ABCs at the Movies: The Doubles Round!

[oilgun]

IMDb lists the title as Les Glaneurs et la glaneuse... deux ans après not just  Deux ans après like on the poster.



IMDb Comment: Agnéz Varda enjoyed making her scavenger film so much she went out with her handi-cam and did it again. The whopping great distribution can't have slowed her down either.

One of the subjects says she shouldn't have been in the first one so much, so she minimises her presence - ineffectively because the winning, quirky first person author is still the star. Detail of the character who lives off garbage and runs in the Paris marathon is particularly intriguing. The insets of the first film, the hand made movie from the early years or the withered heart shape potato that got a mutter of recognition when I saw it, all liven up the film. I liked the second thought ending too.

These films are like spending time in the company of a great raconteur. The fact that she turned out to be possibly the most accomplished Nouvelle Vague director is a bonus. Hope she does another twenty.

==COMMENT RE:  The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu==

I had the misfortune of seeing Peter Seller's last film at the theatre!  It has to be the most embarrassing "last Film" of any career, lol!  Helen Mirren impersonates Queen Elizabeth in the film.  She did a good job even then!

Next:  H in 9

[Fran]

From IMDb:

This film covers the early history of post World War II educational films, especially those involving traffic safety by the Highway Safety Foundation under direction of Richard Wayman. In the name of promoting safe driving in teenagers, these films became notorious for their gory depiction of accidents to shock their audiences to make their point. The film also covers the role of safety films of this era, their effect on North American teenage culture, the struggle between idealism and lurid exploitation and how they reflected the larger society concerns of the time that adults projected onto their youth. Written by Kenneth Chisholm ([email protected])

Next:  "I" in 10

[MaineWriter]

IMDb credits this as a 2007, even though it didn't open until 2008...for about 20 minutes, apparently!



Next up: J in 11

[oilgun]

IMDb Plot Outline:A young woman creates the man of her dreams ... in the likeness of suave showband singer Des Smyth.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newtalent/filmmakers/just_a_little_bit_of_love.shtml

Next: K in 12

[southendmd]

King Edward VII at the Birthday Celebration of the King of Denmark (1902)

Edward VII

King Christian IX of Denmark


Next:  "L" in 14!

[MaineWriter]

Complete title: Let No One Put Asunder: The Legal Recognition of Same Sex Marriage in Canada (2004)



A documentary from Canada. Here is an interview with the director:

SEVEN QUESTIONS
Alexis Fosse Mackintosh
August 10 , 2004
Derrick O'Keefe

The 16th annual Out on Screen, Vancouver Queer Film and Video Festival, is currently underway. Billed as the city's premier queer arts event, it boasts over 200 films, workshops, forums and parties, running from August 5-15.

Alexis Fosse Mackintosh is the director of a new documentary, Let No One Put Asunder: the legal recognition of same sex marriage in Canada, which premieres on Saturday, August 14 as part of the festival. Notwithstanding her renown as a director and producer, Mackintosh is also the filmmaker who caught Randy White telling too much of the truth about the Conservatives intentions during the recent election campaign.

Seven Oaks editor Derrick O'Keefe spoke with her about White, the new film, and the state of struggles for gay and lesbian rights.

1) Seven Oaks: What was your motivation for undertaking this documentary project?

The motivation is pure and simple: human rights. This is the defining human rights issue of the decade and I'm a very strong supporter of human rights, and that's why I got involved.

2) What is the significance of the title, Let No One Put Asunder?

It's a phrase from the bible. It is what's used in the marriage ceremony, "what God has joined, let no man put asunder." It is one of those key statements about marriage, biblical marriage, and we thought that was important.

3) Do you see the results of the federal election as, in part, a vindication of ongoing struggles for gay and lesbian rights?

I think it can be seen as a victory for human rights, a victory for minority rights, a victory for really every Canadian. Freedom has to be freedom for everybody, and I think that's really what this is about.

4) Do you think similar breakthroughs will follow in other countries?

I think you are going to see it become an issue throughout the world. A gay marriage law was brought forward in England. The House of Lords shot it down because, well, they're the House of Lords. In Australia, it is going to be an election issue. They are trying to be sure that it won't be an election issue, but it clearly will be. It's an election issue in the United States. Germany is now recognizing some form of same-sex marriage. Throughout Europe we are seeing changes. Spain was being threatened by the Pope over the fact that they were going to enact same-sex marriage legislation. So I think you are going to see a change throughout the modern world.

5) You were the person who did the now infamous Randy White interview, where he talks about using the notwithstanding clause more frequently, and specifically against gay marriage. The release of the interview was a real turning point in the election campaign. How did you get the interview in the first place?

Randy White was a wonderful interview. I was very direct from the start. I said I was doing a documentary on same-sex marriage and that I wanted someone from the 'no' side who could articulate that position. He was very open to do that, he spoke very clearly and articulately, and he spoke the feelings of his constituency. He got 20 000 more votes that his nearest competitor. The people in the Abbottsford area really want him to represent them.

6) So what clearly hurt the Conservative campaign federally, might have helped Randy White in his local campaign?

Exactly, and I think that's one of the things people have to realize, that there really is a plurality of opinion on this issue in Canada. And Randy White represents a minority of Canadians. I think the latest survey says 57% of Canadians think same-sex marriage is a human right.

7) What do you see as the next frontier in terms of human rights for gays and lesbians in Canada and worldwide?

I think the next forefront issue is going to be equality for transgendered people who are very much a marginalized population. I think they need to be written into the human rights codes. And then, you know, changing the rest of the world. Some religions still don't let women in the ministry, there's a lot to be changed in the world. There are some places where women can't vote, some places where they throw you in jail because you are gay.

Next up: M in 15. Can it be done?

[oilgun]

I didn't even try for 15, sorry!

This is an amazing film starring Diving Bell's Marie-Josée Croze, before she moved to France.

From IMDb:
An imaginative tale that really grips you
The film opens with an apology to all Norwegians affirming that the film is based on imagination. If you dislike fish, you had best not watch this film for it is decidedly fishy from beginning to end. Indeed even the narration is given by a North Atlantic fish about to have his head lopped off in a fish processing factory. Not a pretty sight (quite ugly in fact) with the fish and the process worker all covered in blood.

I never dreamed that a fish would have a philosophic outlook on life and anxious to deliver prophecies such as "He who kills shall be killed" . Yes this is certainly an imaginative film...rather nightmarish in fact with its scenes of hallucinations and gore. Whatever next, you may ask. Let it be said, this film is never dull.

Misfortune they say never comes singly as Bibiane ( Marie-Josee Croze) soon discovers. In the depths of despair through most of the film, she finally falls in love with the son of the fisherman she accidentally kills. This is a strange turn of events. But then there are many surprises in this film. For example, would you dare ask a stranger at a railway station what you should do if you killed some one accidentally and no one else knew about it? Hardly. But there is an interesting twist to this later in the film. Indeed the film is all twists and turns and convolutions together with lots of fish and fishy smells and water everywhere. But after all this is a story taking place in Norway.

If imagination is a measure of quality, this film is it! Highly commended.





Next: N in 2

[Meryl]

[MaineWriter]

With Ann-Margret, Alain Delon, Van Heflin, and Jack Palance. Lots of nice San Francisco scenes, too.



Next up: P in 4

[southendmd]

Next:  "Q" in 5.