My Favourite Movies: Legends of the Fall

I saw this film almost by accident. It way back in the days before the near-by Multiplex was built and I was in the city centre shopping one Saturday afternoon. Not needing to rush home for anything I checked to see what was on the local 3 screen cinema (can you imagine? 3 screens!).

The only movie that looked even vaguely interesting was this one. I don’t think I’d heard much about it but I must have liked the look of it. Something like a cowboy film, I thought. Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins, I mused. It’ll pass a few hours….. I remember the cinema being mostly empty – just the way I like it. Then the music came up and I relaxed into my seat expecting to be moderately entertained. I’m not sure if it was what they used to do back then in 1994 but I was pleased to see that this movie had an actual story, rather than just enough plot to hold a series of action scenes together (as is today’s ‘fashion’). It all centre’s around Hopkins’s character Colonel Ludlow who, in disgust of the way the government and Army (of which he was part) treated the Native Americans, moved to an out of the way part of America to live in beautiful isolation. Things, however, did not turn out well. First his wife moves out after complaining of the harsh winters and the three boys grow up in varying degrees of wildness and wilfulness. Eventually the youngest, Samuel played by the childlike Henry Thomas, brings home a wife to be, Susannah played by the delightful Julia Ormond. Everyone, all three brothers and even the crusty old colonel is smitten by her beauty and raw innocence. Of course her very presence blows the whole family apart. Samuel is passionate and crushingly naive about what is happening in Europe during the opening months of WW1 and is determined to join up. His two older brothers join too though mostly to try and protect him. Again things do not go well and the two older brothers return without him. Susannah has stayed with Col Ludlow and when Tristan (the favourite middle son) played by Brad Pitt returns they start a passionate relationship much to the horror and disgust of the oldest son Alfred played by Aiden Quinn. But things do not turn out well….. So you see, an actual story with twists and turns, complications and random events, undercurrents, histories and unspoken emotions – well everything really, including the kitchen sink and a few helpings of bloody violence for good (or bad) measure.

Whilst not exactly being a complex film it does cover the lives of about 8-10 people over a number of years so you do have to pay attention. If you popped out for 5 minutes and left the DVD running you’d probably be hopelessly lost so you’ll need to pay attention. The characterisation is very good, especially the relationship between the three siblings and its fascinating to watch their reactions and interactions with and around Susannah who is like a pebble dropped into a fairly placid pool. Completely unintentionally she, just be her very presence, destroys the very family that she was invited into and has grown to love. Of course you will have realised by now that this is far from being a happy story. Some of the characters are happy for a while but they all pay a terrible price for their happiness. There is also no happy ending (I’m not giving much away here) over an accommodation with the past between the surviving members of the cast. They recognise life for what it is (a struggle against things we cannot control and often cannot comprehend) and take what they can from it and hope for the best. This film is unusual in my experience for the time it expends on character and the lives of a small number of people living reasonably ordinary lives (to an extent considering one of the brothers becomes a Senator) and coping with the various tragedies that befall them. It is I think a great film that has passed most of the world by. If you haven’t seen it and love a good, real, complex and heartfelt saga then this will reward a viewing. Put two hours aside from your busy day and lose yourself in this tale of love and tragedy.

Happy Birthday to Me.......! 54 today!

Cartoon Time.

Thinking About: Reading Plans

I’ve never really been one for planning my reading – or much else for that matter. If I saw a book I liked the look of I’d buy it and, eventually, get around to reading it. Having a ‘butterfly mind’ and an interest in almost everything (with the notable exception of sport) I would follow my passion of the week which would direct my hand to whatever was near the top of my nearest ‘To Read Pile’. In other words my reading pattern was an undirected drift. Of course most of the time this didn’t really matter. After all I was mostly reading for entertainment and to pass the time. Occasionally I would read something useful or memorable but such things were far more by accident than design. But after some years (decades actually) I was becoming a bit bored with things. I begin feeling the need for structure – though not for a fully directed reading programme. That just wasn’t my style at all.

