dual*ities
Monday, February 07, 2005
not a film critique
No powerline from the more recent films I’ve watched rings truer to me that the one above. It’s no cliché, yet it speaks the truth. The quote made me look back to the most trying times in the various stages of my life with a sigh…and then with a smile. Volunteering in Bulan. Traveling alone amidst (or perhaps against) challenging forces of nature. Surviving demanding terror teachers and impossibly difficult exams (yes this too, haha.). Dealing with the loss of dear friends. These are just some of the more difficult situations that I’ve found myself in, which turned out to be wonderful experiences of growth and self-discovery in the end. Many times, these encounters also worked out to be the best bonding moments I’ve had with friends and loved ones. Of course, it was not always all that fun while I was in the situation (although sometimes, they were). But when I think of these moments now, what I remember is not so much the pain and struggle, but the joy of coming out of those experiences a little stronger and wiser. Of course, the workings of time, as well as the benefit of hindsight has a lot to do with one’s ability to see such things in a positive light. But it is true what Charles Dickens said, “It is the worst of times, it is the best of times.” It really is all just a matter of perspective.=)
Anyway, lest I forget, the quote came from the European film L'Auberge Espagnole (The Spanish Apartment), the video of which I rented a couple of days ago. I wasn’t going to do so, since it didn’t seem like an acclaimed film or something. But I felt like watching a foreign film that night, and I saw Audrey Tatou (Amelie, A Very Long Engagement) on the video case cover, so I decided to give it a try. Not that I’m a big Audrey Tatou fan, but it was just nice to recognize her from the list of cast members. In fact, I thought she was the star of the movie. I mean, if you saw a poster (or a video casing) of the film such as the one below, you’d think that too, wouldn’t you?
the spanish apartment
Audrey is right smack in the middle, isn’t she? And she got top billing too. But the funny thing is, she only appeared in the movie for a total of about 10-15 minutes (tops!). A cameo role, really. It was, undoubtedly a clever marketing ploy to get people to watch the film. Audrey is currently the hot thing in
Back to the film, it was actually surprisingly good, Tatou or no Tatou. It’s about a young man from France who goes to
Another interesting thing about the film is that one of its cast members, Belgian actress Cecile De France (Around the World in 90 Days), looks sooo much like Kate Moennig (Young Americans, The L Word). What an uncanny resemblance—from the hair, to the facial expressions, to the slouch and manner of walking, down to the way of dressing! Also worth noting is that De France’s character Isabelle, in one passing scene, mentions that she babysits part-time (reminiscent of Moennig’s role in The Shipping News). Later on, she further reveals that she is lesbian (which reminds one of Moennig’s character Shane in The L Word). Harhar. That one cracked me up. Talk about coincidence. If you want to see what I'm talking about, take a look for yourself:
two of a kind
With that, I end my entry. It's a little bit anti-climactic, but what the heck.=) I already wrote more that I intended to anyway. Got a little carried away there. But just to make things clear, as the title of this post suggests, this is NOT a film critique. I’ll leave the responsibility of doing intelligent reviews to the experts. Getting to do the oohing, ahhing and, of course, the nitpicking is enough for me.=)
