Archive for March, 2009
The Third Man: The Waltz
” By Jove, by Jing, by Strauss is the thing…”
Or so the Gershwin tune goes. What else is just as delightful as “the free-’n'-easy waltz that is Vienneasy?” Why, the lovely lettering on ye olde sheet music!
The Third Man: The Cuckoo Clock
Mechanical Cuckoo from 1650
One of the most well-known lines from The Third Man was not written by Graham Greene, but was actually added by Orson Welles to fill an awkward pause in the middle of a scene.
“…in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love – they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.”
Oddly enough, the cuckoo clock actually originated in the Black Forest of Germany and not Switzerland, a point that the Swiss were quick to make to Mr. Welles.
Regardless of its origin, the cuckoo clock is not a simple time piece. It’s often a complex mechanism housed in an intricately decorated… um… house.
The Third Man: Zither
The zither looks like an overwhelmingly complicated instrument to play and I’m amazed at people who can master it. Apparently, in the late 1800s, there were zither clubs — full of people who could play this crazy-stringed instrument (some have more than 40 strings)! Members of German communities in America would gather to play music and drink beer. While these socials ended because of Prohibition and the anti-German sentiment that developed during World War I, they have since seen a revival at cultural centers and within the music community.
. . .
Just as impressive as the number of strings are the ornate features and the craftsmanship that goes into creating this instrument.
Tangent from: The Third Man
I’d forgotten all about the excellent opening credits to The Third Man until I borrowed the DVD from a friend and watched it again this week.
It’s the perfect introduction to the film. The zither score contributes so much to the tone of this movie and is far more versatile than I ever imagined. The Third Man is about an American writer who travels to Vienna to visit his old friend, but ends up investigating this friend’s death instead — all this to the sweet playfully melancholic sound of the zither. Like I said — versatile.
Other reasons why I enjoy this movie:
1) My infatuation with Joseph Cotten. We also share the same birthday, so I’m pretty sure that if fate did a better job of coordinating the year of our births we would have been an awesome match.
2) The sinister brilliance of Orson Welles.
3) The sharp and clever dialogue of Graham Greene.
4) The subtle and beautiful imagery of Carol Reed, reinforcing the emotion and mood at the core of the scene (a swinging door and a coat on the floor; fingers through a sewer grate; the twisted body of a teddy bear). I would frame the final scene if I could.
If you’ve seen this film, then you know that these are fairly obvious reasons and you understand why ‘The Third Man’ is now stuck in my one-track mind.
Third Man Theme by The Band
The Wife: Scenes from a Marriage
This is, undoubtedly, one of my favorite movies.
Ingmar Bergman’s Scenes from a Marriage is an examination of the relationship of Johan and Marianne, a married couple who, after 10 years of a seemingly happy union, sever their marital ties when Johan leaves Marianne. The separation forces them to develop strengths, face weaknesses, and forge an unexpected bond their marriage never offered.
Originally a six-part mini-series that aired on Swedish television, Mr. Bergman edited it for cinematic release. It was one of his more accessible projects, drawing the general public to their television screens, as opposed to the usual art-house crowd. Part of its appeal, of course, is that the subject matter is so relatable and the characters so real and engaging. It was easy for me to lose myself in this three hour film — the acting so amazing and intense, the angles and close-ups punctuating the sheer agony, joy, shock, anger, and heartbreak of this couple.
While there is a lot of raw emotion here, it is, after all, called ‘Scenes from a Marriage.’ It does include all the rote and mundane things that occur, and most times this benign scene is what is on display for the outsider. So fitting then, I think, is The Criterion Collection’s simple and beautiful packaging for the film’s DVD.
The Wife: Architecture In Helsinki
Joan Castleman’s thoughts on Nordic building designs are evident when she describes an acquaintance’s features: “…I was formally introduced to the president, a man of my age named Mr. Timo Kristian with a stern face not unlike Finnish architecture.”
She is clearly not thinking of the upbeat playful pop that is Architecture in Helsinki. One can see how the bright cartoon charm of their packaging, video, and photos is an accurate representation of their sound.
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The Wife: Finnish Art
When Joan Castleman lands in Helsinki, she is unsure what to make of the Finnish climate and lifestyle. It seems to me that there is something cool, peaceful, and magical about the Nordic-inspired.
The Wife: To Walk A Mile In Your Heels
There’s nothing like cross-dressing to give you some perspective.
Anyway, that’s what I enjoy about movies that involve playing dress-up. The protagonist develops: an awareness of his/her surroundings; an appreciation for his/her colleagues, peers, and companions; and an understanding of the other gender, as well as his/her self. Plus, it makes for good comedy.
The Wife: The Reader
Research conducted by the Orange Prize for Fiction some time ago asked the following questions:
- How important is the gender of the author in our choice of books?
- To what extent are particular authors’ books perceived as being written mainly for women, for men or for both and on what basis is this judgment made?
- Do books written by women have to ‘work harder’ to sell to men than vice-versa?
Their work resulted in the following answers:
“From the survey, men are far more biased towards books written by men than women are to books written by women. They are easily put off buying books if they judge the cover design or title too feminine, regardless of actual subject matter of the book. Women on the other hand are less likely to judge a book’s suitability from its cover and less inclined to label a book a male or female read.”
It also showed:
“Of the 20 books chosen for the research…only one title, High Fidelity, was considered a male read and nonetheless over 50% of the female respondents said they would be interested in reading it. Yet less than 30% of men would choose to read the books deemed to be female reads (12 of remaining 19) which include The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Tales of the City (both by men).”
So I wonder, did Mr. Hornby’s fan base, which clearly consists of a strong male presence, need much convincing to read How To Be Good? And did the cover designers take this into consideration?