So this weekend I finally got Dahnya to watch Billy Elliot. Mind you this is a goal I have been trying to achieve for several years now. As tears rolled down our faces while watching the movie Dahnya made mention of how horribly misleading the movie box is. It has quotes like, "funny" "hillarious, light hearted." This movie is anything but! It is absolutely beautiful and tragic, a true drama if I do say so myself.
The way in which the men of the family are so emotionally repressed. I find their total unwillingness to show anything but anger so tragic and amazing. There are so many scenes I could talk about. But Billy's dad is phenomenal! The actor Gary Lewis manages, with next to no lines, wrap up dealing with the loss of his wife, a conflict between his ideals and providing for his family, a son who is getting swept up in the escalating tensions of a workers strike and a little boy who is stepping outside of his father's excepted social mores. He captures the quintessential blue collar guy with amazing depth and accuracy.
Also the sound track is awesome! The Clash, The Jam, and more. If you haven't watched it you should.
Hmm. The stark sentimentality between our posts is pretty obvious. I may be rethinking this "couple's" blog...
ReplyDeleteKidding.
You were right, Billy Elliot was great. I should listen to you more often!
Good job suggesting it years before, Fran!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, the soundtrack is SPECTACULAR!
:(
ReplyDeleteI LOVE Billy Elliot!
ReplyDeleteYou are that much cooler in my book now.
The cover is amazingly misleading though, except when it mentions notting hill. That should have gave away a lot. That was one of the most depressing rom-coms ever.