leading role of his next film: Doctor Zhivago (1965). Omar Sharif, who was reluctant to play the role of an Arab in all his films, played the part of a Russian physician caught up in the Russian Revolution, a character portrayed by Boris Pasternak in his 1957 novel.  Julie Christie played opposite Sharif in this film and both made one of the most attractive couples on the screen. (By the way, the story is set in Russia but the film was actually shot in Spain, in fact, Lawrence of Arabia was also mainly shot in Spain.) Omar Sharif won his third Golden Globe award for his role of Doctor Zhivago in 1966 and he managed to play roles that were not only related to his Arab background but he somehow specialised in playing real-life figures such as Genghis Khan or Che Guevara. He worked with some of the most important film-makers during his lifetime and he took part in numerous films until his roles became increasingly sporadic. In 2003 he won the Cesar – the French equivalent of the Oscar – for his role of a Muslim shopkeeper who adopts a Jewish boy in Monsieur Ibrahim (2003). Paying tribute to Omar Sharif means recalling the epic stories of the golden age of Hollywood and realising how few actors are still witnesses of that amazing period. If you are not acquainted with Omar Sharif´s roles, I encourage you to watch Doctor Zhivago, or at least, to listen to its soundtrack, one of the most beautiful soundtracks in the history of cinema.

What about a British classic this summer?

Once more I need to write about the close link between literature and films because we can´t deny that without the influence of literature we wouldn´t have the opportunity of enjoying  gripping and engaging stories which enable us to discover new realities – contemporary, past and futuristic ones – realities, possibilities and experiences which help us to broaden our minds  or which are just pleasurable ones because that´s the point of watching a film, isn´t it? On this occasion, the Danish film-maker Thomas Vinterberg revisits Thomas Hardy´s Far from the Madding Crowd to make a new film adaptation of the British novel. Far from the Madding Crowd (1874) was Thomas Hardy´s fourth novel and thanks to it Hardy won widespread popularity as a writer. The title of the film will probably appeal to English-speaking audiences that are familiar with the work of the British author but even if we are not so acquainted with Thomas Hardy (1840- 1928), we can still be intrigued by a story written by the screenwriter David Nicholls and played by an outstanding cast. David Nicholls is a writer whose famous novel One Day (2009) was also made into a film. The novel gained very positive reviews and David Nicholls himself adapted his book into a screenplay; the film was released in 2011. Us is his last novel and it has won the UK Author of the Year Award apart from being longlisted for the 2014 Booker Prize Award, an award for novels written in English.

Even if the story of the film may be new to some audiences, I´m sure most cinemagoers already know the actress who plays Bathsheba – the protagonist of the story – as she has been part of the cast of very well-known films; she has appeared in Pride and Prejudice, The Greatest, An Education, Never Let Me Go, Shame or The Great Gatsby to mention but a few. Funnily enough, quite a lot of her performances are based on film adaptations of classic books, mostly British ones with the exception of The Great Gatsby. Can you guess who I´m referring to? If you´re thinking about a talented, young, British actress such as Carey Mulligan, you´ve  guessed correctly. I wonder whether Carey Mulligan has a real liking for the kind of literary parts that she plays or it has just been a matter of chance, maybe both things, don´t you think? Film-makers might have realised that she is especially good at playing these kind of characters and that´s the reason why she is offered this sort of roles… Just wondering, who knows? Anyway, if you feel like learning a bit more about the plot of Far from the Madding Crowd, you may have a look at the BBC website where you can find more information about it and the sypnosis which I have borrowed from its web page: “Based on the literary classic by Thomas Hardy, Far from the Madding Crowd is the story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan), who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), a sheep farmer, captivated by her wilful spirit; Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge), a handsome and reckless sergeant; and William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), a prosperous and mature bachelor. This timeless story of Bathsheba’s choices and passions explores the nature of relationships and love – as well as the human ability to overcome hardships through resilience and perseverance.”

As I´m in the mood for writing about British films, I´d like to recommend a film which I´m very fond of: What We did on Our Holiday. When it was released, it was compared with Little Miss Sunshine – in my view – a jewel of a film, perhaps not the shiniest one but a jewel nonetheless. The parallelism can be drawn because both stories centre on dysfunctional families but up to what point is the term “dysfunctional” valid in our present-day society? Obviously, there are more ingredients in the film that make those so-called dysfunctional characters endearing ones so I encourage you to go to the cinema so that you can discover a story which touches us in a very special way. 

 

David Tennant and Rosamund Pike are the parents of three children who are wonderfully played by Emilia Jones, Bobby Smallbridge and Harriet Turnbull. All the members of the cast offer us outstanding performances but I must draw special attention to the part of the Scottish actor and musician Billie Connolly – one of the UK´s greatest comedians – whose portrayal of a Scottish grandfather triggers off the plot of the story.

Have you watched any of the films that I´ve mentioned? Do you often enjoy watching film versions of classic books? Have you read any book by Thomas Hardy or David Nicholls?

The sound of music

Most of us hadn´t heard about James Horner until yesterday , however, all of us are familiar with Titanic, Star Trek, Avatar, A Beautiful Mind, Braveheart, Willow or Cocoon  regardless of whether we are cinemagoers or not. In some cases, our knowledge of these films can be summed up in a few images or even in just one but this image is so powerful that it has become iconic of the whole story. If we stop to consider the relevance of that image, we can discover that its power results not only from the cast of actors or the importance of that scene in the plot but also from the music which accompanies the scene itself. In other words, when we think of Titanic, we are bound to think of Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio standing at the prow of the ship but probably in our mind, that scene is accompanied by the music of its soundtrack. The sound of music, the power of music is so magical that it permeates our memories whenever a memorable scene from a well-known film comes to mind. Words, images and music are part of the cinematic language and it is rather difficult to think about films without considering them. Of course, all of us are aware of the importance of the first two elements because without them it is impossible to understand films as we know them today but how do we react to the role played by music? Up to what point do we value and appreciate it? The work of composers is done “behind the scenes” but that doesn´t mean that it should be invisible: the power of music is as meaningful as the power of words but why do we learn the name of a wonderful musician when he dies? Shouldn´t we be familiar with it in the same way as we are familiar with the names of actors and film-makers?