OUR FAVOURITE TOYS

“Child labor and poverty are inevitably bound together and if you continue to use the labor of children as the treatment for the social disease of poverty, you will have both poverty and child labor to the end of time.” - Grace Abbott

Poets and Storytellers this week has given us the theme of “Brothers and Sisters” to write about. I’m always struck by the huge size of families in countries where poverty is the rule. And yet it seems that those big families of many children are happy in their misfortune, and it is touching to see how the siblings look after one another with love and affection.

Our Favourite Toys

A hard life our lot, where every day is a struggle,
Where putting bread on the table is hard labour,
Where drinking water is never taken for granted:
A life that cheats death every day.

A hard existence, where everyone works
To eke out a living, and children grow up early,
To till the barren soil, trying to raise a meagre crop:
A life that gives pleasures rarely.

A poor man’s lot, where bitter food is eaten greedily,
Where hunger never goes away completely, and disease kills,
Where most children never get a chance to grow up:
A life of want gratefully stopped short.

Our favourite toys:
A ball of rags kicked stealthily, in between chores;
Worn plastic containers, no good for reuse,
Grabbed avidly, to make toy houses, cars and drums to beat:
In secret, while we steal a few moments to play.

Sticks, pebbles, twigs – and if you’re lucky –
An old bicycle wheel, to make of them whatever
Your boundless imagination desires,
Rubbish transformed into wondrous things;
And most precious of all:
Your kid sister a living doll to care for…

MIDWEEK MOVIES - LION

“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.” - George A. Moore 

We watched a very good film recently, and found it involving, heart-warming and quite poignant. Although the story was simple (and some would say, clichéd), the whole package of the film worked well: Screenplay, direction, casting, acting, cinematography, soundtrack, etc, etc. The theme of the movie is home and identity.

As individuals we all need to know who we are, where we come from, what “home” means. Adopted children searching for their biological parents is a story often told, and can be powerful enough on its own. However, add to that a lost child, who finds himself thousands of kilometres away from home to grow up in a completely different geographical, religious, cultural and societal environment and suddenly begin to be confronted by memories of a former life. Questions arise that need to answered and the quest for answers becomes a gnawing yearning and an emotional journey that can only be satisfied by the real, physical journey in search of the past. 

Lion (2016) Drama - Directed by Garth Davis; starring Dev Patel, Nicole Kidman, Rooney Mara. – 8.5/10

This is a movie based on the autobiographical book “A Long Way Home” by Saroo Brierley, an Indian who was adopted as a young child by a Tasmanian couple. In 1986, Saroo was a five-year-old child in India of a poor but happy rural family. The mother struggles to feed her children, and Saroo and his older brother help by stealing coal. On a coal hunting expedition with his brother, Saroo finds himself alone and trapped in a moving decommissioned passenger train that takes him to Calcutta, 1500 miles away from home.

Totally lost and disoriented in an alien urban environment and too young to identify either himself or his home to the authorities, Saroo struggles to survive as a street child until he is sent to an orphanage. Soon, Saroo is selected to be adopted by the Brierley family in Tasmania, where he grows up in a loving, prosperous home. However, for all his material good fortune, Saroo finds himself plagued by his memories of his lost family in his adulthood and tries to search for them even as his guilt drives him to hide this quest from his adoptive parents and his girlfriend. Only when he has an epiphany does he discover not only the answers he needs, but also the steadfast love that he has always had with all his loved ones in both worlds.

We thoroughly enjoyed this movie and recommend it most highly!

POETS UNITED - TEACHING

“I am indebted to my parents for living, but to my teachers for living well.” - Alexander the Great

“World Teachers’ Day held annually on 5 October, is a UNESCO initiative, a day devoted to appreciating, assessing, and improving the educators of the world. The real point is to provide a time to look at and address issues pertaining to teachers.” – Quite aptly therefore, Poets United has as its Midweek Motif “Teaching”. Here is my contribution:

For My Teachers

The words I write are full of gratitude,

Each rounded letter a thank you,

Each line a heartfelt appreciation

Of my teachers’ tireless persistence.

The pages I read are full of knowledge,

Each word a bird in flight,

Each phrase a new friend, a new acquaintance,

Met in distant places, wandering through fabled cities.

The books I read are full of pleasure,

Each page full of new-felt emotion and senses;

Each sentence a laugh, some tears,

Some gentleness, some fiery argument.

The verse I write is full of thought and heart,

Of pain and joy, of brain and soul, love, friendship.

I write and read, and with unconscious ease effortlessly

Take for granted this precious gift of literacy.

I thank my luck for this privilege, this gift of providence,

That I was amongst the chosen to experience

This mystery of written word, of imprisoned sound,

Of captured language and word-pictures.

The present of literature, the happiness of calligraphy

The indulgence of a memoir, the work of words,

The magic of communication,

This richness of script.

MOVIE MONDAY - STAND BY ME

“I spent my whole childhood wishing I were older and now I'm spending my adulthood wishing I were younger.” - Ricky Schroder

We watched an old favourite movie last weekend, one which we had watched more than 25 years ago, but it was watched again with pleasure and great satisfaction. It was the 1986 Rob Reiner movie “Stand by Me” with a screenplay by Raynold Gideon, based on the novella by Stephen King. It stars Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell, Kiefer Sutherland and Richard Dreyfuss.

The film is set in Castlerock, Oregon in the Summer of 1959. Four 12 year-old boys, Gordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern, are fast friends and as boys at that age do are seeking adventures and new experiences. When they learn of the general location of the body of a local boy who has been missing for several days and presumed to be killed by a train, they set off into woods to see it. Unfortunately for the four friends, the town’s bullies are also out to find the body for the same reason. This will lead to all sorts of trouble and it will also lead to the four boys discovering a lot about each other and themselves.

