P5 - Choice #2

This blog is going to be one of the more intense. I have watched two movies in the past weekend that have significantly changed the way I view my life. These movies are meaty. They get your attention and they don’t let you go until you go to bed that night.

The first one is Dancer in the Dark, a crime and drama thriller. The film made in 2000, starring the Icelandic singer Björk, is all about a woman who moves from East Europe to America with her young son. She expects that life in America would be like a Hollywood film, little did she know, it’s a lot different than that. It’s 1964 and Selma is in search for a cure for her son’s disease. He is at risk of suffering from the disease she currently has. The disease will inevitably make her blind. She works day and night to save up for the operation. She has the energy because she lives life through her love of musicals. When things get hard, she can escape to the musical world she believes exists, but only for a few moments. This film was extraordinary, the writing was some of the best I’ve seen, and Björk was brilliant. As the lead actress and main character Björk won best actress in the Edda Awards (Iceland), European Awards, and many others.

Jeff: You can't see, can you?

Selma: What is there to see?

The Piano is the next film I’m going to suggest. This film was brilliant. Starring Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, and Sam Neill, this film explores life in New Zealand during the 1850s. Ada McGrath, a mute woman, her piano and her daughter, Flora, are sent to live with Alisdair Stewart, Ada’s new husband. The two were arranged, which can only mean hostility. The wealthy landowner brings his new wife home, and she’s soon lusted after by a local plantation worker. Her new home is not what she thought that it would be, and things get worse when her husband forces her to give her piano to the neighbor, George. She is asked to give him lessons on her piano. Soon she learns that she can get her piano back from George, under a few conditions. At first, Ada cannot stand George but as the relationship progresses it turns into something very different.  The film is beautifully shot, well-acted, and edited perfectly.

Ada: [signing] I have told you the story of your father many many times.

Flora: Oh, tell me again! Was he a teacher?

Ada: [signing] Yes.

Flora: How did you speak to him?

Ada: [signing] I didn't need to speak. I could lay thoughts out in his mind like they were a sheet.

Flora: Why didn't you get married?

Ada: [signing] He became frightened and stopped listening.