I am sitting at my computer early Thursday morning with
three ideas in my head, two of which deserve their own space. So I will tackle
the third one first, and then move on to the other two.
There are so many great new films to be seen! Unfortunately,
quite a few are foreign language films, and my reading ability has still not
improved sufficiently to make reading subtitles possible. I know this must seem
puzzling to all of you reading this. It is puzzling to me as well. But
apparently somewhat different parts of the brain handle these seemingly related
functions, so I am able to write but still struggle to re-read what I’ve
written. Well, at least it provides a good excuse for my often mediocre
writing.
[Note: that last sentence will prompt many of you dear
readers to send messages and tell me how articulate I am, and I do appreciate
the words of encouragement. But sitting here at the computer is quite a
different exercise than live interactions, so while I may be performing
acceptably at the former I am easily flustered by the latter.]
Be that as it may, the good news is that there are plenty of
new English language films of interest. We had a list of three, all playing at
the Lincoln Plaza Cinema on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and chose
“Frances Ha,” written and directed by Noah Baumbach, who also wrote and
directed the 2005 film “The Squid and the Whale.” The movie tells a fascinating
story about friendship and love as a young woman struggles to find her place in
the world around her. A.O. Scott
captured it well (New York Times 18 May):
In the course of a
little less than a year, Frances, heedlessly skipping through her 20s, suddenly
falls down and feels the impact of reality. Or maturity. Or some other hard
fact that she might have acknowledged before, but mostly for other people, or
for later.
If you have a chance, this is one I definitely recommend. We
are also hoping to see two other films currently showing at Lincoln Plaza, “What
Maisie Knew” and “Stories We Tell.” I will report on them when we do.
Love,
Rebecca
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