The film is about the pain and pleasure of growing up, it’s about the blessings of friendship and the heartache of loss – loss of people, loss of the sense of wonder, loss of happy times and loss of innocence. It looks at what makes us who we are and how our family, friends and foes can shape our character and so determine how we become the sort of adult we are. It is a coming-of-age movie and it is filled with nostalgia and the ache of how good some things used to be, even if they didn't feel good at the time we lived them.

The casting in this movie is inspired and every actor does a great job in bringing to life King’s detailed and rich novella. The leader of the four friends is Chris Chambers (River Phoenix), a strong boy who has to deal with how unfairly he’s been treated. Gordie Lachance (Will Wheaton) idolises Chris and he too has to deal with a “situation” at home since his brother died. Teddy Duchamp (Corey Feldman) is the renegade revolutionary whose war-wearied father has influenced him greatly. Vern Tessio (Jerry O’Connell) is the plump and nervous “tag-a-long friend” who plays an important role in the story. The leader of the older bullies is Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland), who plays a villainous role with great aplomb. An older Gordie (Richard Dreyfuss) narrates the film and we see here perhaps King’s autobiographical ruminations.

Running at 89 minutes, the film packs a lot of action, many a memorable scene, some wonderful dialogue, humour, poignancy and drama. This is a wonderful movie about kids, for kids, but not only for kids. It is a great example of how a movie can be made for children without patronising them and without assuming they are senseless idiots. If you haven't seen it, go find it and watch it!

MOVIE MONDAY - KRAKATOA

“We cannot stop natural disasters but we can arm ourselves with knowledge: so many lives wouldn't have to be lost if there was enough disaster preparedness.” - Petra Němcová

Sometimes you remember a film you saw when you were a child and the memory of it is so powerful and haunting that you can’t wait to find the film again in your adult years and re-watch it in order to savour those feelings you experienced the first time around. Of course, nothing is the same as it was the first time around, film watching included… We live, we experience more and more, we grow, we change, we become jaded, we see the world differently. No surprise when we re-watch that movie that we may be a little disappointed!

This was the case with the film we watched last weekend, which I had first seen as a child of 11 years. I remember then being completely overwhelmed and watching in awe, breathless with excitement and wide-eyed with amazement. The movie was the 1968 Bernard L. Kowalski disaster/adventure flick “Krakatoa: East of Java”, starring  Maximilian Schell, Diane Baker, Brian Keith, Barbara Werle, Sal Mineo, and Rossano Brazzi.

Krakatoa (Indonesian: Krakatau), is a volcanic island situated in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra in the Indonesian province of Lampung. The name is also used for the surrounding island group comprising the remnants of a much larger island of three volcanic peaks which was obliterated in a cataclysmic 1883 eruption, unleashing huge tsunamis (killing more than 36,000 people) and destroying over two-thirds of the island.

The explosion is considered to be the loudest sound ever heard in modern history, with reports of it being heard up to 3,000 miles (4,800 km) from its point of origin. The shock waves from the explosion were recorded on barographs worldwide. In 1927 a new island, Anak Krakatau, or “Child of Krakatoa”, emerged from the caldera formed in 1883 and is the current location of eruptive activity. Just to set the record straight, Krakatoa is actually located west, not east, of Java, a boo-boo that has haunted the film ever since it was released, being widely mocked in the critics reviews which were mostly quite scathing for the whole of the film...

The plot of the movie centres on the recovery of a valuable cargo of rare pearls from a shipwreck close the island of Krakatoa. When the expedition sets off the location of the wreck seems not be a worry as everyone believes that the volcano on the island has been dormant for around two hundred years. The eruption of the volcano in August 1883 will of course prove them wrong. The characters are the ship’s Dutch captain (Schell), his beautiful mistress (Baker) who is fleeing from an abusive husband and looking for her young son, from whom she has been separated, a drug-addicted diver (Keith) with health problems and his girlfriend (Werle), the British inventor of a diving bell (Leyton), an Italian father-and-son (Brazzi & Mineo) team of balloonists and four female Japanese pearl fishers, hired for their diving expertise. One of these girls becomes romantically involved with the younger Italian. By this stage you’d have thought the plot was already bogged down with too many subplots, but there is another one! The captain is forced by the authorities to take on a load of prisoners to be transported to Madura, which of course will cause problems later…

Needless to say, the eruption of Krakatoa and the subsequent catastrophe is what dominates the film. In an unusual approach to making the film, the producers of the movie had the special effects scenes shot before the script had been completed. The script then was written so as to incorporate the special effects sequences! Although now quite dated in appearance, the film’s special effects were considered impressive enough by 1969 standards for it to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects (it lost to the sci-fi disaster movie,  “Marooned”!).

Well, watching the film as an adult all these years later certainly made me aware of my age. The film was not how I remembered it and scenes that in that distant time made me feel awed and amazed now raised a smile or even a laugh. The film was utterly and completely demystified and its many shortcomings were blatantly obvious. There were plot holes, bad script writing, abominable dialogue ordinary acting and too much reliance on the special effects (used excessively and repetitively) to carry the movie forward.

So what was the final verdict on this film with a pedestrian, badly paced, and poorly told story and where the special effects were so constant and overwhelming as to become numbing? Well, we actually enjoyed it. First, because it was associated with nostalgia, second because it was a movie you could watch and take the mickey out of, having a laugh here and there, and finally because it revived memories of the old Hollywood (perhaps memories of Hollywood 1950s B-grade potboilers). Maybe if you will watch this film now for the first time you will run out of patience and stop watching it half-way through. Or maybe if you reduce the size of your expectations you may enjoy it too…

SUMMER JASMINE

“Out in the lonely woods the jasmine burns Its fragrant lamps, and turns Into a royal court with green festoons The banks of dark lagoons.” - Henry Timrod

One of the flowers I associate most with my childhood and my grandparents house especially is the Summer jasmine. The delicious smell of the flower-bedecked vigorous climber filled not only the garden, but also wafted into the house through the open windows at night. Even now I cannot smell the flowers and not be transported back to the carefree Summers I spent with my grandparents and remember the wonderful garden that they had.

