comedy

The Importance of Being Earnest

/ antonioyrocinante / 2 Comments

Although I went to a business school for university, I took all the literature and history courses I could take. That should have been a big flag, as usual, I missed it.

One such class was a Victorian literature course which changed my perspective on life. I was introduced to Alfred Lord Tennyson (you can read about that here), the whole pantheon of Victorian writers and poets and of course Oscar Wilde, precisely The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People, and specifically Lady Bracknell’s hilarious interrogation of John Worthing (Ernest). That reading was around 40 years ago. After reading and rereading the play, reciting that same exchange in different venues, I finally got to see a theatre production -albeit in Spanish.

Celia and I went to the Teatro Pavon in the trendy Latina district to see the play. Besides the translation, it was modified as a bit of a musical with about half a dozen songs thrown in. I guess the director felt the need to make the play a bit more “fun” than it already is…

“I am sick to death of cleverness. Everybody is clever nowadays.”
― Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest

At any rate, the play was hilarious, well performed, even with the musical numbers and we really enjoyed it. After the play we enjoyed an apperitif at trendy Plaza de Cascorro and then had oxtail for dinner at Madrid’s oldest tavern, Antonio Sanchez!

“I hate people who are not serious about meals. It is so shallow of them.”
― Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest

If you have not read this play or seen it in the theatre or in various film versions, do it. You are welcome.

“I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit; touch it and the bloom is gone.”― Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest

Jojo Rabbit

/ antonioyrocinante / 4 Comments

As I write this the planet is in lockdown due to the Coronavirus – Covid 19 pandemic. So, since I am stuck at home, how about some blogging?

One good thing about being back in a big city like Madrid is the ease of going to the cinema. One can walk or easily take public transport to the many movie theaters. Recently (pre-pandemic obvs) I went to see JoJo Rabbit.

Spain has an outstanding film dubbing industry. All movies are very well dubbed. Fortunately, there is always the option of seeing non-Spanish language films in the original language with subtitles, these are called Versión Original. Whenever possible I go to the cinemas that only show VO films.

Without any spoilers, JoJo Rabbit is a film about Third Reich Germany as seen through the eyes of a ten-year-old German boy (Roman Griffin Davis) who happens to have a very special secret friend: Adolf Hitler. This film does not fit into any category, it feels like an indie, it is a comedy, a drama, a coming of age, a war movie, etc. Labels do not do this film justice. To give you an idea of the eccentricity of the film, it ends with Bowie’s “Heroes” juxtaposed with this quote from Rainer Maria Rilke (The Book of Hours (I, 59):

“Let everything happen to you. Beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final.”

I’m sure that some might read “Third Reich”, “Adolf Hitler”, “comedy” and automatically call the PC Patrol, just like they did with Borat. But you might miss the point that humor is an excellent tool to open eyes and hearts.

A couple of technical bits about the film: the only “star” is JoJo’s mom, Rosie, Scarlett Johansson. The film is directed by Kiwi Taika Waititi, who was inspired by Christine Leunens’s book Caging Skies which his mom recommended. By the way, Waititi does the role of Hitler -as seen through a ten-year-old boy, and it is hilarious!

As my followers know, I am a big fan of Wes Anderson and Woody Allen, and this film has a bit of both, it is colorful, insightful, and funny.

I could go on and on, but here is the trailer and now go out and see the film. You can thank me in the comments section!!

‘Love is the strongest thing in the world.’ – Rosie