| Flicks

FLICKS: A Quiet Passion & One Week and a Day

Posted on 11 May 2017 by LeslieM

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

Even with the releases of King Arthur Legend of the Sword, starring Charlie Hunam, and Snatched, featuring Goldie Hawn and Amy Schumer, expect Marvel’s Guardian of the Galaxy Vol.2 to dominate the box office this weekend. In the following weeks, Alien Covenant and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man Tell No Tales will seek the box office bonanza, but there are still quieter movies opening this weekend.

A Quiet Passion is a two-hour biography about poet Emily Dickinson and her pastoral New England influences. This was a passion project of actress Cynthia Nixon (who plays Dickinson) with Terence Davies’ confident direction. A Quiet Passion is a worthy afternoon watching an episode of PBS’s Masterpiece Theater.

The film opens with young Emily being defiant in a girl’s boarding school. She graduates and returns home to live with her family. Her financially secure father, Edward (Robert Carradine), is a stern character, but supports Emily’s point of view. As America becomes divided by the Civil War, Emily writes poetry about battlefield bloodshed without ever leaving her Massachusetts mansion.

A Quiet Passion enters theatrical art house territory during these sequences. Matthew Brady’s famous photograph about the Gettysburg Battle is seen, with Emily Dickinson’s words providing color commentary. Later in the movie, a prone Dickinson lays in her sick bed near death. The cinematography from realism to Brady’s inspired sepia tone, makes the case that Emily Dickinson belongs to the ages.

An Israeli film with English subtitles, One Week and a Day opens this weekend. Despite being a foreign movie, the film feels like a contemporary American drama. It explores the aftermath of grief and the path of letting go through forgiveness.

With the loss of their son, Eyal and his wife Vicky attempt to continue their life as before. Something does not feel right to Eyal, so he returns to the classroom too soon, causing bureaucratic discomfort. In their new environment, both Eyal and Vicky learn the value of living life in the moment, by playing with kitty cats and performing pantomime with air guitars and medical aid. The film invites conversation. Fortunately for our community, director Asaph Polonsky will be at theaters May 13 & 14 for Q&As. Check theaters and Q&A times at http://bit.ly/AsaphInFlorida. One Week and A Day does not feature space battles and dancing Groots, but this weekend’s screening will be an enriching experience.

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