Words are beautiful...

WORDS from Everynone on Vimeo.

Planes, Trains, Automobiles and Ray Charles

Last night I watched the 1987 film 'Planes, Trains & Automobiles'. When I was growing up we had a VHS copy of this at home and I watched it numerous times, enamoured with John Candy's character and getting a strange sense of 1980's roadhouse Americana. Anyway, whenever I think of this film I'm immediately reminded of this tremendous scene:

Come down off the cross we could use the wood...

They've just manoeuvred the giant Jesus' head in to place in Poland. The footage reminds me of the scene in Theo Angelopoulos' epic film Ulysses' Gaze (1995) where a huge statue of Lenin has been dismantled and placed on a barge... in a striking moment, the camera watches on as Lenin's cold bust is carefully moved over the dockyards by a crane. Unfortunately I couldn't find a video of it on the net but I have posted the proceeding scene here which shows the barge slowly drifting down a canal.

This clip below is from another of Angelopoulos' films, Landscape in the Midst (1988), in which similar imagery is strikingly used; Lenin's hand is being lifted out of the water by a helicopter.

journey...doubt...nostalgia...

From Ulysses' Gaze (1995) directed by Theo Angelopoulos and starring Harvey Keitel.

...my golden basil

This song featured in a powerful scene in the film 'Head On' (1998). The film is about a 19 year-old second generation Greek man living in Melbourne and the issues and struggles he has to face with his family, culture, relationships and ultimately his sexuality. The film is moving and confronting and I couldn't help seeing similarities between the Greek and Latvian communities which exists in Australia; the difficulty in communication and conflict between the generations endure in both cultures not to mention identity crises. In one scene Ari (played wonderfully by Alex Dimitriades) starts dancing a beautiful Greek dance in the family kitchen after being pressured by his heavy-handed father. Ari lunges and sways around the kitchen and his father joins him. A young man caught in a dance with himself, his father, his culture and his identity.

I've put an English translation for the song which Ari was dancing to. The music and words were written by Stavros Kougioumtzis (1932-2005). This version is by Giorgios Dalaras.

Do not be angry with me, my dearest,
now that I am leaving for foreign lands,
I will turn into a bird and I will come
back again, to you.
Open your window,
my golden basil, my princess,
and with a sweet smile, wish me a good night.

Do not be angry with me, my dearest,
now that I am going away from you,
and come here awhile, let me see you,
let me say goodbye.
Open your window,
my golden basil, my princess,
and with a sweet smile, wish me a good night.