DVD Mini Reviews - Saturday Night and Sunday Morning & Syndromes and a Century
Because of time limits and tiredness I will say just a few words about my two latest Netflix rentals.
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is one of the first in the great "kitchen sink dramas" from the UK featuring the angry young man. The film was made in 1960/61 and was directed by Karel Reisz. Alan Sillitoe adapted it from his novel and the film was produced by Tony Richardson.
Albert Finney stars as Arthur Seaton, a hard working class bloke. He hates his job but has no choice but to put up with it. He lives at home with his parents and pities their dull existence. He is having an affair with Brenda (Rachel Roberts) who is the wife of one of his co-workers. But when Arthur meets Doreen (Shirley Anne Field) things change. Doreen is a more old fashioned, conventional girl. The film deals with out of wedlock pregnancy and abortion, which was very risque at that time. Finney was great as Arthur and even then had that great baritone voice. Roberts and Field are also very good. I saw this film many years ago at the Museum of Modern Art. And it holds up and is very relevant to today. After all, don't most of us despise the drudgery of our daily work lives and wish there was something else that we could do. Well, this film is brave for even bringing up this topic. Highly recommended.
Many critics have praised Syndromes and a Century. This is the second film by director Apichatpong Weerasethakul's that I have seen (the first being Tropical Malady). And I should say that many critics think that this is a masterpiece. However, while the film is visually beautiful it is far from a masterpiece.
The director based it on memories of his parents, both of whom were doctors. Alot of the film takes place in a hospital. The first part of the film takes place in a rurual setting and the second part takes place in the city. The film is a series of many snippets put together. There is not a regular plot and there is no real character development. I would call this film experimental and abstract. It is not a bad film but it is not for most tastes. Although I am glad that I saw it I would not recommend it to most people.
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is one of the first in the great "kitchen sink dramas" from the UK featuring the angry young man. The film was made in 1960/61 and was directed by Karel Reisz. Alan Sillitoe adapted it from his novel and the film was produced by Tony Richardson.
Albert Finney stars as Arthur Seaton, a hard working class bloke. He hates his job but has no choice but to put up with it. He lives at home with his parents and pities their dull existence. He is having an affair with Brenda (Rachel Roberts) who is the wife of one of his co-workers. But when Arthur meets Doreen (Shirley Anne Field) things change. Doreen is a more old fashioned, conventional girl. The film deals with out of wedlock pregnancy and abortion, which was very risque at that time. Finney was great as Arthur and even then had that great baritone voice. Roberts and Field are also very good. I saw this film many years ago at the Museum of Modern Art. And it holds up and is very relevant to today. After all, don't most of us despise the drudgery of our daily work lives and wish there was something else that we could do. Well, this film is brave for even bringing up this topic. Highly recommended.
Many critics have praised Syndromes and a Century. This is the second film by director Apichatpong Weerasethakul's that I have seen (the first being Tropical Malady). And I should say that many critics think that this is a masterpiece. However, while the film is visually beautiful it is far from a masterpiece.
The director based it on memories of his parents, both of whom were doctors. Alot of the film takes place in a hospital. The first part of the film takes place in a rurual setting and the second part takes place in the city. The film is a series of many snippets put together. There is not a regular plot and there is no real character development. I would call this film experimental and abstract. It is not a bad film but it is not for most tastes. Although I am glad that I saw it I would not recommend it to most people.
posted by Film Fanatic | 7:44 PM
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