Smart writing on great drama. Mostly British. Mostly television and film -- from Pride and Prejudice to Spooks (MI-5) and much more. If its good drama, I'm on it.
I just finished reading Remains of the Day. It was a remarkable book. But even more remarkable perhaps is the fact that now having read it, I am put in the unusual position of finding that experiencing a book deepened my appreciation of its film adaptation.
The book is a moving and intimate portrait of Mr. Stevens. With its narrow beam on Stevens' internal dialog and its brilliant first person narrative, the book breaths precious life into both large scale changes going on in the world and and the introspective twilight of an individual man's life. It is poignant, touching, sad and thought provoking -- compelling literature.
As for the film, which I've seen a couple of times: I knew that it was good, even great, but until now I didn't realize how remarkably true to the story as written by Kazuo Ishiguro, it was. Yes, there are a couple of small details that changed, but the film manages to mirror the amazing subtlety and introspective tone found in the book and follow the plot very closely indeed. It is shocking how some scenes, such as those involving Stevens' elderly father, played out with as much and more heartbreaking poingnancy in the film as in the book.
The central messages of the film/book are equally ambiguous: Stevens' definitions of "dignity" and "greatness" (as it pertains to butlery?), Stevens' priorities which fascinatingly allow him to ignore the real moments of his own life while supporting the work of men he is convinced are great and who dabble in major world events. It is easy to judge Stevens and find great loss in how he has lived, but who is to say that his notions and his service were wholly wrong? Giving of oneself totally in service to others is something few modern people understand. He is nothing if not intelligent and intentional with his choices.
In any case, although I enjoyed the film version very much before, now having read Remains of the Day, I am simply floored by what the movie was able to do.
In a recent post, I claimed that the "Book Scene" from Remains of the Day was the hottest scene ever put on film. I got to thinking about other really incredible love scenes. Scenes that are completely and fundamentally engaging. Scenes full of longing and desire. Scenes that are sexy but not in the easy way. Scenes involving complex relationships. Scenes of deeply moving humanity.
I'm sure I'll think of others that need to be on the list, but, for now, here is my list of the Five Hottest Scenes Ever Filmed.
#5. Harry Potter and Hermione Dancing.
Don't give me that look. This scene is amazing. The main thing that makes it amazing is the song: Nick Cave's O Children. Wow. I'd never heard of Nick Cave. and I think there's a whole group of people who had never heard of him either. I understand that some of his die-hard fans hate the Harry-Potter-given surge of fame, feeling that we don't somehow deserve to know him. We didn't fight for it and we weren't there at the beginning. I get that. But I think I'm cool enough to deserve this song. The amazing thing is that for one moment Harry Potter got to be cool enough to deserve this song.
This is a love scene because Hermione is full of brokenhearted longing, but not for Harry. The mood of this song is perfect for that odd other-worldly wizardy place and quest. It is dark and soulful and perfect at expressing one of the best scenes of friendship I've ever seen.
Since Warner Brothers seems to be removing all these clips from youtube and claiming copyright infringement, I may not be able to post it. But you know which one I mean. I found this clip, which seems to be raw footage and not directly from the film, so it doesn't have the same style and mood, but at least you can hear the song and get the general idea.
#4 Margaret Hale and John Thornton Balcony Scene in North and South
I wanted to include something from Margaret Hale and Mr. Thornton but had a hard time deciding which vignette. Of course the scene at the train station is more satisfying ultimately, because it is the resolution of their great attraction. But this one is more powerful and heady. There is an angry mob. Thornton and Margaret still do not know one another or where they stand. Her act of rushing out to his side on the balcony reads, to the initiated, as a powerful declaration of love, yet she herself doesn't see it that way. She sees it as an act of humanity. When they are grabbing each other, jostling on the balcony, that level of touch is so strong a statement for the period. His hand, almost in her hair after the rock hits her, to the savvy viewer is so intimate. The scene represents the height of confusion for these characters trying to figure out who the other is and see if they even like each other, or maybe love each other. Or whether their bodies know more than their own minds do about what they should be.
#3 Jane and Mr. Rochester beneath a tree in Jane Eyre
When I first read Jane Eyre as a girl in high school, I remember being blown away by this scene. I was stunned that a dried up old Victorian book could contain anything like this. The revelation that there was this kind of modern feeling, intensity and passion in classic literature was so unexpected, shocking and exciting that it unleashed an enduring interest in classics. These performances move me to tears in one of my favorite scenes of all time.
#2 Ruth and Harry say goodbye in Spooks Season 5
I have not even seen the full episode of Spooks from which this comes. I've seen, seasons 7, 8 and 1-3 in that order so I know I haven't "gotten to" the good stuff between Harry and Ruth yet. (Doing any reading about the series leads immediately to "Harry and Ruth" tags, so its impossible to be completely unaware of their continually thwarted love if you are a Spooks fan).
My first exposure to them together was in season 8 when, under tragic and deeply distressing circumstances, Ruth rejoined the team. The marvelous acting of Nicola Walker and Peter Firth told me immediately that these characters had History. Now, with these earlier seasons for my evenings viewing, I am finding myself really drawn to Ruth - her brilliance and quirkiness; she's cute as hell, funny and always brings the team to reality and sanity. I just couldn't wait for their relationship to unfold so helped myself now by plunging in headlong to the Youtube wealth of video on these two. This scene is stunning! Even if you don't know the full back story -- which I don't --, even if you know nothing about them, it would be hard to stay unmoved by these performances. I don't think I've seen anything more touching and heartbreaking than this goodbye, not to mention, just plain old sexy. Look how close the camera is... how you can hear Harry breathing when they kiss. A truly awesome scene.
Yeah, OK, anyone under the age of 30 should just ignore that heading. But if you are, say, a grown up and are interested in what is really hot, not in terms of bodies but in terms of minds, take a fresh look at this scene from Remains of the Day. The Book Scene.
The desire and longing in this exceptionally well acted scene is palpable. The music, the lighting perfectly complement it. Anthony Hopkins' gaze and his right hand so near Emma Thompson, but not touching, just not quite willing to go there.... A life changing moment. I have never in my life wanted more for two people to kiss.
Oh, and if you want to see some more "Hottest Scenes Ever Filmed" click on this list.
The Hottest Scene Ever Filmed: The Book Scene from Remains of the Day. LostinBritishTV
The book is a moving and intimate portrait of Mr. Stevens. With its narrow beam on Stevens' internal dialog and its brilliant first person narrative, the book breaths precious life into both large scale changes going on in the world and and the introspective twilight of an individual man's life. It is poignant, touching, sad and thought provoking -- compelling literature.
As for the film, which I've seen a couple of times: I knew that it was good, even great, but until now I didn't realize how remarkably true to the story as written by Kazuo Ishiguro, it was. Yes, there are a couple of small details that changed, but the film manages to mirror the amazing subtlety and introspective tone found in the book and follow the plot very closely indeed. It is shocking how some scenes, such as those involving Stevens' elderly father, played out with as much and more heartbreaking poingnancy in the film as in the book.
