La Vie En Rose

I just finished watching "La Vie En Rose" the movie about Edith Piaf’s life. I loved it. Just fell in love with it. I am not at all surprised by all the awards this film has won. You’ve got to watch this one. I got it on demand from NetFlix.

Northfork

Northfork is a dreamlike film. It’s a town in Montana that died in 1955 when a newly constructed dam claimed the land. Things change and this movie is about a team of 6 men paired off into 3 groups that move through the mostly evacuated town of Northfork to hurry along those who have refused to move. The incentive is for each group of men to be able to say 65 residences were cleared. If they do they will be awarded 1.25 acres of lake front property.

This is a very strange film, but I really enjoyed it. It is about angels and how we are all angels. It is how you might not recognize an angel when one appears before you. Nick Nolte (our favorite weathered angel) is a priest in this story and ministers to a dying little orphan boy abandoned by his adopted parents.

It is the story of Erwin as he straddles life and death and how death becomes as interesting as living is. James Wood, Peter Coyote, Daryl Hannah and Nick Nolte are in this film

Northfork is a breath taking movie and I’m glad I watched it. I downloaded it from Netflix and watched it right on my computer. What a deal!

I would recommend it to anybody who would like to not only be entertained but to be prodded a little bit in a different direction. Where? Your decision, but I think you will be moved if you watch this film.

Central Station

We belong to Netflix and one of the goodies they offer is that you can also watch movies online. Last night I was farting around looking for something (they say they’ve got 5,000 movies available) to watch. I wasn’t coming up with anything. Last month I watched two seasons of Ballykissangel, a terrific BBC television show about a tiny village in Ireland with strong emphasis on village life and the Catholic priest who lives there. Based on our viewing habits and on the movies we’ve already chosen to rent Netflix comes up with suggestions for movies we might be interested in viewing.

The movie they suggested I watch last night is, “Central Station”. I’ve got to say this is a terrific movie. It’s in Spanish and has English subtitles. The story centers on a middle aged lady, retired from teaching school and who now, to make ends meet, sits in the railroad station all day writing letters for people. One lady who comes to her asks a letter be written to her drunkard of a husband saying his son would like to meet him for the first time. The son, a cute little 9 year old boy named Josué, has built his father up in his mind. The reality is the guy is a sot. In the boy’s mind the man can do no wrong.

The lady crosses the street and gets hit by a bus and the kid has nowhere to go. Dora, the letter writer, assumes responsibility for him and they both set out to find Josué’s father. The story might sound simple and uncomplicated but what you see is a woman opening up to help somebody and in the process becoming a better person. It’s a love story with a good ending.

This movie won all sorts of awards including several from the Berlin Film Festival. Fernanda Montenegro is absolutely brilliant and I’m really glad I watched this movie last night.