Newtown  Film  Appreciation

For further information about Newtown U3A or any of the groups please contact: secretary@newtownu3a.co.uk

The film group met on Wednesday, 17^th April to watch Loving.  The real life story about an interracial couple, Mildred & Richard Loving, who were married in 1958 in Washington DC against the laws in Virginia where they lived.

The story charts the abuse they suffered at the hands of the authorities, & their struggle to be allowed to live as husband & wife in their home state.

This was eventually achieved in 1967 when the case went before the federal Supreme Court in the capital.  It is shocking to realise such laws existed until such a late date.

Sadly we learn at the end of the film that Richard was killed by a drunken driver just eight years later.

The film group met on 27^th March at Nick’s house and we watched “The remains of the Day”, a film of the book by Kazuo Ishiguro, directed by James Ivory in 1993, with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson in the lead roles of the butler (Stevens} and housekeeper (Miss Kenton) to Earl Darlington, who was a pre war supporter of Hitler and died in 1958, a broken man.

Lewis, a USA congressman, who had been present at Darlington hall when a group of Fascist supporters of Hitler met there in the 1930s, warning of disaster, bought the hall together with the butler Stevens in 1958.

Miss Kenton had left Darlington and married Mr Benn in the 1930s when it was clear that she could not have a personal relationship with Stevens due to his single minded attitude to his work position as butler . In 1958, Steven traces her to Clevedon to try and persuade her to return to Darlington as housekeeper but she wishes to stay with her daughter and estranged husband.

We met at Sally's on 31st February where she showed the film 'Hope Gap' a 2019 drama written and directed by William Nicholson, adapted from his 1999 play 'The Retreat from Moscow' - very strange I thought as it was based in the gorgeous setting - the quaint, coastal town of Seaford, England with its scenic and severe white cliffs - nothing to do with Moscow !!

It stars Annette Bening (Grace) - a striking presence, but she struggles with an inconsistent English accent;   Bill Nighy (Edward) who portrays his character with much of his trademark subdued awkwardness which works as he strains to explain his feelings and justify his decision to leave and seek affection and peace in the arms of the mother of one of his high school pupils.  We are witnessing the collapse of a love affair and a family after nearly 3 decades.  In between them is Jamie (Josh O'Connor) their stunted, twentysomething son, who lives in London and visits infrequently.

Why these two people ever married is a mystery, they live in a beautiful large Tudor house, she with a chaotic desk (his very tidy) and their personalities are complete opposites.  He wears dreary clothes, she  wears flowery, flowing robes.  He is quiet, she is very wearing, constantly badgering him for answers about nothing in particular.  She, to me, was very annoying and not being able to understand why he wants to part and leave her for some peace was baffling.

Very well acted by all concerned but not an enjoyable film.

November 2023.This month we met at Ralph's where he showed 'The Phantom Thread'
Daniel Day-Lewis (Reynolds Woodcock)
Vicky Krieps (Alma Elson)
Lesley Manville (Cyril Woodcock)
Is this film a true story?
According to the New York Times the film does seem to draw inspiration from the designer Charles James whose marriage to a woman who would serve as his muse (despite his affinity for men) mirrors that of the fictional character Reynolds Woodock.

In early 1950's London Woodstock is the most sought after dress designer among the rich and powerful  He lives a regimented, almost monastic life, with his watchful sister Cyril (Manville) as his close associate.  Woodcock is afflicted by a severe case of OCD and a confirmed bachelor, used to taking in lovers and muses, discarding them when fed up without a backward glance,  assisted by the equally icy, spinster sister Cyril.  He has a magnetic personality, is overly self-confident, obsessive, a cruel bully and treats his girlfriends as chattels.  Into his life comes Alma (Vicky Krieps) a young, strong-willed waitress who he takes on as his muse, model, lover, whatever he needs.  Alma learns that she's not the first to fill this position in Reynolds' life, but she becomes determined to be the last.

The watcher is drawn into the single-minded obsessive artistry and pursuit of perfection within  his chosen field.  Alma acts as an audience surrogate, unsure of this odd world led by the often inscrutable Woodcock and Cyril.
This film tastefully glamorises the toxicity of love.  
A fascinatingly weird love story, beautifully acted.

Daniel Day-Lewis (Reynolds Woodcock)
Vicky Krieps (Alma Elson)
Lesley Manville (Cyril Woodcock)
Is this film a true story?
According to the New York Times the film does seem to draw inspiration from the designer Charles James whose marriage to a woman who would serve as his muse (despite his affinity for men) mirrors that of the fictional character Reynolds Woodock.

