Welcome to the kitchen table! It is movie night again. I'm offering some selections from Netflix, three of which I had not seen before. One is a favorite that I was pleased to see is now available for streaming.
We are living in difficult times. So many people are facing overwhelming challenges that they probably never expected to happen. Hope is so important to the human spirit. I love stories about people who overcome difficulties, who find peace and happiness after loss, after challenges to their very identity -- and I am sure I am not alone! So tonight's movie topic is:
Resilient People
Movies are below the fold!
The Hairdresser
This movie is from Germany, a story about a heavy woman of bright spirit. An accomplished hairdresser, she has trouble finding a job or even getting a loan to start her own business -- because of her size. But nothing dampens her optimism. I was watching this and Horace Boothroyd III came in the room and became fascinated by it, crying out about the injustice the character faced simply because she was large. I don't want to tell you too much but I invite you to watch...
You can see a trailer of "The Hairdresser" on this site.
The Shipping News
This movie is not new to me but it is one I value greatly -- and I was so glad to see that it is now on Netflix. Lasse Hallström created a gem of a film with this rendition of Annie Proulx' book. Be patient with it at first for it begins sadly -- it follows the arc of a very depressed life, the life of a man (played with great nuance by Kevin Spacy) who had been emotionally abused and beaten down by his parents and then by a wife. Said wife (played by Cate Blanchette) runs off with another man, taking their little daughter and selling her. Wife and lover die in a car wreck right at the same time the man's father dies by his own hand. The little girl is returned to her father -- but to what a depressing scene. Our protagonist is in the lowest spot imaginable when along comes his aunt (played by Judy Dench), on her way to Newfoundland to revisit the family's roots. She takes him and the little girl with her -- and a journey of healing begins. This is a real classic -- do watch it.
Watch a trailer for "The Shipping News" here.
Billy Elliot
How did I miss this movie for so long? This is the story of a boy growing up in a hardscrabble mining town in England in the postwar era. Money is scarce and the miners are striking. Billy Elliot's dad and older brother are among the strikers. This is a place where all disputes seem to end with fisticuffs -- a town of hard men in a hard environment. Motherless Billy looks after his grandmother, who wanders, and finds his joy in movement. He runs, leaps, and he dances. Sent by his father for boxing lessons, he is attracted by a dance class given in the same gym -- and secretly begins ballet lessons. In time, his teacher wants him to audition for the Royal Ballet, his talent is so noticeable. A struggle begins -- because boys don't take ballet, not in hardscrabble mining towns they don't. Stay with this. If your heart isn't catching in your throat at the end and happy tears in your eyes, well, well...it will happen! That is all!
Here is a trailer for "Billy Elliot"
Papadopoulos & Sons
From England, here is a story about a precipitous fall from financial success ("Entrepreneur of the Year") to bankruptcy. Mr. Papadopolous loses his Greek food business and the prospect of a lucrative real estate deal only to fall back upon a Fish and Chips shop that he once ran with his brother, Spiros. Spiros is a sort of wild child who has traveled and explored matters of spirit. He enthusiastically welcomes his brother and his children back to a family home that has mouldered over the years...and yet, there is greater happiness to be found here than ever was in a fancy house with a Rolls in the front drive. It takes a strong spirit to suffer downturn and find a different kind of prosperity. Watch Papadopolous find his smile again, even after the loss of his fortune and his identity as a self-made man.
Here is a trailer for "Papadopoulos & Sons"
Have any favorite films about resilient people, achieving against odds or overcoming loss? Please share!
Prior Friday Night Streaming Movies subjects:
At the Table
Ghosts
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