That’s when I started my ‘challenges’, though to be honest they haven’t proved to be all that challenging. What they have done, by reading 10 books with a common theme, is to both focus my attention and force me to unearth books that would otherwise languish at the bottom of the TBR pile forever unopened and unread. As a welcome side effect my boredom levels have decreased considerably – which is never a bad thing as I do so hate being bored. My present ‘challenge’ I started last week was to read 10 Alternate History books, so not really much of a challenge really! But only two books in it has prompted me to read yet another book that has been sitting on my shelves for some years which is, less than 30 pages in, already proving to be very interesting indeed. Next up, in recognition of a number of long term failures will be 10 books by women authors and 10 books by non-Anglo-Americans (basically books that have had to be translated into English – the only language I can read in).

I am also responding to my long term interests in non-fiction. As many of you will have realised I have over the last few years developed a deep passion for British and European history. I thought that I needed to restrict myself to a single continent, rather than the whole world, and my own seemed like the most logical place to focus on. Plus, of course, it’s always a good idea to know where you come from and where your roots are. It centres you in an ever changing and often confusing world. So expect much more of that sort of thing. As part of that, and with the 100th anniversary almost upon us, I’ll be reading quite a bit about WW1 and deciding for myself whether the right-wing or left-wing interpretation of events is closer to the truth. I have a fair idea of what the outcome of that particular investigation will be. Speaking of politics there’s going to be a fair bit of that in the future too – although ironically I suspect that most of that will actually be political history. My abiding interest has long been in revolt, rebellion, resistance and revolution. I’m not exactly sure why this is the case. Maybe I’m just a natural rebel and in another time or another place would have died on some barricade somewhere for one lost cause or another. At least I can read about the people who did so in years gone past and presently in places far away. Expect a lot more of that sort of thing being reviewed here. Oh, and if you had any dubts about my political leanings and, therefore, my political reading it’s definitely towards the Left.

I do recognise the fact that my science reading has been seriously neglected. It’s not that such things hold no interest – quite the contrary. I suppose that, in the grand scheme of things, they hold somewhat less interest than those already outlined above. Nevertheless, I shall attempt to shoehorn more science into my future reading. That’s certainly enough to be getting on with for now. I doubt if the major themes will change much in the next few years though I’m not adverse to the odd out of the ordinary passion popping up from time to time. For example, I’ve become rather interested lately in art and design. I wonder exactly where that might lead……  

Just Finished Reading: A War Like No Other – How the Athenians and the Spartans fought the Peloponnesian War by Victor Davis Hanson (FP: 2005)

Not that long after Sparta and Athens joined forces to defeat the Persian invasion they were at each other’s throats. I suppose that it’s the pretty much inevitable outcome of two regional super powers being geographically close to each other. Sooner or later one side will need to know who is better and attack the other. Sparta certainly felt threatened by Athenian expansion. There seemed to be a feeling of ‘now or never’ about the early invasion of Athenian territory but then Athens did something very sensible and very unexpected – they refused to meet Sparta on the field. Instead they stayed behind their high walls and basically ignored Spartan efforts to destroy their farmland. Instead Athens – under the rule of the great Pericles – decided to win (or at least draw) by avoiding hoplite combat all together or at least as much as possible. The hope of thereby shortening any war backfired – big time – by actually prolonging the conflict which eventually last 27 years. Whilst avoiding direct conflict both parties felt that the only way to prosecute the war was to attack their enemies allies, if these proved too hard a nut to crack it fell to those city states attempting to remain neutral to feel the full force of either Athenian or Spartan wrath. No one was allowed to remain neutral and thereby possibly side with the enemy. Resistance was seen as an act of aggression and dealt with accordingly. After years of conflict and hardening attitudes on both sides neither Sparta not Athens held on to the outmoded ideals of war. Both sides killed the innocent in increasing numbers, both sides enslaved whole populations or left their supposed allies or protectorate city states out on a limb (which was subsequently cut off) when the enemy arrived on their door step. Both sides sent in mercenaries to harry, terrify and kill the opposition miles from any front line. After decades of war no one and nowhere was safe – and still the war dragged on, year after year.