In early 1950's London Woodstock is the most sought after dress designer among the rich and powerful  He lives a regimented, almost monastic life, with his watchful sister Cyril (Manville) as his close associate.  Woodcock is afflicted by a severe case of OCD and a confirmed bachelor, used to taking in lovers and muses, discarding them when fed up without a backward glance,  assisted by the equally icy, spinster sister Cyril.  He has a magnetic personality, is overly self-confident, obsessive, a cruel bully and treats his girlfriends as chattels.  Into his life comes Alma (Vicky Krieps) a young, strong-willed waitress who he takes on as his muse, model, lover, whatever he needs.  Alma learns that she's not the first to fill this position in Reynolds' life, but she becomes determined to be the last.

The watcher is drawn into the single-minded obsessive artistry and pursuit of perfection within  his chosen field.  Alma acts as an audience surrogate, unsure of this odd world led by the often inscrutable Woodcock and Cyril.
This film tastefully glamorises the toxicity of love.  
A fascinatingly weird love story, beautifully acted.

October 2023. This month we met at Anne's house and watched 'Dream Horse'

While there's nothing remarkable or surprising about this film from director Euros Lyn and screen writer Neil McKay, it's nearly impossible to dislike.

It is set in the depressed Welsh mining town of Cefn Fforest, and centres on Jan Vokes (Toni Collette) a woman holding down 2 jobs.  She lives a boring life with her husband Brian (Owen Teale) retired due to ill health and who barely even listens to her anymore.  Jan longs for something that will shake up her routine and infuse a bit of energy into her economically depressed community.  An experienced breeder of whippets and racing pigeons, she decides to breed and train a champion stallion.  She gets around the considerable expense by proposing a collective approach, the costs of buying, feeding and training the horse will be spread out amongst a dozen or so townspeople (everyone a gem of a character) contributing £10 a week.  It's decided to call the champion 'Dream Alliance'.  Jan's partner in the scheme is an accountant - Howard Davies (Damian Lewis).

'Dream' is raised on an allotment owned by Jan and Brian and they discover a new reason to start enjoying life.  There are setbacks and upsetting reversals of fortune placed exactly where you'd expect them to be, of course the characters find ingenious and heartwarming ways to rise above whatever trouble they encounter. Very well acted by the whole cast.

James Norton (Gareth Jones)        Peter Sarsgaard (Walter Duranty)
Vanessa Kirby (Ada Brooks)           Joseph Mawle (George Orwell)
Krzysztof Pieczynski (Maxim Litvnov)

The film watched was 'Mr. Jones'  directed by award winning director -  Agniezka Holland.  This 2019 drama/thriller  is based on real people and real events and chronicles a Welsh investigative journalist as he travels deep into the Soviet Union to uncover the truth about the devastating famine in Ukraine in the early 1930's.

It is a joint Polish, Ukrainian and British production that was premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2019 and released in the United States in April this year.

At its centre is one man's struggle to get to the truth about Joseph Staloin's famine in Ukraine in 1932-1933, which the regime was hiding from the outside world on the eve of the diplomatic recognition of the Soviet Union by the United States.The movie's central character is Gareth Jones who travels to the Soviet Union in the early 1930's hoping to interview Stalin.  Instead he ends up uncovering the dictator's big secret, the Ukrainian famine.  Jones' principal antagonist is the Pulitzer Prize winning Moscow correspondent of the New York Times - Walter Duranty, who uses his considerable status to publicly attack jones and deny the existence of the famine resulting in the death of millions.  The two leading actors James Norton (Jones) and Peter Sarsgaard (Duranty) brilliantly capture this struggle for truth during what was one of the darkest periods of European history.

