Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings & why the sea is boiling hot ...
This weekend I've been busy watching Veronica Mars and updating my Veronica Mars, Season 2: Thoughts and comments. Although I've only written up to 2x05 Blast From The Past, I've actually watched 2x06 Rat Saw God and 2x07 Nobody puts Baby in the corner (yeah a Dirty Dancing shout-out there). I'm going to watch Harry Potter this afternoon but before then I'm hoping to watch episode 2x08 which downloaded last night as I was in Doona Thrall. I have to say that much as I love writing the commentaries for Something Happens, it means that I find I'm no longer just 'watching' things quickly. It takes me quite a bit longer these days. Still, season 2 is getting really good and I'm really enjoying it ....
In looking at munchkin62's fabulous Aragorn icon, I was reminded of how much I miss having a Lord of the Rings movie to anticipate this December. :( I have written about this issue before, so I won't repeat it. I discussed it here:
I suggest you don't read the article or what I'm about to say next if you liked the movie :) I just remembered why although I think that The English Patient is a beautiful movie, the soundtrack is gorgeous and ginger001's icons from the movie are exquisite - I didn't 'like' the movie. I think it's because the 'love story' is so harmful, destructive and painful and the characters were all somewhat .... damaged. See I'm weird like that, I can still enjoy a whole bunch of different aspects of a movie even if I didn't like it. :)
From memory. I read the book first. I remembered being totally grossed out when I read the book because Almásy admits to having ingested Katherine's menstrual blood (ewww!!!!!):
I approached her naked as I would have done in our South Cairo room wanting to undress her, still wanting to love her. What is terrible in what I did? Don't we forgive everything of a lover? We forgive selfishness, desire, guile... You can make love to a woman with a broken arm, or a woman with fever. She once sucked blood from a cut on my hand as I had tasted and swallowed her menstrual blood. There are some European words you can never translate properly into another language. Félhomály. The dusk of graves. With the connotation of intimacy there between the dead and the living. (p. 170)
I don't consider myself particularly squeamish (hell I'm living in China) and I'm all for celebrating femininity but come on!!!! :)
In reading the above paper, I now discover that I was one of the many readers who didn't realise that Almásy makes love with Katherine's corpse!!!!!
The climactic Cave of Swimmer scene in the film leaves out a detail from the book, that many readers seem not to notice; indeed it is remarkable how many readers pass over this passage without taking it in that Almásy makes love to Katharine's corpse. The film's editing does not make clear that Katharine had been left in the cave not some few days, but three years. Almásy left her immobile and dying in September 1939, and returned only in 1942.
Double gross is all I can say!!!! The essay is fascinating but yes, I am now officially grossed out all over again :) Please don't hurt me :)
As I said before, ameliestar posted a Nameless But Very Interesting Post which I re-read a couple of times, so interesting do I find it. There's stuff in there about the death penalty and about Chinese cinema - particular women directors/producers. I couldn't stop myself and wrote another blathering post about non-frothy topics like punishment, justice and retribution.
Off I go to watch VM. :)
In looking at munchkin62's fabulous Aragorn icon, I was reminded of how much I miss having a Lord of the Rings movie to anticipate this December. :( I have written about this issue before, so I won't repeat it. I discussed it here:
- The post 'This Salon article about ROTK sums up my feelings perfectly!'
- A few Moulin Rouge / Lord of the Rings 'memey' and quizzy things and also includes a rather funny 'Fun things to do when watching Lord of the Rings'. Hee! I have to say, I love the: "Block the entrance to the theater while screaming, "YOU..... SHALL.... NOT..... PASS!" *laugh*
- In my Ummm it's late, my brain is fuzzy, in the bit about Sunday I talked about Return of the King and Lord of the Rings generally. I'm just sharing it in case anyone else is feeling forlorn as we come up to the time where there should be excitement about a LOTR movie :)
I suggest you don't read the article or what I'm about to say next if you liked the movie :) I just remembered why although I think that The English Patient is a beautiful movie, the soundtrack is gorgeous and ginger001's icons from the movie are exquisite - I didn't 'like' the movie. I think it's because the 'love story' is so harmful, destructive and painful and the characters were all somewhat .... damaged. See I'm weird like that, I can still enjoy a whole bunch of different aspects of a movie even if I didn't like it. :)
From memory. I read the book first. I remembered being totally grossed out when I read the book because Almásy admits to having ingested Katherine's menstrual blood (ewww!!!!!):
I approached her naked as I would have done in our South Cairo room wanting to undress her, still wanting to love her. What is terrible in what I did? Don't we forgive everything of a lover? We forgive selfishness, desire, guile... You can make love to a woman with a broken arm, or a woman with fever. She once sucked blood from a cut on my hand as I had tasted and swallowed her menstrual blood. There are some European words you can never translate properly into another language. Félhomály. The dusk of graves. With the connotation of intimacy there between the dead and the living. (p. 170)
I don't consider myself particularly squeamish (hell I'm living in China) and I'm all for celebrating femininity but come on!!!! :)
In reading the above paper, I now discover that I was one of the many readers who didn't realise that Almásy makes love with Katherine's corpse!!!!!
The climactic Cave of Swimmer scene in the film leaves out a detail from the book, that many readers seem not to notice; indeed it is remarkable how many readers pass over this passage without taking it in that Almásy makes love to Katharine's corpse. The film's editing does not make clear that Katharine had been left in the cave not some few days, but three years. Almásy left her immobile and dying in September 1939, and returned only in 1942.
Double gross is all I can say!!!! The essay is fascinating but yes, I am now officially grossed out all over again :) Please don't hurt me :)
As I said before, ameliestar posted a Nameless But Very Interesting Post which I re-read a couple of times, so interesting do I find it. There's stuff in there about the death penalty and about Chinese cinema - particular women directors/producers. I couldn't stop myself and wrote another blathering post about non-frothy topics like punishment, justice and retribution.
Off I go to watch VM. :)