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Owlwise's Replies
The only FACT in your post is that the movie is boring to <b>you</b>. Period. And you have every right to your opinion. But that's all it is: <b>your</b> opinion.
Now, your post might actually be of interest if you offered specific reasons as to why you find the movie boring & why it doesn't work for you. But I won't hold my breath waiting for such a post.
A superb movie, definitely the sort that no one makes any more, unfortunately. Wonderful character study, fantastic aerial stunts (no CGI back then, thankfully), thoroughly entertaining & also thoughtful at the same time.
Absolutely agree.
You know what you like or don't like. It's your personal opinion and you're completely entitled to it. But you can't expect everyone else to agree with it or you.
It's a more subtle, psychological sort of horror that steadily, implacably unsettles rather than the sort that blatantly shock the viewer. We're inside the psyche of a woman who may be disintegrating mentally as her own innermost fears & uncertainties take hold of her, or a woman who may well be seeing actual ghosts. There's room for both sorts of horror.
Or else you missed the point of it being about far more than just bureaucracy. Freedom, conformity, escape, control, inner psychology, individuality & identity, personal authenticity & modernity—these are just some of the ideas that the series grapples with—and the final episode is Surrealism, Theater of the Absurd, metaphor & allegory, all at once & beautifully done. <i>The Prisoner</i> is definitely of its time & speaks to its time, but in such a way that it remains timeless & relevant to this day. Perhaps even more so now.
The jollity of the zither is initially an ironic counterpoint to the darker story bring told. And then it becomes (deliberately) more manic & frenzied as the story gets even darker, becoming a macabre, cackling mockery of Holly's pulp novel notions about good & evil. The zither soundtrack is supposed to get on the viewer's nerves as the movie continues until it's practically unbearable.
But viewers knew that Ralph was all bluster there. And both Ralph & Alice knew it, too. She'd let him bluster for awhile because he needed to vent, but if he crossed the line, she'd let him know it in no uncertain terms. He'd back down immediately and realize that he'd made a dope of himself again. And he'd sincerely apologize, because he genuinely loved Alice more than anything else in the world, and she knew it. Please note that she never flinches or pulls back when he does that. She just stands there patiently, giving him a look that's already letting him know that if he goes too far ...
I recently found several albums by Dory Previn at the local Goodwill, from the early 1970s, including <i>On My Way to Where</i>, which includes the song "Beware of Young Girls" in detailing how she & her then-husband Andre Previn befriended Mia Farrow, only to have Previn have an affair with Farrow, get her pregnant with twins, and divorce Dory for Farrow. Dory had a nervous breakdown, was institutionalized for a few months, had electroshock therapy, and began writing her songs as a form of therapy. Of especially chilling interest is a confessional song entitled "With My Father in the Attic" about her incestuously abusive father. This led me to an article delving into this more deeply:
https://levine2001.medium.com/the-woody-allen-controversy-reader-did-dory-previns-song-lyrics-influence-mia-farrow-in-accusing-6cb1f83038fe
Of note here is the fact that Dory contacted Woody when the allegations came out & warned him that Farrow seemed to have taken all the details from that song. Farrow in her own memoir & in court testimony makes it clear that she was very familiar with Dory's songs, seeing as one was directed at her for breaking up the Previn marriage. Definitely food for thought!
I'm dreading the American remake of the Icelandic <i>Woman at War</i>.
It's Nuwanda.
That "slow and plodding" part of the original is what's called substance. And "never explained anything" means that the original didn't spoon-feed the audience like infants but instead trusted them to understand & appreciate that substance like adults. This wretched remake only emphasizes the point of the original: make the masses comfortably dumb and feed them as much trash as they want, and they'll be as compliant & controlled as necessary, lapping up their mindless action while never once stopping to actually think about their world.
That's definitely the impression I got.
It was a commentary on the illegal & immoral American intervention in Vietnam, meant to expose the lie of American "noble" intentions there. As indeed it did.
Kino Lorber Studio Classics has it available at $9.99 these days, complete with a commentary track by two film historians & an interview with the director.
It is the one false note in the film, because Ilsa is European & most likely would never use such an expression. Whereas an American, even a basically decent American, more than likely would at that time without giving it a thought.
Absolutely, brux. One of those people who spoke truth to power, a genuine patriot. Gratitude to a courageous life well-lived & thank you for your service to this country, Mr. Ellsberg. The documentary about him, <i>The Most Dangerous Man In America</i>, needs to be seen by everyone.
I think you're looking at this film far too literally. It's a secular/technological version of a classic archetypal theme: the Encounter with the Transcendent. When that beam of light from the heavens hits Roy, he's as changed & transformed as Saul of Tarsus becoming St. Paul, or Moses going up Mt. Sinai following the light of the burning bush. And he leaves his family (as his family has already left him) just as the young Prince Gautama leaves his family to pursue enlightenment & become the Buddha. All previous earthly concerns are now as straw. Ray has been chosen & called to something higher, and he <b>must</b> pursue it to the end.
Your three are all great choices. :)