The film we watched at Sally's this month was 'Lion'  directed by Garth Davies and  starring:

Dev Patel (Saroo Brierley)              Nicole Kidman (Sue Brierley) 
Sunny Pawar (Saroo Brierley)         David Wenham (John Brierley)

 'A Long Way Home' is a non fiction book by Indian-Australian businessman Saroo Brierley.  The text was  initially released in Australia in 2013 and adapted into a major film in 2016  nominated for 5 BAFTA's.
A 5 year old Indian boy - Saroo gets on a train which travels hundreds of kilometers away from his home and  poor but loving family.  25 years later he sets out to find them.
Somehow he survives living on the streets of Kolkata, before ending up in an orphanage.  Eventually he is adopted by an Australian couple (Nicole Kidman and David Wenham) finding love and security, but suppressing his hope of finding home.  He finds love and becomes successful in his life.
But eventually he is driven to make a great effort, with just a small store of memories Saroo embarks on a truly epic quest for home.  He is successful and both mothers meet to celebrate the son they share.
Saroo's time in Kolkata makes for a harrowing story - it is estimated that 96,000 children go 'missing' in India every year and this film goes a long way to understanding why this is so.
But the film is also heart-warming, and beautifully acted especially Sunny Pawar as the young Saroo.

The film shown this month was 'Colette' a 2018  biographical film drama directed by Wash Westmoreland and is based upon the life of the French novelist Sidonie Gabrielle Colette.  It stars Keira Knightley (Colette) Dominic West (Willy), Eleanor Tomlinson (Georgie Raoul-Duval), Denise Gough (Missy) and Fiona Shaw (Sido).

Countrygirl Colette falls for Willy who marries her and sweeps her away to live in Paris. He is a 'larger than life' figure and very popular in high society. He is attributed to having written many books but he comes up with the ideas and the hard work is all done by ghost writers -  treating them  badly and rarely paying them.  He complains constantly of having no money whilst attending casinos and spending a fortune on entertaining.  Colette agrees to be his one and only ghost writer and great success follows her semi-autobiographical novels all under Willy's name although everyone knows she is the author.  Willy is desperate for money, always overspending and secretely sells the rights to Colette's novels.

The  success of her writing soon inspires Colette to fight for creative ownership and overcome the social constraints of the early 20th century.

She leaves Willy when she finds out that he has betrayed her and forges a very successful future for herself, writing a great number of books .

The film this month was 'The Duke'  starring Jim Broadbent (Kempton Bunton)Helen Mirren (Dorothy Bunton) Fionn Whitehead (Jackie) and Matthew Goode (Jeremy Hutchinson, Barrister)
 The Duke is a 2020 true life,  British comedy-drama directed by Roger Mitchell.

In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a  60 year old self educated working class taxi driver, stole Goya's portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.  It was the first and remains the only theft in the Gallery's history.  Kempton sent ransom notes saying that he would return the painting on condition that the government invested more in care for the elderly - he had long campaigned for pensioners to receive free television.  What happened next became the stuff of legend.  Only 50 years later did the full story emerge.  He was a good man, determined to change the world and save his marriage - his daughter had died and both he and his wife were unable to cope with this situation.  How and why he used the Duke to achieve that is a wonderfully uplifting tale.
In 1961 Bunton appears in Court No. 1 at the Old Bailey, pleading not guilty to charges of stealing the painting and its frame from the National Gallery.
6 months earlier he is jailed for 13 days for watching TV without a licence.  Although Bunton can afford one, he refuses to do so as he is campaigning against pensioners having to pay it, part of his wider strong beliefs about supporting the common man.Eventually Bunton panics and returns the painting to the gallery confessing the crime.  His barrister Jeremy Hutchinson, defends him on the grounds he had no intention to deprive the Gallery permanently but instead simply 'borrowed it' to further his campaign.    The jury acquits Bunton of all charges except the theft of the picture frame for which he serves a 3 month sentence.
Text at the end of the film states that in 2000 TV Licences were made free to people over the age of 75!!

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The February meeting was held at Sally's house.  The film shown was

'The Scapegoat'.  It is a British film adaptation of Daphne de Maurier's 1957 novel of the same name.  It was broadcast on ITV in September 2012 and was written and directed by Charles Sturridge.

Cast: Matthew Rhys (John and Johnny)

Alice Orr-Ewing (Francis)                       Eileen Atkins (Lady Spence)

Andrew Scott (Paul)                               Johdi May (Blanche)

Sheridan Smith (Nina)

Set in 1952, as Britain prepares for the coronation, The Scapegoat tells the provocative story of two very different men who have one thing in common - a face.  John Standing an unemployed teacher, meets his doppelganger Johnny Spence and, after a drunken night, is manoeuvred into swapping lives with him.  Standing is suddenly responsible for a beautiful young wife, two mistresses, a drug abusing mother, a precocious daughter, a crumbling stately home and a bankrupt business.  Despite his efforts to escape, John finds himself irresistibly drawn into Johnny's life - with fatal consequences.