Hanson tells a story here in masterful tones. The story of two of the greatest military powers of the age at each other’s throats for a generation, the story of a conflict with few boundaries and fewer rules, the story of a conflict with eventually destroyed Athens and ironically destroyed the victorious Spartans shortly afterwards. This was indeed a war the like of which no one had ever experienced before. Gone were the honourable clashes of hoplite phalanxes replaced by swift and brutal attacks from light troops dropped off hundreds of miles from a battlefront to ravish and destroy coastal settlements. Gone was the idea of democracy versus tyranny replaced by a democracy coercing and brutalising other democracies into line and a military dictatorship preaching freedom. After a generation of war both sides where spent leaving room for the next leader of the unified Greek world – Alexander the Great.

How they fought rather than why is the focus of this book. As the author rightly stated there are enough great histories of the war itself without adding another to the list going over the same old ground. This fascinating volume rather goes into the sweat and blood of hoplite, cavalry and trireme combat with enough visceral detail to leave any attentive reader exhausted, stunned and bloodied. The author has a real talent of bringing things separated by over two thousand years into sharp focus that will remain with you long after you turn the last page. You will feel the impact of the enemies shield wall, hear the whistle of arrows and the strike of spears and stare appalled as the battering ram approaches. A superb work of ancient history and much recommended to anyone interesting in this truly fascinating period.

Cartoon Time.

As usual, as it's my birthday in a few days, I've designated April as Book Month here @ SaLT so expect even more book related posting than normal. I'm sure that I'll find enough items to amuse and interest most of you. Not to worry though - some of what I post in the next 30 days will have nothing at all to do with books or reading!

Just Finished Reading: Urban Shaman by C E Murphy (FP: 2005)

One her way back from her mother’s funeral in Ireland (long story) Joanne Walker is looking out of the window as her plane descends into Seattle when she sees a woman being hunted by someone with a pack of dogs. When the authorities refuse to believe her claim she jumps into a taxi and heads out to the dead-end part of town and finds the woman – thankfully still alive. Recovering from the ordeal in a local coffee shop she has quite a tale to tell, of ancient gods, the wild hunt and the end of the world. Before Joanne and the taxi driver can even start to think about laughing all hell literally breaks loose and, to cut a long story short, Joanne is fatally wounded with a very large sword wielded by a very annoyed deity – and that’s when things start to get strange. It seems that the Celtic god Cernunnos is looking for someone and if he doesn’t find her or a decent substitute in 3 days his bonds to the other world will be severed forever which is something really, really bad as the rest of the world is concerned. But it would seem that Joanne is the right person in the right place to stop it happening. It’s no accident that she is coping with the upheavals in her life as if she was made for this kind of thing – because she was. Now all she needs to do is figure out exactly how to use the sudden power coursing through her body without killing herself, those around here or the whole city by accident.    

I was kinda burnt out with Urban Fantasy but thought I’d try not to get back into it in a big way but to ease myself back into things. This was a borderline reasonable way to do so. Despite its very silly premise and even sillier plot it did manage to entertain enough without too many eye-rolling moments or sighs of exasperation. OK, there were a few but at the low end of acceptability for this sort of thing. OK, it was also largely by the numbers with the usual wise-cracking, highly attractive but strangely single, female thrown into the middle of things and finding that she’s the chosen one with weird ‘super-powers’ she’s only just found out about but that’s to be expected these days given the origin of much of this stuff (I’m looking at you Buffy Summers). There’s also the solid side-kick sounding board/straight man in the guise of a very open minded and bizarrely well-read taxi driver that nothing, and I do mean nothing, seems to faze in the least. One of the things I did find rather odd, and highly unbelievable to be honest (yes, I know the book was about Celtic gods trying to destroy the world but bear with me here) was the fact that, rather than hide her abilities and fight the bad guys in secret (as is normally the case) a lot of the action took place in plain sight and involved ‘normal’ people. Whether that is followed up in future novels I don’t know but it would be a rather difficult path to follow – if ultimately a very interesting one.

All in all this was, at base level, fluff. Rather entertaining fluff with some sparkling dialogue but still not exactly high literature. Far from the worst Urban Fantasy I’ve ever read it did keep me interested enough for a little over 400 pages which must say something. Reasonable.

Cartoon Time.