Films...

By Tracy

We've watched more films this week than in a long time: one at the cinema -- a rare evening outing for our wedding anniversary -- and then another two nights ago on DVD.

The film at the Paradiso was The Savages -- watchable for the terrific performances from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, not to mention Philip Bosco as their father in the story -- but not exactly upbeat. (In fact, if you were depressed, you'd have to skip it.) It wasn't plot-driven; it was a mood and character piece. But the acting made it worth seeing.

The film on DVD -- This is England -- was something else. John had already seen it but I hadn't, and it has stayed with me (I dreamt about it all night after seeing it!). It's an "inside" look at early skinheads in the north of England, in the 1980s -- fictionalised but based on the filmmaker's own experiences -- and is disturbing, moving and thought-provoking. Again, intense and nuanced performances from -- I was going to say the leads, but in fact from the whole cast.