The Scapegoat is a morally complex, darkly comic and suspenseful movie, and featuring compelling performances from the film's cast.

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The group met at Ralph's home on Wednesday 25 January.  The film shown was 'Rear Window' directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starred his favourites - James Stewart and Grace Kelly.  This was the 1954 original - there have been a few remakes, though in my opinion, not as successful as the first.

Cast: James Stewart (Jeff)                   Grace Kelly (Lisa)

Thelma Ritter (Stella)                            Raymond Burr (Thorwold)

Wendell Corey (Det. Lt. Thomas)

Stewart plays a professional news photographer, confined to his flat, in a wheelchair with a broken leg after being injured whilst reporting from  a racetrack.

He passes the time recuperating by observing his neighbours through his rear window which looks out onto the backs of a block of flats.  Because of the sweltering heat everyone has their windows open and their blinds drawn back.

He gives most of the neighbours names Miss Lonely Hearts, the Newly Weds, Miss Torso - a ballet teacher, the Songwriter who plays the same tune over and over again and a Travelling Salesman and his wife who is confined to bed  with the couple constantly bickering.

Stewart sees what he believes to be a murder and decides to solve the crime himself.  With the help of his nurse (Ritter) and his girlfriend (Kelly) he tries to  catch the murderer without being killed himself.  He reports his findings to his friend Det. Lt. Thomas, who believes he has a fertile imagination and doesn't take Stewart's suspicions seriously.

The film is well acted, it has suspense and humour and the tension slowly builds until the last chilling final ten minutes, it takes a while to get there, but there is literally never a dull moment.

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The last meeting was held on 30 November at Anne's home.  The film watched was the story of Noah and the ark taken from the Book of Genesis.

Russell Crowe                                 Jennifer Connelly
Emma Watson                                  Logan Lerman
Anthony Hopkins                              Ray Winstone 

Noah is a 2014 spectacular and intense drama directed by Darren Aronotsky who co-wrote the screenplay with Ari Handel.

When God decides that mankind has become too sinful and must be wiped  off the Earth, he chooses Noah (R.Crowe) , a pious man, for  a monumental mission - to build an ark large enough to carry his wife (J. Connelly), adopted daughter (E.Watson) who he rescued from a burning village where all had been murdered, sons (L.Larman) (Douglas Booth) (Leo McHugh Carroll) and their wives - plus breeding pairs of all animals.When the task is completed, Noah and his family witness God's wrath in the form of an apocalyptic flood.

Unfortunately, with his wife past child-bearing age, only one son has a wife, the adopted daughter and because of the injuries she received when her village was attacked she is barren.  The other 2 sons have no wives. Anthony Hopkins has a cameo part as Noah's grandfather  - a bit of a wizard - and he blesses the young girl and she becomes able to become pregnant.

She and her husband are then expected to populate the world!!

The special effects are tremendous and even though many liberties are taken with the original story from the Bible, it moves along at a fast pace and if you can stand a certain degree of violence and wizardry and can make out what is happening in the gloom - of which there is a lot - it is an interesting film.

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The October showing was 'THE GOOD NURSE'

Cast: Jessica Chastain                  Eddie Redmayne
Nnamdi Asomugha                        Noah Emmerich
 Director: Tobias Lindholm              Released 11 September 20 

This is a thriller based on the true-crime case of Charles Cullen, the New Jersey nurse who in 2003 was finally arrested after apparently  killing hundreds of patients over 7 years and 9 hospitals by covertly administering lethal, intravenous overdoses.

Eddie Redmayne is the insidiously personable and caring Cullen and Jessica Chastain plays his co-worker, an overworked fellow nurse called Amy a real-life figure who really did befriend Cullen, suspect the worst and work with the police to get him caught.

Single mum Amy is under terrible strain at work and secretly prone to faintness but she still needs more months in the job before she is eligible for health benefits.  Her new best friend Charlie offers to help her, look after her daughter when she's working late, cover up her cardiac condition and even show her how to steal meds from the hospital supply - so Amy becomes unknowingly complicit in his dysfunction and a quasi-patient figure for Charlie, someone that he wants to make dependent on him and a queasy hint of his larger compulsion.  The hospital authorities themselves are uneasily aware of unexplained deaths but do not want to admit it, like all Cullen's previous employers, and so conspire to obstruct the investigation from the two dogged cops - Detectives Danny Baldwin and Tim Braun.

A creepily watchable drama!!

