Daily Archives: August 31, 2016

Ashes and Diamonds (1958)

Posted on August 31, 2016 | 4 comments

Ashes and Diamonds (Popiol i diament)
Directed by Andrezej Wajda
Written by Jerzy Andrezejewski and Andrezej
1958/Poland
Zespol Filmowy “Kadr”
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental
#348 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

[box] Krystyna: So often, are you as a blazing torch with flames/ of burning rags falling about you flaming, /you know not if flames bring freedom or death. /Consuming all that you must cherish /if ashes only will be left, and want Chaos and tempest…

Maciek Chelmicki: …Or will the ashes hold the glory of a starlike diamond… /The Morning Star of everlasting triumph.[/box]

The beauty and power of this film take my breath away.

The film takes place on the day the Germans surrender to the Allies at the end of WWII. The Polish Home Army continues to fight.  Maciek is now a soldier and hitman for the nationalists.  He takes orders from Andrezej.  Their mission is to assassinate a leader of the Communist side.  The first attempt goes badly wrong when they kill two innocent men who show up at the wrong place and time.

The group proceed to town to take a second crack at the kindly old man.  They find themselves in a hotel where a banquet celebrating the Allied victory is taking place.  When Maciek falls for a beautiful barmaid, he has a crisis of conscience.

The story is a simple one but the psychological depth and symbolic representation of warring strains within society are profound.  Each frame is composed for maximum impact.  The deep-focus photography is stunning.  Highly recommended.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tryPWICfQDc

Clip

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Posted in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, 1958

The Last Hurrah (1958)

Posted on August 31, 2016 | Leave a comment

The Last Hurrah
Directed by John Ford
Written by Frank S. Nugent from the novel by Edwin O’Connor
1958/USA
Columbia Pictures Corporation
First viewing/Amazon Instant

[box] Mayor Frank Skeffington: One more regret at my age won’t make much difference.[/box]

For me, the best thing about this old-fashioned homage to all things Irish-American was the chance to see so many great character actors from the 30’s and 40’s.  Not that Spencer Tracy is bad.

Mayor Frank Skeffington (Tracy) is running for his fifth term as mayor.  He seems like a shoe-in.  The old fox knows how to play his largely Irish-American constituency like a violin.  Rabid opposition from a newspaper editor (John Carradine) and others who trace their ancestry to the Mayflower is only a minor thorn in his side.

Skeffington’s nephew Adam Caufield (Jeffrey Hunter) works as a sports columnist for the opposition newspaper.  Skeffington invites Adam to tag along during the campaign.  Thus we see the politicking through an outsider’s eyes.  With many familiar faces including Donald Crisp, Jane Darwell, James Gleason, Pat O’Brien, and Basil Rathbone.

If I had not read the credits, I would have sworn that this was directed by Frank Capra only with less bite than his films ordinarily had.  Instead, of course, it is John Ford in humorous mode. This is a very highly rated film but for some reason I was not impressed.  All the acting is excellent though.

Trailer

 

 

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Posted in 1958