Jasminum officinale, known as the common jasmine, is a species of flowering plant in the olive family Oleaceae, native to the Caucasus, northern Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Himalayas, Tajikistan, India, Nepal and western China. The species is widely cultivated in many places, and is reportedly naturalised in France, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Romania, the former Yugoslavia, Algeria, Florida and the West Indies. It is also known as summer jasmine, poet’s jasmine, white jasmine, true jasmine or jessamine, and is particularly valued by gardeners throughout the temperate world for the intense fragrance of its flowers in summer. It is also the national flower of Pakistan.

Jasminum officinale is a vigorous, twining, deciduous climber with sharply pointed pinnate leaves and clusters of starry, pure white flowers in summer, which are the source of its heady scent. The cultivation of this plant is so ancient that its country of origin, though somewhere in Central Asia, is not certain. In ninth-century Chinese texts J. officinale was said to come from Byzantium. Its Chinese name, Yeh-hsi-ming is a version of the Persian and Arabic name (alyasimin). Its entry into European gardens was most likely through the Arab-Norman culture of Sicily.

In the mid-14th century the Florentine Boccaccio in his “Decameron” describes a walled garden in which “the sides of the alleys were all, as it were, walled in with roses white and red and jasmine; insomuch that there was no part of the garden but one might walk there not merely in the morning but at high noon in grateful shade.” Jasmine water also features in the story of Salabaetto in the “Decameron”. Jasminum officinale, “of the household office” where perfumes were distilled, was so thoroughly naturalised that Linnaeus thought it was native to Switzerland. As a garden plant in London it features in William Turner’s “Names of Herbes”, 1548. Numerous cultivars have been developed for garden use, but also for cultivation in order to harvest the flowers and produce the jasmine oil absolute that is used in perfumery.

The essential oil of Jasminum officinale is used in aromatherapy. Jasmine absolute is known as the “King of Oils”, and its heavy, sweet scent is loved by most people. The flowers release their perfume at dusk, so flowers are picked at night and a tiny amount of oil is obtained by solvent extraction. The result is a very expensive oil, but it can be used in low concentrations so it is not that uneconomic to use it in products. The aroma of jasmine is described as calming and soothing without being soporific, and is indicated for depression and stress, as well as some respiratory conditions.

As a herbal medicine, the oil is used in dermatology as either an antiseptic or anti-inflammatory agent. Jasminum officinale L. var. grandiflorum is a folk medicine used for the treatment of hepatitis in south of China. It has shown anti-viral activity in vitro. This oil can cause irritation in some people if used too frequently or in high concentrations, so use with caution, preferably in low concentrations. A major component of jasmine is benzyl acetate (~25%), which is known to be absorbed through the skin and known to be an allergic sensitiser. Those who show allergies to spicy food, perfumes and cosmetics are most likely to react. However, the power of the scent is such that only tiny amounts are required anyway. Jasmine is also an emmenagogue (stimulates menstrual blood flow) and therefore should not be used during pregnancy.

In Arabic, “alyasimin” means “white flower”, which in turn embodies feminine beauty and temptation. In Asia, jasmine is considered a heavenly flower. In India, Kama, the goddess of love, strikes her victims with a jasmine-laced arrow. In the Western Language of Flowers, jasmine signifies amiability and can convey the message: “You are cheerful and graceful”.

Jasmine is considered to be a sacred flower in Asia. The Hindus strung jasmine flowers together to form garlands and presented then to their most honoured guests. A fragrant emblem of love, jasmine flowers are often entwined into bridal flowers at Indian weddings. This custom is said to promise the bridal couple a deep and lasting affection for eternity. Jasmine is known as ‘moonlight of the grove’ in India due to its ghostly pale flowers.

An ancient Indian myth of a princess who fell in love with the sun god Surya-Deva attempts to explain why the jasmine flower will only open its petals at night. According to the myth, the sun god rejected the princess’s love and she was so heartbroken that she killed herself. Her ashes were scattered to the ground, and from the ashes the beautiful jasmine grew. Since the sun god was responsible for her death, the jasmine flower would only open and release her perfume at night. Throughout history, jasmine has been revered for its aphrodisiac qualities, and known as a plant of love.

This post is part of the Floral Friday meme.

POETS UNITED - BEAUTY

“Were it not for music, we might in these days say, the Beautiful is dead.” - Benjamin Disraeli

Poets United this week has as its theme “Beauty”. Contributors are asked to share a poem where beauty speaks to the readers…

Sometimes a few notes of a song half heard while one is rushing past another car on the road, or when one changes radio station, a few fleeting notes, can bring back with great strength memories of the past. Vivid images that one thought were forgotten are quickly resurrected. A snatch of melody, that someone hums in the street, a few mumbled words of lyric are enough to rekindle flames amongst the cold ashes. Music speaks to our soul and the only way for us to answer is with our heart. When our heart sings, the melody will cause our brain to raise a white flag, defeated.

The Child in the Truck

The streets, empty and cold.
The morning, grey and cloudy.
The leaves of yesterday’s paper
Waltzing with the wind on wet asphalt,
While bleary-eyed the newspaper boy
Sourly announces a newer version of the news.