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The film shown in September was 'The Trick'
Jason Watkins                  Victoria Hamilton
Adrian Edmondson           George Mackay
Jerome Flynn                     Aneurin Hughes

Philip Jones the world-renowned Professor and Director of climate change at the University of East Anglia finds himself in the eye of an international media storm and the victim of cyberterrorism.

This true conspiracy thriller and cautionary tale tells the story of the 2009 climategate scandal which undermined confidence in the science of climate change.for Professor Jones and his team.They find themselves in the middle of a major investigation with their 30 years of research work being questioned in the first 'fake news' attack.

In the end, their names are cleared but  Professor Jones' mental health suffers during the investigation  and he is very close to suicide on several occasions.

The investigation team come to the conclusion, privately, that all the false evidence pointed to the power companies on the east coast of America. 

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The last meeting was at Anne's house on 27 July.  The film shown was 'Going in Style' - a 2017 American heist comedy .
Michael Caine - Joe
Morgan Freeman - Willie
Alan Arkin - Al
Ann-Margret - Annie
Matt Dillon - FBI Agent

Joe, Al and Willie are 3 senior citizens, their previous employers - a huge Steel Company, decide to move their works to Asia and to stop paying all pensions.  Joe visits his bank for a talk with its manager regarding rent arrears as he is soon to lose his house.Whilst there, a robbery takes place, quickly and smoothly with no violence.  This gives Joe and idea and together with his two friends, plans to rob the local bank of just enough money to cover them for the rest of their lives.

The robbery does not go smoothly as Willie briefly  collapses (he is in desperate need of a kidney transplant).  They hide the  stolen money whilst the FBI agent (Matt Dillon) tries desperately to prove their guilt.
It has a happy ending.

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The last meeting was held on 29th June at Nick's home.  The Film shown was 'Atonement' - a 2007 romantic war drama.  Keira Knightly (Cecilia) James McAvoy (Robbie) Saoirse Ronan (Briony) 
On a hot summer day in 1935 England, 13yr old Briony witnesses a flirtation between her older sister Cecilia and Robbie, son of a housekeeper.  But Briony's incomplete grasp of adult motives and her precocious imagination bring about a crime that will change all their lives, a crime whose repercussions follows through the chaos and carnage of WW11 and into the close of the 20th century.
It is about a person's desperate attempt to attone for her sin by staying with a conscious feeling of guilt which results in a major character change.
A wonderfully acted film- moving from happy - sad - happy - sad throughout. 
Well worth a viewing.
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May's film was 'The Shawshank Redemption'

The main characters:-: Morgan Freenman as 'Red'; Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne and Bob Gunton as Warden Norton.

This 1994 oscar nominated film is an American drama written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on a Stephen King novella.

Andy Dufresne, a successful banker, is wrongfully arrested for the murder of his wife and her lover and is sentenced to life imprisonment at the maximum security Shawshank prison where he becomes the most unconventional prisoner.  He spends 19 years in prison in 1950's Maine and shows the other inmates perseverance and provides a sense of hope and optimism in the bleakest of places and under the most difficult circumstances. 

The gritty world of Shawshank prison is populated with sadistic guards, a corrupt warden and predatory fellow inmates.  Prison rape, while not graphically shown, is very strongly implied.  Guards beat and kill an inmate and a prisoner is shot and killed.  There is also frequent profanity. However, the film also shows inmates forming a loving community of friends and support despite oppressive conditions and a sense of maintaining perseverance and hope in the darkest of hours. Robbins brings about reform and great change during his 19 years - he escapes so this very intense film has a happy ending!!
 
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The last meeting was on Wednesday 26 May at Anne's house.  The film shown was 'Green Book'.

Viggo Mortensen
Mahershali  Ati
Director: Peter Farrelly

 Amidst rampant racism in the 1960's southern America, an African American pianist (Mahershali Ati) hires a loud mouthed Italian American bouncer  to act as his chauffeur/bodyguard driving him through his venues.

This is a deftly scripted film with a message about overcoming prejudice.  Anchored by two outstanding performances, this true story of an unlikely friendship centres on a goofy, lovable white  Italian-American from the Bronx who learns to be less racist after spending time with a cultured black man who

he is hired to drive and protect on a concert tour through the deep South.  It's often funny, with some poignant moments.

