Suzanne
F/49
Woodinville,
Washington
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Posted:
Feb 11, 2007 7:44 AM
I love all the films that have been mentioned already, but I also adore "Far from the Madding Crowd" (John Schlesinger) because I love Thomas Hardy. The period detail is astonishing, and recapturing that vanished time must have been a true labor of love for all involved. Hardy's story and the perfect dedication that went into making it come to life are very moving.
The photography and music are gorgeous, and Julie does a fantastic job as Bathsheba Everdene. She's not the only actor who is great in it: Alan Bates, Peter Finch, Terence Stamp, and all the actors playing the rural characters who live in and around Bathsheba's farm in her little corner of Wessex are brilliant.
The old songs are so beautiful, like "The Bold Grendadier" and "Through Bushes and Briars." Lovely and sad. I haven't seen it in years, but the cruel rainwater draining from the church and flooding poor Fanny's grave, oh my god.
I also really like "Petulia, " a period piece of a different kind that captures the bright, sparkly San Francisco that I remember from early childhood (circa 1968). Lots of my favorite childhood spots are used so vividly, from the Japanese Tea Gardens to Fort Point to the little houseboats in Sausalito.
The story went over my head when I saw "Petulia" for the first time at about age 10, but now I understand the suffering and misunderstandings in the story and love it even more. Again, the gorgeous photography is by Nick Roeg. Julie is especially beautiful, and all the actors do a fantastic job.
The woman playing the doctor's ex-wife made a great impression on me at the time. I saw mothers of my schoolmates end up lost and broken, just like her, in the late 60s/early 70s, after their husbands took up with Werner Erhard or drugs or flower children, and these pathetic, scorned housewives were left spinning in the void and nauseous with vertigo.
Julie always does such wonderful work. It's hard to choose favorites. I like "Afterglow" a lot, too.
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