And I, serene, relentlessly introverted,
Listen to your rhythms
Leaving your melodies to wander aimlessly
In the deserted alleyways of my mind.
Your verses loiter, lingering
In room after room of grey matter
Proselytising from my memory
Images - pale, faded, ideal…

“Oh, my precious urban loneliness,
Grey-dressed, frigid sister,
How slowly you unravel round me!
You unsex yourself,
And in your newly muscular grip
You tighten your wily snares
To entrap me with no hope of escape.”

Bathed in the wan, grey morning light
That tiny child looks feebly, wide-eyed
Through the dirty window of the truck.
And in the stark beauty of waiting
Sits silent and alone, abiding
The inexorable loss of innocence.

A LULLABY

“Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.” - John F. Kennedy

Another of my short stories today, one which is unfortunately perennially current and relevant as mankind continues to go to war…

A  LULLABY

“Mama, I’m scared…”

“I’m here my treasure, I’m holding you.” Her voice gentle and her hands firm around the fragile little body that trembles against her racing heart.

“Mama, the walls might crash down on us and kill us…”

“The walls are strong, your grandfather built this house with his own hands. The walls have stood firm for many years now and they will be here for your children to grow up in.” Her eyes wide open, the whites shining in the darkness. The face haggard and dirty, every now and then illuminated by the flash of an exploding bomb. The small window in the basement that would not close fully was enough to let the fear in. The smell of death encircled them and the noise of battle surrounded them.

“Where is my father, Mama?” The little voice was shaky, the trembling of the little body in her embrace not only caused by the cold.

“Your father is helping injured people, my love. He is at the hospital, you know that.”

“Why do they want to kill us, Mama?”

“They do not want to kill us, my darling, they are bombing the bad people.”

“Was my friend next door bad?”

The woman closed her eyes and stifled a wave of emotion. She should not cry now. She should be strong. Strong for her daughter’s sake.

“No, our neighbours were not bad, just unlucky…” She hugged the child tightly. “They were hit by mistake as they were coming back from the market.”

There was a respite in the awful sound of warfare outside and the flashes of light gave way to an unearthly greenish light. The sudden quiet in the cellar was more foreboding to her ears than all of the unholy uproar previously. She shuddered to think of the future, yet that future was only moments ahead. The concept of ‘next week’ was something that had become foreign to her. To survive this day, to keep herself alive for her daughter, that was her only purpose now. If tomorrow dawned for them she could thank God and try her best to survive that tomorrow also.

“Mama, when is my father coming back?”

“Hush darling, you know he is needed where he is more than here.” Her voice was hardly a whisper and it took great restraint not to cry out the pain that was bottled up inside her for days now. She felt her heart beating and it seemed to her to be a hand grenade, ready at any moment to explode and devastate her whole being. Her husband would not come back, she knew that. Her daughter must not know, now.

“Is he helping the sick people?”

“Yes, my heart of hearts, he is at the hospital and he is operating on the injured, helping them to get better.” She embraced the girl and started to sing her a lullaby. A soft, peaceful sound that reverberated in the darkness and calmed herself more than the child. A lullaby that was sung to her by her grandmother and her mother. A lullaby that she wanted her daughter to sing to her own children when she had them. But that was light years away, the priorities of the here and now dictated otherwise.

The whistling sound of a bomb falling, a flash of brilliant light and an explosion were followed by more. The child started in her arms and screamed. These bombs were falling too close! Her blood turned to ice and her eyes closed as she hugged her daughter to her breast.

“Mama! I wish he was here now! He would protect us…”

“I’m here for you, my darling, I will not let them harm you, hush!” Her voice rang out above the sounds of explosions. The ground was shaking around them and the old timbers above them creaked. Showers of dust fell around them and the flash of the explosions illuminated them making them seem like a golden rain.

The house collapsed as if it were made of cards. Debris was hurled around the neighbourhood and the charred timbers pointed up accusingly as the bomber planes disappeared over the horizon. The village had been razed to the ground. Smoke billowed in dark clouds over slowly burning piles rubble and whimpers of the survivors under fallen walls were the only sound that could be heard now. Deep in a cellar a woman is quietly singing a lullaby clutching the child in her arms. She rocks her precious daughter in her arms amidst the ruins, and her tears stream down her face. The blackened skin of her cheeks is bleached as each hot droplet trickles down. Her voice breaks as she looks at the face of the lifeless child on her lap.

POETS UNITED - FATHER

“It is easier for a father to have children than for children to have a real father.” - PopeJohn XXIII

Poets United this week has challenged participating poets to write a poem addressing some aspect of fatherhood. This is in view of the upcoming celebration of Father’s Day in the USA. Here in Australia, we celebrate Father’s Day on the first Sunday of September. Nevertheless, the sentiments are the same never mind what the date of the celebration is! Here is my poem:

Father

A memory:
An album leaf in the book of images of my mind;
A beach, some blue,
The sound of waves breaking.
Bright sun
And the smell of salty water carried by the wind.

Above all else, a firm and loving hand
Holding me tight.

Never again have I felt so safe…

MOVIE MONDAY - SWORD & SANDAL

“Nostalgia is like a grammar lesson: You find the present tense, but the past perfect!” - Owens Lee Pomeroy

When I was a young boy, I remember every Saturday afternoon on TV there was a program called “Epic Theatre”. I used to love watching it as it featured films from the 50s and 60s that were invariably bad, but sensational and full of adventure and were mostly of the spaghetti epic kind. You know the ones I mean, a pastiche of mythology and history, adventure, lots of fighting, liberally sprinkled with cheesy romance, and an ending where the good and the brave triumphed. Steve Reeves (Mr Universe 1950) often starred in these and he created the role of Hercules in the “epic matinee film” of 1958 “The Labours of Hercules”. Many dreadful sequels followed.