Yet the Green Book itself doesn't play much of a role in the film.  Mortensen's character Tony, takes it on the trip and  leafs through it several times.  Early on he briefly explains its purpse to his wife Delores : to provide black travellers with information about 'safe' places to stay and eat while they travel.  He'll need to refer to it to do his job, getting Shirley from gig to gig safely throughout the musician's 8 week tour. He has to get Shirley out of a tight spot on many occasions.  But after that, the book is not mentioned by name , even as the pair encounter the full gamut of racism during the trip - ranging from casual remarks to 'genteel' discrimination to violent hostility from civilians, bar patrons and police.  Indeed, we typically see it only when Tony quietly picks it up to find motels in which Shirley can safely stay.

We enjoyed the film very much but needed the lighter moments to counteract the dark racism which threaded its way throughout.

 
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We last met at Nick's house on Wednesday 23 February
The film shown was 'The Dig'

Cast:
Cary Mulligan as Edith Pretty   Archie Barnes as Robert Pretty (her young son)
Ralph Fiennes as Basil Brown Lily James as Peggy Piggott
John Flynn as Rory Lomax - Edith's cousin
Ken Stott as Charles Phillips    Monica Dolan as May Brown 

In 1939 Suffolk, landowner and widow Edith Pretty hires local self-taught archaeologist-excavator Basil Brown to investigate the large burial mounds at her rural estate in Sutton Hoo near Woodbridge.  Brown's former employers from the Ipswich Museum try unsuccessfully to persuade him to work on a Roman villa they deem more important.  They ignore Brown, who left school aged 12, when he suggests the mounds could be Anglo-Saxon rather then the more common Viking era.
Working with assistants from Pretty's estate, Brown slowly excavates the more promising of the mounds.  One day the trench collapses on him, but they dig him out in time.  Meanwhile he spends more time with Edith Pretty and her young son Robert, finding common interest in archaeology and astronomy with them.  However, he does not become unfaithful to his wife and we see that they are an amicable couple.  His wife supports his jobs as excavator despite them being low wage.  Meanwhile, Edith struggles with her health, warned by a Consultant to avoid stress.
Barnes is astonished to uncover iron rivets from a ship, suggesting that it is the burial site of someone of tremendous distinction, such as a King.  Edith hires her cousin Rory Lomax to join the project.  News of the discovery soon spreads and Cambridge archaeologist Charles Phillips arrives, declares the site to be of national importance and takes over the dig by order of the Office of Works.  As World War II approaches Phillips Brings in a larger team including Peggy Piggott who uncovers proof that it is Anglo-Saxon in origin.  Brown is demoted to only keep the site in order, but Edith intervenes and he resumes digging.  Brown discovers a Morovingian Tremissis, a small gold coil and this is the start of the discovery of wonderful treasures.  Phillips wants to send all the artifacts to the British Museum, but Edith, concerned about war raids in London, asserts her rights.  An inquest finding confirms that she is the owner of the ship and its priceless treasure trove of grave goods.  Edith eventually decides to donate the Sutton Hoo treasure to the British Museum  requesting that Brown be given recognition for his work.  The film ends with Brown and his co-workers replacing earth over the ship to preserve it.
 At the end as the credits roll, text explains that Edith died in 1942.  The treasure was hidden in the London Underground during the war and first exhibited - without any mention of Basil Brown - 9 years after Edith's death.  Only recently was Brown given full credit for his contribution and his name is now displayed permanently alongside Edith Pretty's at the British Museum.

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We met this month at Anne's house in Tregynon to watch the heart warming 2009 film 'Invictus'  directed by Clint Eastwood, starring Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon, Tony Kgoroge and Adjoa Andoh.

It tells the inspiring true story of how Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) recently elected  President of South Africa, joined forces with the captain  - Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) of South Africa's rugby team to help unite their country. Mandela knows his nation remains racially and economically  divided in the wake of apartheid.  Believing he can bring his people together through the universal  language of  sport, Mandela rallies S.A's underdog rugby team  - the Springboks  and they make an unlikely run to the 1995 World Cup's championship match - they win and for one day at least, 43 million South Africans are united.

A very inspiring film with wonderful performances especially by Morgan Freeman as Mandela and Matt Damon as Pienaar.
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The last meeting was on 27 October at Nick's house.  4 members attended.

