All is quiet on the home front. Luke and Evie are spending the week with Chuck's parents. We miss them already (of course), but the quiet is amazing! Chuck and I even watched a movie last night that required our full attention - The Remains of the Day. Anyone seen that? When the movie ended last night I looked at Chuck and said, "I guess I'll have to go do some research because I have no idea what the ending is supposed to mean." It's one of those movies that has literary themes and symbolism all worked into it. I don't really watch movies that I have to think about anymore. Of course, I love Shakespeare and Jane Austen, etc, but it has been so long since I was in school and actually worked at identifying the underlying meanings of actions and words so now I just plain felt stupid watching this movie. It was nominated for 8 academy awards, so the lack of understanding is clearly on my part. I guess I've lost my literary edge. I used to be able to tear these things apart with analysis - I mean, I was and English literature major in college, after all.
Anyhow, if you like English movies such as "Gosford Park" then you will most likely like "The Remains of the Day." We like Gosford Park, but it is one of those things that you have to be in the mood for AND you have to have quiet in the house so you can concentrate on what they are saying and on all the subtle nuances of the film. Even with the silence in our house last night, we still had trouble understanding what was being said at some points. In fact, we rewound the tape three times at one point and turned up the volume so that we could try to understand what the character Charley was saying. No luck, except that we think it was supposed to be funny. I commented that we already need Lindsey here to translate for us because I bet she would know what the guy said. Oh well. Did anyone else see this movie? It was made in '93, so obviously we're behind and everyone else has probably already seen the movie, figured out what the ending means with the bird flying to the ceiling, and appreciates that the movie was nominated fof 8 academny awards. I guess I need to do my own reasearch on it so I can satisfy my feelings if inadequacy.
Sorry for the rambling post. Just an odd movie.
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Found this on another blog regarding the meaning of the bird at the end. Very literary, as I thought: We then see the pigeon enter the room at that same moment and that is the spirt of Mr. Stevens- We then see Mr. Lewis letting the pigeon go to escape Darlington Hall (Lewis wanting Stevens to to on the trip to Cleveland) -we then see Stevens again at the window- behind bars- he does not leave Darlington...He never does- The pigeon- or spirit leaves the corpse of Stevens at Darlington Hall.
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