But I mean what kid can resist publicity like: “See the seductive Amazons lure men to voluptuous revels and violent deaths! SEE the heroic Hercules rip down the Age of Orgy’s lavish palace of lustful pleasure! SEE the Mightiest of Men fight the Mightiest of Beasts, the killer Cretan Bull! SEE Hercules fight off the savage love-starved Amazon women! SEE the seductive Amazons lure men to voluptuous revels and violent deaths! SEE the powerful Hercules crush the savage ape-men who guard the shrine of the Golden Fleece!” This is great stuff, boys’ own adventures, glop dished out in huge servings, with that soupçon of sexual innuendo to make it attractive…

Many films of the same ilk were around that time, including “Hercules and the Queen of Sheba”; “The Trojan Horse”; “Jason and the Argonauts”, “The Last Days of Pompeii”; “The Son of Spartacus”; “Operation Atlantis”; “Atlantis the Lost Continent”; “Samson and Delilah”, etc, etc… Occasionally some films of a slightly higher calibre were shown, the USA-produced epics of biblical kind: “The Egyptian”; “Quo Vadis”; “The Ten Commandments”; “Ben Hur”; “The Bible”, etc.

There seems to be a revival of the sword and sandal genre in the last few years with releases of “Alexander”, “Troy”, “Gladiator”, “The Passion of the Christ”, “The Lost Legion” and the controversial “300”, and its sequel, “300: Rise of an Empire”. These last two film reminded me of the film I had seen as a child in Epic Theatre. It is Rudolph Maté’s “The 300Spartans” and starred Richard Egan as King Leonidas of Sparta. Well I found it and we watched it yesterday.

I must say it brought back a few nostalgic memories. Sure, it was a little cheesy and painted  with the “epic” brush, but also I found myself examining it critically and seeing that it was firstly quite accurate historically speaking. It is largely the story of Leonidas, the Spartan king and general who led his army in the battle of Thermopylae against the Persian king Xerxes I, in 480 B.C. Leonidas managed to delay the Persian hordes for two days with only 300 men. Ephialtes, a Thessalian man, betrayed the Greeks and showed the Persians another way to invade in order to attack Leonidas’ men from the rear of the narrow pass of Thermopylae that the Greeks were guarding. Leonidas sent some of his army to safety, and died fighting the Persians together with 700 volunteers.

The film has some good acting (for the time and genre, and remember after all, this was a B-grade movie), a delightful score by Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis and appearances by some well-known Greek actors of the time (Anna Synodinou, Michalis Nikolinakos, Yorgos Moutsios, Dimos Starenios, Anna Raftopoulou). The scenery is magnificent and the battle scenes quite convincing. David Farrar makes for a good Xerxes and Sir Ralph Richardson a believable Themistocles.

For a good review of the film, see:

http://www.iranian.com/DariusKadivar/2002/October/Spartan/

MOVIE MONDAY - RENOIR

“The pain passes, but the beauty remains.” - Auguste Renoir

We watched a very enjoyable film at the weekend, which was a feast for the eyes and a wonderful respite from the stresses of everyday life. One of those film you sit back, look at and enjoy at a slow pace, relaxing and taking it all in, just quietly. Obviously it was not an action film, nor a thriller, nor an adventure story… It was Gilles Bourdos’ “Renoir”, starring Michel Bouquet, Christa Théret, Vincent Rottiers, Thomas Doret and Romane Bohringer.

The film is set on the French Riviera in the summer of 1915, where famous impressionist painter Auguste Renoir is in his dotage. He is still painting, however, and as was his custom still surrounding himself with beautiful young women who look after him in his country house on his estate. It is WWI, and his two eldest sons, Pierre and Jean (Vincent Rottiers), are at war, while his youngest, Claude – “Coco” (Thomas Doret), just a boy, plays around the estate, claiming to be an orphan (his mother dead and his father an old man). Out of the blue, a beautiful young woman (Christa Theret) comes to the estate, wishing to model for Renoir. Her beauty inspires the old man and he immediately engages her to be his model.

Jean Renoir arrives home and begins an affair with the model, Andrée Heuschling (who by-the-by, would later change her name to Catherine Hessling and star in many of Jean Renoir’s early films). The film looks at the relationships between all family members as Jean’s affair with Andrée progresses, as the elderly Renoir continues to paint and wisely offers advice to all around him.

The movie is beautifully shot and the cinematography by Ping Bin Lee is to die for. The gorgeous landscapes of Provence, the interiors, the exterior shots and the women could all be paintings by Renoir. The wonderful light of the Midi is captured wonderfully, as are the amazing landscapes. Alexandre Desplat provides an understated but lush score that complements the action very well. The plot is thin but maintains the viewer’s interest and there is enough action to keep one’s mind on the movie for its 112 minutes of run time. The acting is excellent throughout and the cast is extremely well-chosen – anyone familiar with Renoir paintings and family photographs will agree on that score. Michel Bouquet as the elderly, arthritic and cranky artist is magnificent.

This is a film worth seeing, especially if you are interested in art. It is based on historical fact, and suggesting what motivated the younger Renoir to become the extraordinary film-maker that he became. France submitted this film for the Academy Awards as Best Foreign Film (it didn’t win), and it also received a host of other nominations, but in the end succeeded in winning only one César Award for the best costume design.

It is a slow-moving, but satisfying film, with subtle humour, a lot of wryness and much heart-felt emotion. Don’t expect twists and turns, great drama, gun battles, explosions and special effects. Be prepared to be transported to an older, quieter, gentler time where people, however, still felt the same intense passions and emotions, and were beset by the same psychological problems we still face today.

