autumn of books

Shakespeare it is we talk about now.

Why is he still one of the writers I recommend to read, no matter what you have read and what you use to read? Why is he one of those we need to read to understand ourself, our culture and language?

We know mostly Shakespeare these days from the movies which are made from the books and we know there are plays in the theatre. But a young generation may ask why follow an old guys stories?

You may be right but that fella is not something else and he is not just something commercial.

Yes, he was already famous in his lifetime. But he was good and smart and did not just write some plays to entertain.

You may now say it is only dramas you'll watch but that's not true. He also wrote a lot of comedy- kind of. Yes, it can be fun to read his books.

So what is the most famous book of him, as he did wrote quite a lot?

Seems the most popular is the book of "Romeo and Julia". Many take it just as a story of two families who fight each other and two people falling in a forbidden love (which has been covert by many). 

Mostly we have read the book in school and found it kind of boring, or painful, dull or could not even take it. 

Schools like to take this book as they believe it is the most easy book to understand, but that is not really true as you are mostly to understand the love play as a young man but not the bigger picture. Shakespeare was by no mean just writing a love story, a tragic one, but it was much more. The fight was the main story actually, but it was a synonym for a political situation home in England and the fight between class systems and believes.  Yet, the play takes part in Italy which was meant to be a trick to avoid to not be able to show the play back home. Thought people did quite understood the message.

But let's look on the other books like those around from 1606.

They show the mood of the time and those plays addressed very powerful the political situation and social upheavals. They reflected the fraught cultural moment. Shakespeare wanted to show a mirror and  the pressure which was to live with. He also shows the religious terror and the beginning of the modern time clashing with the old standards.

The dramas and also tragedies of "King Lear", "Macbeth" and "Antony and Cleopatra" have been written in this theme and they use for example dark element as witches, grimly regicide and the obvious mad minded man and also goth elements. 

But it is horror you can't stop reading as the language of Shakespeare is such as rhythmic and beautiful and you are astonished buy the amount of different words and words you never heard but you still understand the saying and writing and situation you are stuck with in the book. You can also see the comedy, the laughter and feel the cry and craziness. 

You may then remember the light of Shakespeare "Romeo and Julia" and how funny the play is or "A midsummer nights dream" fantasy and laughter. Yes, the comedy has a lighter language, but is in no way easier to understand. Just in the first moment you may think so. But all books have in common that the language is kind of a song you sing while reading. 

Shakespeare language is to the point, no waste and always rhythmic and has a melody you can't miss if you read it aloud, nor even in silence. 

Thought sadly these days kids have problems reading even "Romeo and "Julia". Which is truly a sad thing and something we should think about. It is not only that language has gone forward and changed in the way we use it and words have also changed, it is that the understanding of long sentences have been lost and I wonder how we will get young people to learn to understand the old books if they only can understand twitter long terms. Teachers should work hard I guess and in a way movies maybe can help to want to read the books again and talk about them, but can the movies show the meaning of the books? Will the new "Macbeth" in cinema stand this test or just be a spectacle? 

Thanks to the language actors still love to perform Shakespeare as it is a wonderful language to use, and it is like a spell on you when you start it buy yourself to say those words loud out.

That is why I recommend to read this book and give it to anyone and press them in a way to read them, to learn from them and to understand history and the time now and also where we come from, how old some problems are and to touch our hearts to do the right thing. 

Give it a try, please. 

But do me a favor, avoid those modern translation and versions who put the plays in our days language. It destroys all the fun. And if your language is not english in first, try the english and your countries language versions, as it is a difference sometimes. Shakespeare is all but easy to translate.

Love & Light

Five year Engagement- a movie

A film with Jason Segel from the sitcom - How I met your mother-  A comedy that's for sure and it is a very typical hollywood style version. 

They tried obviously to make a version like screw ball, but it did not work out that way. It's very low key a- like made and thought the idea of a couple who is going to marry, but never has the time for it is quite something you can make a movie with, if you have good writers and the right way of producing it. 

Sadly, as this is fun to watch, but it is easy going fun, you don't keep the movie in mind after seeing it. It has as it is so typical nowadays also a bit drama, but to be earnest- a kind of let's have a drama, but don't have a drama thing. The actors play well and fit each other and it is joy to watch them but you won't miss it, if you let it be and buy another movie. On the other side it is the perfect movie for a girls night at home or a friends party night. The movie can be watched and commended and you can eat and drink and won't have hard follow the story. The dialoges are very easy and so no need to let your brain work. 

The cut and rest of the making of the movie is good but .. yeah... just good.

Anyway you won't be harmed watching it, but won't miss it too. Either way it is worth the look.

Have a nice time...

LOVE & LIGHT

Adam & Steve - a movie

What can we say about this movie?
Adam and Steve, a comedy from the late 90tis and with Parker Posey (from the show -Saturday night-) Malcom Gets and Co. 
The story takes place in New York in the 80tis and goes on until after 9/11. 
But it's not a story about two people meeting in the crazy 80tis and being in trauma after 9/11. 
A comedy it is for sure and starting with mad jokes being fat, a wannabe grufti or a gay dancer with too much hair.
Yes two guys throw to each other but then some shit happens and they are drifting apart and so the stories goes on and comes back in the 90tis. So far, things have changed and those two kids became older and meet again, without knowing who they are. 
The movie cuts are fast but good in the storyline. It's a bit drama in jokes and lot of overdrive fantasy. So you actually will have a laughing time watching this film. 
Of course a bit coming of age and coming out is in the story too and also that the friends of those two guys have their own coming outs in some way. Kinda.  The story is in that case not really realistic but a comedy is mostly not this way... So this movie is made very traditional in the way, that you follow a story, catch up the jokes and go on and sometimes it feels like is this joke good or just cheap? 
That is the reason why you won't watch this movie maybe a hundred times. Because after seeing it once, twice or more times you know all the jokes and it is not funny anymore, but Hollywood made worse, so don't worry, catch the movie and be sure it's very kinda end 90tis style. 
Has this movie a big massage, no it has many little once but sure it tells you to be you. 
Be yourself. 
Although the figures are a bit too well known and foreseen, it is fun to take the time to follow them. 
The director Craig Chester did some movies before, so you won't regret watching this one, but as you may feel, expect better not too much from it. Be easy going. 
What I like with tis movie is that it catches up a lot of what we know from our live but never goes to deep inside these things. And also by seeing these you will be happy that your live is not such a mess, if you think so. Maybe you laugh about your own bad luck you have sometimes. 
Have fun with this not so artistic movie. 

