Friday, January 11, 2008
The Talk of the Town
This movie is playing this Sunday, 1/13 on TCM. I will probably be watching football, so I'll miss it then. However, it plays again on Feb 26th at 8 pm EST on TCM....until then, Ronald Colman.
Brief Encounter
As it turns out, I do recall having seen this film once before. I remembered the final scene preceding the telling of the story. David Lean was the director - no wonder the layout of the action of the film was so well done. His cinematography was evident as well. The opening scene of the train rushing through was very picturesque , such vivid black & white lighting.
It was also a interesting move to tell the story from Laura's point of view. The audience is pointed toward her face, her eyes, her emotions. You don't see Alec's face all that much; you see more of his profile. I liked Trevor Howard in his younger days. He plays " everyman" pretty well. I also like his Britishness. Trouble was, however, with the accent and speaking fast, I have a hard time catching everything that gets said. What I also liked was that the dialogue was efficient. It didn't beat around the bush, yet it was sensitively put together. Alec is quick to be candid and heartfelt with Laura. Their "smitten" stage of love reaches the boiling point in just the right amount of cinematic time.
To the comment " They were both tormented with guilt, yet they constantly brought it on themselves. The pain of separating was almost like their penance for their sin". I would agree, but she was more tormented than he was.
At one point, Alec quotes John Keats to Laura from his poem " When I Have Fears":
"When I behold, upon the night’s starr’d face,
Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance...."
I am sure he is referring to the painful anticipation that his passion for Laura was something not meant to be...as is the poem further describes...
"And think that I may never live to trace Their shadows,
with the magic hand of chance;
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour!
That I shall never look upon thee more..."
There isn't any guesswork in how it ends. The title is " Brief Encounter". The marvel of the film is in showing how they come to grips with the reality that they must never meet again. Just as the final moments come to a climax, there is the absurdity of the interruption by the tattle-taling female. Does that poor on more pathos or take the edge off of the pain?
Throughout, the theme is one of rushing here and there to catch a train, since they met and continue to meet in the train station. The subliminal message is " Haste"," Rush", like the flick of a cigarette lighter . Their affair is only destined for the " Spark", which is just as quickly snuffed out.
Laura loves her husband, and though she strays she realizes her happiness with him stands the test of this temptation "spark". The ending lines are designed to assure the audience that all has ended well:
" You've been a long way away"...." Thank you for coming back to me".
It was also a interesting move to tell the story from Laura's point of view. The audience is pointed toward her face, her eyes, her emotions. You don't see Alec's face all that much; you see more of his profile. I liked Trevor Howard in his younger days. He plays " everyman" pretty well. I also like his Britishness. Trouble was, however, with the accent and speaking fast, I have a hard time catching everything that gets said. What I also liked was that the dialogue was efficient. It didn't beat around the bush, yet it was sensitively put together. Alec is quick to be candid and heartfelt with Laura. Their "smitten" stage of love reaches the boiling point in just the right amount of cinematic time.
To the comment " They were both tormented with guilt, yet they constantly brought it on themselves. The pain of separating was almost like their penance for their sin". I would agree, but she was more tormented than he was.
At one point, Alec quotes John Keats to Laura from his poem " When I Have Fears":
"When I behold, upon the night’s starr’d face,
Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance...."
I am sure he is referring to the painful anticipation that his passion for Laura was something not meant to be...as is the poem further describes...
"And think that I may never live to trace Their shadows,
with the magic hand of chance;
And when I feel, fair creature of an hour!
That I shall never look upon thee more..."
There isn't any guesswork in how it ends. The title is " Brief Encounter". The marvel of the film is in showing how they come to grips with the reality that they must never meet again. Just as the final moments come to a climax, there is the absurdity of the interruption by the tattle-taling female. Does that poor on more pathos or take the edge off of the pain?
Throughout, the theme is one of rushing here and there to catch a train, since they met and continue to meet in the train station. The subliminal message is " Haste"," Rush", like the flick of a cigarette lighter . Their affair is only destined for the " Spark", which is just as quickly snuffed out.
Laura loves her husband, and though she strays she realizes her happiness with him stands the test of this temptation "spark". The ending lines are designed to assure the audience that all has ended well:
" You've been a long way away"...." Thank you for coming back to me".
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