BOOK TUESDAY - NARNIA

“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.” - C. S. Lewis

Fittingly, as the year draws to a close, I shall write an entry for “Book Tuesday”. I can certainly describe myself as a bibliophagic omnivore. I often may read several strange things, which can only be described as trash – if nothing else but to have an opinion of them. Andre Maurois says: “In literature as in love, we are astonished at what is chosen by others.” And best sellers often fit into this category of “astonishing choices” in the worst possible way! But, it is very easy also to dismiss “best sellers” wholesale as trash - one must remember that the classics of today were at some stage “best seller trash” too.

If I am reading something that is obviously badly written or formulaic in its approach, or gimmicky, I feel no compunction whatever in stopping reading it and throwing it out. Sometimes I am repulsed by a book that literary critics wax lyrical over. “The English Patient” by Michael Ondaatje is one such book that I cannot stomach at all. I have tried to read it on numerous occasions but it is a grossly repellent book for me. The film was one I walked out of, also. Maybe in my old age I shall come back to it and appreciate its (now hidden) glories…

What is a classic? It is a book that has stood the test of time and appears forever relevant and fresh and appealing in a diachronic fashion. It is a book you can return to with pleasure. “When you reread a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than there was before.” Says Cliff Fadiman. There are books that I read again for pleasure’s sake. “A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted. You should live several lives while reading it.” Styron remarks and it is such books that we return to because of their wealth of experience they offer us.  This of course goes well with Samuel Paterson’s opinion: “Books, like friends, should be few and well chosen.” My only trouble with this is that if one is forever re-reading a few, well-chosen classics, one is bereft of new experiences, undiscovered treasures, new worlds of discovery. I would rather risk reading many mediocre books in order to find a new gem, than to read only gems that others recommended to me. The thrill of discovery is even more acute if one treads the new paths oneself.

The Harry Potter books is an example of “best sellers” and they have become so because they follow a successful formula. They also capitalise on the “New Age” craze and they have behind them an enormous modern marketing machine. They are easily consumed, digested and promptly forgotten. Fashionable books rarely become classics. Compare to these Harry Potter books the Narnia books by C. S. Lewis. These were a favourite of mine during my childhood, but they were a pleasure to re-read as an adult. I classify them as classics of the genre and underlying their “fantasy” is a deeper philosophical underpinning, which is latent when they are read in childhood, but becomes so much more obvious when an adult reads them.

Now that I have mentioned them, I guess this book Tuesday I shall dedicate to these Narnia books. C(live) S(taple) Lewis, was born November 29, 1898, Belfast, Northern Ireland and died November 22, 1963, Oxford, England. He was a scholar, novelist, and author of about 40 books, most of them on Christian apologetics, the most widely known being “The Screwtape Letters”. He also achieved fame with a trilogy of science-fiction novels and with the Chronicles of Narnia, a series of seven children's books that have become classics of fantasy literature. He fought in WWI and when he returned home he achieved an outstanding record as a classical scholar. From 1925 to 1954 he was a fellow and tutor of Magdalen College, Oxford, and from 1954 to 1963 he was professor of medieval and Renaissance English at the University of Cambridge.

The Chronicles of Narnia are extremely English books, in that they conform with that English characteristic, the reluctance to say goodbye to childhood… However, it is this character of the books makes them universally loved by people the world over who still have the child in their heart. The Narnia books are not only exciting, often humorous, highly inventive, but also many-a-time deeply moving. Lewis has utilised several archetypal images and characters but has woven them with threads of his own devising, making for a highly satisfying read.

The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels written by Lewis between 1949 and 1954, illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published in London between October 1950 and March 1956. The Chronicles of Narnia sold over 100 million copies in 47 languages and have been adapted several times, complete or in part, for radio, television, the stage, and film.

The series of books are set in the fictional realm of Narnia, a fantasy world of magic, mythical beasts, and talking animals. Various ordinary children from Earth are transported into Narnia one way or another and as they have adventures, they play central roles in the unfolding history of that world. The children are magically transported to Narnia, where they are called upon by the lion Aslan to protect Narnia from evil and restore the throne to its rightful line. The books span the entire history of Narnia, from its creation in “The Magician's Nephew” to its eventual destruction in “The Last Battle”.

Inspiration for the series is taken from multiple sources; in addition to adapting numerous traditional Christian themes, the books freely borrow characters and ideas from Greek and Roman mythology as well as from traditional British and Irish fairy tales. The books have profoundly influenced adult and children’s fantasy literature since World War II. Lewis’s exploration of themes not usually present in children’s literature, such as religion, as well as the books’ perceived treatment of issues including race and gender, has caused some controversy.

Despite the criticism about the books’ racist, sexist and religious subtexts, for me they still are satisfying reads, especially if one places them in the context in which they were written and the cultural background of the author. We may not burn a book from another age simply because it no longer agrees with our own more “enlightened” times. We read it and glean from it the best it has to offer and we attempt to understand the author’s intentions and the perspective it was written.

MOVIE MONDAY - MIRRORMASK

“Of course all films are surrealist. They are making something that looks like the real world but isn't.” - Michael Powell

For Movie Monday today, an interesting and different movie made in 2005, McKean’s “MirrorMask”, which it is an example of art crossing barriers and creating a piece that is visually stunning, intellectually stimulating and working on multiple levels. The film is directed by Dave McKean who also wrote the story, in collaboration with Neil Gaiman. Dave McKean is a very talented man - artist, writer, sculptor, director, photographer, musician, etc, etc.

It is not surprising therefore that MirrorMask is a wonderful visual feast, with an engaging story and a well-executed, surrealistic feel to it. It was made by Jim Henson Productions, and if you have seen “The Dark Crystal”, “Labyrinth”, and “Jim Henson’s The Storyteller”, you would know the genre that this film falls into. However, having seen these films, I can also say that this film is similar to, but nothing like them.

The story is simple when viewed superficially. A coming of age plot with the usual conflicts between generations, a girl on the verge of becoming a woman and having to cope with guilt, while trying to define herself as a person and attaining independence while maintaining ties with the people whom she loves - her family.

