Though "Funny Face", directed by Stanley Donen, was very good, I thought it would be better. What struck me as I watched again after a long time is that once again, the male lead, Fred Astaire, was nearly 30 years older than the female, Audrey Hepburn. Astaire is still amazing, but it appears Hollywood assumes female dancers of similar age can no longer dance.
I watched the movie last night and loved it. The film, directed by Michel Hazanavicius, won a number of Academy Awards and other well-deserved film awards in 2012. The French romantic, feel-good, silent movie in black and white, like the olden times, even before my olden time, is a delight. In the French style, with subtle and ironic touches of humor, the film includes musical accompaniment and what I just learned are called intertitles (filmed, printed text edited into silent movies) when necessary. Since the expressions and movements of the actors reveal quite a bit, not many intertitles were necessary. Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo star in the film, with our own John Goodman in a strong supporting role.
The movie, directed by Jeff Nichols, tells the tender, moving story of the long, painful period in the lives of Mildred and Richard Loving, played by Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga, an interracial couple who married in Washington DC, but could not, by law, be married in their home State of Virginia. After living in DC for a while, the Lovings moved back to Virginia but lived in constant fear of arrest. Mildred decided to write a letter to Attorney General RFK about their plight, and he referred them to the ACLU. When the two were arrested, the ACLU defended them and took their case to the Supreme Court. The rest is history in Loving V. Virginia, the ruling that overturned miscegenation laws in the entire country.
"Room", directed by Lenny Abrahamson, is the story of a young woman who was abducted and held in a shed for 7 years during which time she is sexually abused and gives birth to a boy she calls Jack. After 5 years, she begins to plot their escape. The film was difficult to watch, so much so that I had to stop and take a break, but I recommend it highly. "Moonlight" was the same, but I have the film in my queue to watch again. I'll do the same with "Room". Brie Larson stars as the mother, and she is excellent in the role, but the truly amazing performance is the boy's, with Jacob Tremblay as Jack.