The film shown was 'The Devil Wears Prada' - a 2006 American comedy/drama directed by David Frankel.  The main characters were played by Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway.
Andy (A.H) is a recent college graduate aspiring to be a journalist who comes to New York with big dreams, and lands a job  at the prestigious 'Runway' magazine as assistant  to one of the city's biggest editors - the ruthless and cynical  Miranda Priestly (MS).
Andy's life is totally taken over by the editor who summons her day and night. With no time to herself  and the relationship with her boyfriend and friends in shreds, is this what she wants and how long can she cope with this full-on, frantic style of living.
Finally she comes to her senses realising that this madness is not for her, lands herself her dream job, reconnects with her boyfriend and friends and life returns to an even keel once again.

29 September we last met at Ralph's  for the showing of 'Witness for the Prosecution', written by Agatha Christie - not previously known for her courtroom dramas, but the film has since become one of her most adapted and best known.  It was directed by Billy Wilder in 1957 in black and white and was nominated for 6 oscars.  The main characters were played by Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich and Elsa Lanchester.

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We met yesterday 26th February at Sally's home, battling through the flood water!  The film was 'The Children Act' written by Ian McEwan, based on his 2014 novel of the same name.  It stars Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci and Fionn Whitehead.

Fiona Maye (Emma Thompson) is an eminent high court judge in London presiding with wisdom and compassion over ethically complex cases of family law.  But she has paid a heavy personal price for her work-load and her marriage to American professor Jack (Stanley Tucci) is at breaking point.

In this moment of personal crisis, Fiona is asked to rule on the case of Adam (Fionn Whitehead) a brilliant boy who is refusing(for religious reasons) a blood transfusion which will save his life.  Adam is three months from his 18th birthday and still legally a child.  Should Fiona force him to live?  Fiona visits Adam in hospital and  their meeting has a profound impact on them both, stirring strong new emotions in the boy and long-buried longings in her.

The whole cast give wonderful performances but Emma Thompson carries the whole film.  A must see!!

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We met twice in January as Christmas got in the way in December!

8 January - we met at Nick's home to watch 'Mrs Lowry and Son' starring

Timothy Spall and  Vanessa Redgrave and hardly anyone else.  It is a biographical drama set in Pendlebury, Greater Manchester chronicling the life of the renowned artist L.S.Lowry and considers the relationship between him and his overbearing, bed-ridden and bitter mother Elizabeth who has reservations over her son's career in painting.  She tries to dissuade him from pursuing his passion whilst never failing to voice her opinion at her disappointment in him.  The two leads gave a masterclass in acting but on the whole it was an inert and dismal film and considering the life he endured, it was surprising how Lowry produced the work he did.

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29 January - We met at Anne's home to watch 'The Monuments Men' This was directed by George Clooney and written and produced by Clooney and Grant Heslov.  The film has many star actors  including George Clooney -

Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh

Bonneville and Cate Blanchett. It is a fact-based World War 11 drama about a platoon  who are sent to Germany in order to rescue  creative masterpieces - including statues and paintings from Nazi thieves and return them to their legal owners.  The film makes a profound point in a subtle way - that the Fuhrer's ambition if left unchecked would have been world-altering, in the most unsettling of ways.  The hunting down of the treasures mostly hidden in mines was exciting and fast-moving but we were reminded of the atrocities of  war by the huge containers filled with gold fillings from the teeth of prisoners.  Many treasures were recovered, but many destroyed by the retreating  Germans. There was a very short time-slot for recovery as the Russians were advancing  and they too wanted the   globally important cultural artifacts.

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The last meeting was on Wednesday 27th November at Ralph's home.  He chose the film 'Salmon Fishing in the Yemen'.
It stars Ewan McGregor as Fred Jones, a fisheries expert who is approached by Harriet (Emily Blunt) on behalf of an extremely rich Middle Eastern client with a plan to introduce salmon into the waterways of Yemen.  Despite Fred's protests, he soon finds himself working on a project that seems not only frivolous but absolutely unfeasible in the arid land of Yemen.  Yet as the mission begins, they find that hope can spring - even in the most unexpected places!  The local people who were not consulted about the project, retaliate by sabotage - but all is not lost  and the  scheme is started once again, this time working with the locals.
 It was written by Oscar winning screenwriter Simon Beaufoy (The Full Monty, Slumdog Millionaire) and featuring hilarious performances from the stellar cast, the film is an unmissable tale of overcoming the odds!