Now that I have said all of that, let me take a few steps back and note that the majority of the film is a quasi-dream sequence where the young heroine is struggling with forces of good and evil, is attempting to save a world and its ruler, while all the while trying to assert her personality and wanting to make the right choices about her life and future.

The film has several important references to previous works and carries within the sprouts of the seeds of other creators’ ideas. Yes, there is an element of Alice in Wonderland in the film, but at the same time there is something of Oedipus and Greek tragedy in it. There is an obvious homage to the dream sequence in Hitchcock’s “Spellbound” created by Salvador Dalí, but also I found the work replete with the dark imagery of Odilon Redon’s graphic works.

The whole film has a visual gorgeousness that I found similar to gorging myself with dark chocolate bon-bons filled with rich liqueur. In a strange way it also reminded me of Jostein Gaarder’s book “Sophie’s World”, although it had nothing to do with it! I am sure that on viewing the film again many more allusions to existing works, artists, directors, books, etc, will spring to mind, but on first viewing I was too busy relishing the colour and images to concentrate excessively on analysing the film too much.

The computer graphics that the film uses to good effect are varied in style and form a patchwork effect that is interspersed with live action and liberal portions of Dave McKean’s graphic art that I found enchanting. Some of the black and white sketches that are highlighted in the film are beautiful and are so in tune with the film and the story.

I would recommend this film to anybody who is interested not only in the fantasy genre, but also in animation, computer graphics, mixed media, sketching, and art more generally. Although the film would appeal very much to children and adolescents, there is a lot in it for adults too.

COOKING WITH HERBS

“We could never have loved the earth so well if we had had no childhood in it.” - George Eliot, The Mill on the Floss, 1860

Whenever I remember my grandmother’s kitchen, the smell of it is what comes to mind first. Not the smell we associate with food cooking and which would vary according to the dish prepared. Rather, what I loved was the general, ambient smell one could appreciate first thing in the morning, for example. It was a wonderful mixture of herbal aromas of the bunches that were hanging to dry from the rafters near the pantry, the smell of bread toasting and milk being warmed, the wafting floral perfumes from the garden outside as they entered from the open window. A heady mix, a homely, warm, comfortable smell, fresh and pungent at the same time. Sweet and aromatic, but with a tinge of bitterness and refreshing vigour.

In the last few years, herbs have been becoming increasingly popular. Their curative properties, well known for centuries, have been rediscovered and herbalists or natural medicine practitioners enjoying an ever-increasing clientele. But despite this recent herb-fascination, herbs have been used widely, often ignored by most people. Herbs have been flavouring our most basic foods. What would pizza be if it weren’t for the tang of oregano? Could pesto be made without basil? What about the flavour of pickles without dill? Basil, rosemary, French tarragon, oregano and parsley are amongst the most versatile and popular cooking herbs, but the list of herbs numbers in the hundreds, especially if we look at cuisines all over the world.

Herbs are aromatic plants whose leaves, stems and flowers are used as flavouring. Spices also come from aromatic plants, but are derived from the bark, roots, seeds, buds and berries. Many herbs were first cultivated in the warmer climates of Europe along the Mediterranean, which explains the more savoury aspect of Mediterranean cooking compared to some of the blander traditional dishes of Northern Europe, for example. Here are five herbs that are essential to have in a pantry or growing in your garden:

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is one of the most popular herbs worldwide and the world’s oldest breath freshener. Chewing a couple of sprigs of fresh parsley after one has eaten garlic is said to be helpful in freshening the breath. It is a crucial ingredient in the Middle Eastern dish of tabbouleh. The curly variety of parsley is often used as a garnish, while the flat-leafed parsley is almost exclusively reserved for cooking. The flavour of this herb complements raw salads or simmered soups well. Parsley blends well with both mild and strong-flavoured herbs, so it is often used in combination with many others. Parsley does well in sunny spots, but will tolerate partial shade. It will not tolerate long periods in dry soils.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a perennial bush with spiky, short leaves. Rosemary sprigs are quite aromatic and used for flavouring lamb and pork, sausages and pâtés. Rosemary sprigs can also be sprinkled over open coals before grilling so the meat will absorb the roasted herb flavour. Like basil, this herb is often used in Italian but also in Greek cooking. It is popular in oil infusions with vinegar or wine. Rosemary can be used well both fresh and dried. The plant prefers warm climates and well-drained soil. The bluish-mauve flowers of rosemary are an added bonus at the end of summer.

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is a small annual bush with bright green leaves and spikes of small white flowers. Basil is best paired with tomato dishes and is most popular in Italian cooking. It also forms the basis for pesto. Basil is best used fresh as its flavour diminishes and alters when dried. Basil makes a popular plant for herbal gardens and sunny windowsills. To keep the leaves sprouting, and to prevent the plant from going to seed early, pinch off the flower stems the minute they appear.

French Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) is one of the most versatile herbs. It is typically used dried, and is rich in flavour. It is a classic for sauces like Béarnaise, but also useful for adding flavour to fish and eggs. Tarragon and rosemary do not mix well together and should not be used in the same dish. Parsley and chives can on the other hand be successfully combined with tarragon. Like most herbs, tarragon plants love sunny positions and the flavour intensifies when exposed to direct heat.

Oregano (Origanum vulgare) grows wild in Mediterranean countries and is used widely in the region’s cooking. Oregano has a savoury flavour that works well with tomatoes, salads (especially the fresh herb), soups (minestrone!) and pasta, as well as with fish and game. Most pizza sauces are flavoured with oregano. The herb is quite pungent, but it will quickly lose flavour if cooked too long and may actually turn bitter if overcooked. When the flower buds are visible and just about to open, oregano leaves are said to be at their most flavoursome. Again like most herbs, oregano loves open, sunny garden spots. Its leaves are well adapted to drying if left in a warm, but dry and shady spot. For drying, the herb should be allowed to set seed and then collected and dried.

