I am always one for new experiences so having checked the movie was not in French (that would be a step too far) I went along to the Duke of York's and embraced the experience. Refreshingly there was no Odeon hot dog and pop corn, rather it was coffee (fair trade) and flap jack (organic) that we guzzled before the main feature. You could even take a beer (craft) in if you wished but it was a bit early for that.
The film I saw was 45 Years, starring Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtney. They play a married couple in the week leading up to the celebration of their 45th wedding anniversary. This is disrupted when Geoff (Courtney) receives a letter telling him that the body of his long dead girlfriend (Katya) has been found perfectly preserved in a melting Swiss glacier. Geoff and Katya had been in love and planning to marry when she fell and was presumed killed in a climbing accident. Geoff went on to meet Kate (Rampling) but had never told her about the previous relationship in any detail, and their plans to marry.
It seems that Geoff and Kate have had a reasonably happy marriage. There are hints at tension over their childlessness, and it seems they filled that hole with a series of rather fierce looking
In truth not a lot happens. Geoff tells Kate a bit more about Katya, revealing he was her next of kin and that she wore a wooden ring so they could pretend they were married. Kate broods about this, stares into the distance and the mirror a lot, and reflects on whether this secretiveness by Geoff had undermined the basis of their marriage.
The younger Tom Courtney used to play the good looking working class hero in those black and white 'It's Grim up North' type British films made in the late 1950's and early '60's. He's certainly no longer a sex symbol in this (unless baggy grey white y-fronts are your thing) and to me does not quite convince in the role.
In contrast Charlotte Rampling is compelling in a slightly over-arty way. She manages to be both elegant and harsh, and it's possible to see her as one of those teachers that you remember with respect and affection (even if at the time you were rather scared of them). The local postman is a formal pupil and he refuses to call her by her first name.
The plot focuses on whether Geoff and Kate can hold it together for the week through to the celebration. I will not spoil things by revealing if they do.
You will gather that I went to see the film with low expectations. In fairness these were exceeded and I would not want to put you off. It's based on a short story by David Constantine called 'In Another Country.' At times it seemed the title of the film had been changed from that of the book to describe the length of the film rather than the marriage.
Being an arty film it was inevitable that references to the dangers of climate change and the evils of Thatcher were crowbarred into the plot. It seemed to have been filmed at the end of the winter so I never quite understood why the glacier in Switzerland should have melted at that time of year - surely even with global warming this would have occurred in the middle of summer? And Geoff and Kate had a remarkable number of friends at the anniversary celebration considering what a grumpy couple they appeared to be.
The best bits for me were when Geoff and Kate talked about things other than their marriage. Geoff reluctantly attended a work reunion and his reminisces from that had echoes of Kingsley Amis and the Old Devils - especially the story of 'Red' Len (or Len-in) as they called him who now regaled them with stories of his villa in Portugal and his banker grandson.
The film captured the tensions caused by jealousy and things unsaid but in a slow meandering and borderline pretentious way. Oh and a bit of advice please do concentrate - I thought I did but it turns out I missed a crucial bit when Kate climbs into the attic and looks at some of Len's photographs of Katya. I was watching closely but looking for the wrong thing!
I give the film 4/10. It was ok but if I am honest I preferred Mission Impossible 3 and the Man From Uncle. I am though looking forward to Tom Courtney's next film, Dad's Army, where he seems well cast to play Corporal Jones.
Graham Cox
NB I didn't read the review in the Guardian by its (and the BBC's) resident film critic Mark Kermode until after jotting down my thoughts. It's unsurprisingly a good deal more positive than mine, and no doubt more authoritative. Don't let me put you off therefore. Go along and see it for yourself - just make sure you choose a comfy seat and don't snore if you nod off.
No comments:
Post a Comment