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The last meeting took place at 2 pm. on Wednesday 25 September at Anne's house.  The film was 'Hampstead' starring Diane Keaton and Brendan Gleeson as the main characters but also starred James Norton, Lesley Manville, Phil Davis and Simon Callow.  It was listed as being 'funny, uplifting and full  of heart' although all of us agreed that it lacked comedy.  Inspired by true events, Hampstead tells the story of an American widow who, one day when exploring the gorgeous area surrounding her home in Hampstead Village, meets a man who lives off-grid in his own private paradise on the Heath and the two strike up an unexpected romance.  However, when unscrupulous property developers threaten to uproot the man, destroy his home and build luxury flats in its place, the widow is determined to fight back to defend the Heath as well as the man she loves.

tears - he HAD  made a difference to someone.

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The last meeting was on Wednesday 31st at Sally's home.  The film shown was 'The Aviator'. The film was a 2004 American epic biographical film directed by Martin Scorsese.  It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes, Kate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn and Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner.

Billionaire Howard Hughes is a successful public figure, a director of big budget films, a passionate lover of Hollywood leading ladies and an aviation pioneer who helps build TWA into a major airline.  But, in private, he remains tormented suffering from paralysing phobias and depression.

The film is 10 minutes short of 3 hours and on the whole we did not enjoy the first 3/4 of the story - it almost became a farce - the setting was 1920's and 1930's with a great many parties with very loud music and people shouting at each other in a attempt to be heard above the entertainment.  In fact everyone shouted throughout the film. The last quarter of the film was more bearable but sad as the health of Hughes deteriorated and he became more obsessed with his phobias.  There is no doubt that he was a brilliant aviator but that couldn't save the film as far as we were concerned!

 
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We met on Wednesday 26 June at Ralph's home in Berriew. The film was 'The Descendants' starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Amara Miller and Nick Crause.

 George Clooney plays a workaholic Hawaian real estate lawyer with a cheating wife and two children who he barely knows.  When a tragic motor boat accident leaves his wife in a coma, not only must Matt struggle with the stipulation in her will that she be allowed to die with dignity, but he also faces pressures from relatives to sell their family's enormous trust land.  Angry and terrified at the same time Matt tries to be a good father to his young daughters as they too try to cope with their mother's possible death.

 Rather a lot of swearing but still an enjoyable film as we watch Matt get to know his daughters all over again.  Wonderful scenery too.

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The last meeting was on Wednesday 29th May at Anne's house in Tregynon.The film shown was a Merchant Ivory film 'Before The Rains', a bold, intensely beautiful tale of romance torn between two worlds.

Southern India in the 1930's: against the tumultuous backdrop of growing national unrest an idealistic young man T.K. finds himself torn between his ambitions for the future and his loyalty to the past when people in his village learn of an affair between his British boss Moores (Linus Roache) and local village girl Sanjani.  As he struggles with the new found freedom that revolution threatens to bring to a culture steeped in tradition, loyalty and honour, T.K.witnesses first-hand the tragedy, betrayal and intense passion which are ignited in a country teetering on the brink of history.

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The last meeting took place at Nick's home in Abermule on Wednesday 24 April.  The film shown was 'Memoirs of a Geisha' Winner of 3 Oscars in 2006 and starring Suzuka Ohgo and Togo Igawa.
This story is a rare and utterly engaging experience - it tells the extraordinary story of a geisha, summoning up a quarter-century from 1929 to the post-war years of Japan's dramatic world of eroticism and enchantment, exploitation and degradation.
A young peasant girl is sold as servant and apprentice to a renowned geisha house.  She is sold by her father,  together with her older sister to pay for medicine for her dying mother.  She tells her story many years later from the Waldorf Astoria in New York.  Her memoirs conjure up the perfection and the ugliness of life behind rice-paper screens, where young  girls learn the art of geisha - dancing and singing, how to wind the kimono, how to walk and pour tea and how to beguile the land's most powerful men.

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The last meeting was on Wednesday 27th March  at Sally's home near Shrewsbury.The film 'LOVING' starred Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga.

In 1958 in the state of Virginia, the idea of interracial marriage was not only considered to be immoral to many, it was also illegal.  When Richard and Mildred fall in love, they are aware of the eyes staring at them and the words said behind their backs.  It is when they get married, however, that words and looks become actions, and the two are arrested.  The couple decide to take their case all the way to the Supreme Court in order to fight for their love .

New laws were passed and they won their case.

If you want action and a fast-moving film - this is not for you, but it is a true story of just an ordinary couple who wanted to live together as husband and wife. It was interesting to see how accepted Joel was by the black community and how  unacceptable Mildred was to the white community. Shame on us!