Although I like most herbs very much, one herb the flavour of which I rather dislike is fresh coriander (cilantro). Its smell can be overpowering and slightly nauseating for me. On the other hand, ground coriander seed I rather like! Go figure… Are there any herbs that you particularly dislike?

LITERARY TUESDAY - FAIRY TALES

“Some say you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” - C.S.Lewis

When I was a little boy I often spent the Summer holidays at my grandparents’ house. This was something that will stay with me as a treasured memory as I loved them both very much and there were always special treats – trips, wonderful food, summertime friendships and of course lots of fairy tales. My grandfather especially used to make up many tales for me (insatiable as I was for the stories he told me) and in these tales he wove myth, fable, folk tradition, and fairy tale elements he could remember from his own youth. Later of course, I read all of the classics: Andersen’s fairy tales, the Grimms’ fairy tales, Perrault’s, Wilde’s etc, etc. My love of fairy tales has stayed with me to this day and this blog post today is devoted to that special branch of literature: Fairy Tales.

Many psychologists and psychiatrists have analysed the function of the fairy tale in society. Freud, Jung, and Bettelheim, have all seen many features of the fairy tale as manifestations of universal fears and desires of human beings. Bettelheim especially, maintains that the violent and apparently arbitrary nature of many folk fairy stories is an instructive reflection of the child's natural and necessary “killing off” of successive phases of development and initiation.

Fairy tales often have as a theme times of extreme social conflict: Transformation of adolescents into adults, family continuity, rites of succession of leadership, movement into marriage (and many of its uncertainties and fears, as well as its potential creativity and power) and traditionally, birth or barrenness. These rites of passage have been fertile ground for authors, artists and performers and fairy tales have found them a useful source of emotionally charged and interesting stories to the communities that created them and retold them. Fairy tales also give children messages of hope, because even if the hero of the story finds himself in incredibly difficult situations, he always manages to get out of them successfully.

Another function of the fairy tale is that of pure escapism. Nature is given a prime role in many tales and communicating with it is often presented in a way that only poetry can do it. The frequent metamorphoses described in tales are a link to the mineral and the animal world. Fairy tales are a way to escape from the real and neurotic world (with its tiny, unhealthy, overcrowded towns) into the great healthy open spaces (untouched woods, never ending valleys, crystal-clear rivers, magical and enchanted castles, sleeping princesses, etc).

Grimms’ Fairy Tales is my featured book for this literary Tuesday. The Brothers Grimm (Jacob and Wilhelm) published their Kinder und Hausmärchen (Children’s and House Tales) between 1812 and 1815 in Germany. They had as their ideal the exact recording of tales as heard from oral tellers, though it is clear that many stories in their famous work are not folk literature at all, but polished and edited literary pieces inspired by the folk tales, which at the same time retained their folkloric heritage.

Grimms’ fairy tales are of universal appeal and have been translated into over 70 languages around the world. Many well-loved tales that children love to hear are from their collection: The Frog Prince, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Tom Thumb, Rumpelstitskin, Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and Rose Red, The Wolf and the Seven Little Kids, etc. My personal favourite fairy tale in the Grimms’ collection is Jorinda and Jorindel.

What is your favourite fairy tale?

MOVIE MONDAY - THAT'S WHAT I AM

“Most of us end up with no more than five or six people who remember us. Teachers have thousands of people who remember them for the rest of their lives.” - Andy Rooney

We watched a delightful film at the weekend, which surprised us pleasantly as we were expecting something a little different. It was the 2011 Mike Pavone film “That’s What I Am”, starring Ed Harris, Chase Ellison, Molly Parker, Alexander Walters and Amy Madigan. It is a coming-of-age story set in 1965 that follows 12-year-old Andy Nichol (Chase Ellison), a bright student who, like most kids his age, will do anything to avoid conflict for fear of suffering overwhelming ridicule and punishment from his junior high school peers. His gifted teacher, Mr Simon (Ed Harris), will allow Andy to grow and realise his potential through the difficult times.

The screenplay was written by the director and it has a genuineness about it, that which comes from relating personal experiences. It may be based on autobiographical details, which is also aided by the first person narrative that is used throughout the film as though a novel is being read – this in fact may be the only obvious fault of the film. Otherwise this was an engaging and winsome movie that was extremely watchable and made several points about tolerance, peaceful coexistence and realising one’s potential through doing what comes naturally and utilising one’s own talents.

The plot centres on Andy, a cool young kid who is paired off with “Big G” (Alexander Walters), a social outcast, to do a project for class. Although this seems to be a mismatch, Mr Simon (Ed Harris), their charismatic teacher can see the potential of both kids and is banking on both of them developing their characters positively through the interaction. We expected the film to develop the theme of the unlikely friendship, but this is only used to focus on other issues in the 1960s. Many of these issues are accepted today as norms but back then they were new, and hence fearful. The movie mixes humour with the dark themes, and there are some poignant twists that make one’s eye moisten.

The acting is very good all round, and Ed Harris is excellent in what is after all a supporting role. The schoolkids are what make the film and all of these young actors do a great job. Also well acted are the roles of the school principal and the parents of the children. The music, costumes, sets and cinematography are all great and they support the action with a real, believable window into the 1960s.

We enjoyed this movie a lot and would recommend it to everyone who wishes to relax and enjoy a film that makes a powerful statement about growing up and making the world a better place through tolerance, compassion and utilisation of one’s talents and abilities. It is akin to the “Wonder Years” and if you enjoyed that, you will certainly enjoy this movie as well.