Love & Light

Mademoiselle Populaire - a movie

Heute eine kleine Filmperle aus der Reihe, gerade im Kino gewesen und schon auf DVD.
Diesmal, eine französische Produktion mit dem charmanten und bekanntem Romain Duris (L'auberge Espagnole, Der Schaum der Tage)
Alles spielt sich in den 50zigern ab und hier haben wir Duris, als einen Mann, der sich härter gibt als er ist und sich immer mit anderen misst, denn er muss immer der Erste sein. 
Mademoiselle Populaire, gespielt von Deborah Francois, ist ein junges Fräulein, das sich zu sehr auf dem Dorf langweilt und sich mit der Anstellung als Sekretärin, ein besseres Leben erhofft und die Welt sehen zu können. 
Eine moderne Denkweise und Lebensweise stellt sie dar und das mit solch einer charmanten und lockeren Art, das man sie einfach mögen muss. Wie dieses noch anfänglich schüchterne Ding, obschon naiv und nicht sonderlich begabt ihren Weg geradezu nimmt, ist eine Freude anzuschauen. 
Nun findet der junge Louis, ehemaliger Sportler, gefallen an dieser jungen Frau und da sie so gut Schreibmaschine schreibt, nimmt er sich ihrer an, im Glauben sie aufbauen zu können, indem er sie zu einem Wettbewerb schickt.
Schon bald stellt sich die Frage, wer wen mehr braucht und ob nicht doch mehr im Spiel ist als der pure Sieg. 
Faszinierend an dem Film finde ich nicht nur, das es eine romantische Komödie ist, sondern auch ein ausgesprochen spannender Streifen. Als Zuschauer ist man gebannt, ob sie, das junge Fräuleinwunder aus dem Dorf, es schafft. Man schwitzt selbst dabei, wenn sie in die Tasten haut und dies sprichwörtlich. Nebenbei lernt der Zuschauer etwas über die Geschichte der Schreibmaschine, denn die Geschichte ist der Realität sehr nah. Die Schreibwettbewerbe gab es tatsächlich und sie galten als populär.
Die Machart des Films ist angenehm flott, aber nicht hektisch und fast wie beiläufig scheint alles in's Bild zu fallen, was man sieht.
Obschon es in warmen Tönen gehalten, wirkt es angenehm realistisch und glaubhaft und auch die Geschichte die erzählt wird, fügt sich Stein für Stein wunderbar ineinander. Der Humor fein, teils sehr französisch, lässt einen doch immer wieder laut auflachen und den Film mit viel Freude betrachten.
Mit anderen Worten, eine wundervolle Empfehlung, die es leider im Kino nicht so weit gebracht hat mit der Zuschauerzahl, wie sie es verdient hätte. 
Bis zur nächsten Filmbesprechung
 
 
Licht & Liebe

Submarine - a Movie

Now again a movie I will write about. Yes, this year I will give my recommendations, my point of view to you too.

Sounds good?

Hope so.

Well, Submarine- a british comedy about a boy finding his first girl love and dealing with his parents and the difficulties they have in their own relationship.  

Dark is the humor and the storytelling is quite good to follow, even though, it could be sometimes more fresh or  speeded up, but as it is, it is a movie, in mostly dark colors but in no way depressiv, although some melancholy is going through.

it's kind of a coming of age story and showing up a time we had.

Yes the humor is extra dry and therefor sometimes hard to understand. 

Actually I didn’t got the most jokes.

Found it less funny then expected and not that original, as they said.

I found it not that stylish too, as they wrote and had hard to relate to some parts of the story, even though mostly maybe they are shown in other movies to often.

Should you give it a try?

Only if you are good with dark, try and english humor, otherwise the chance to like this film is not that high.

LOVE & LIGHT

I'm so exited- a movie

And here we are again with a movie to talk about. A hit in Spain but not so much in the world, sadly. Anyway it is the latest Pedro Almodovar and surely not his last movie. 
This time it is an easy going comedy, not with the typical deep down into the humans world and its drama. Although we have a lot of drama, thanks to Cruz and Banderas who start the movie and are the reason for the drama to come. 
As we know it from Almodovar, we again- have the big great fun to see known faces in new roles or known one...
Does anyone remember the movies "Airplane" and "Airplane 2" from 1980/82?
Well Almodovar has maybe seen them, because his film reminds me in many ways of these two.
Little crazy, but fanny movies where everyone is kind of freaking out and a lot of Sex and of course and airplane who has a problem. 
The german name of the movie is "Fliegende Liebende"- "Flying lovers" which sounds weird but is actually quite true to the movie, although they named it this way because there was a TV Show with the same name in the 80tis.
I had a lot of fun watching Almodovars movie, although the little crazy drama he put in which played on earth and not in heaven felt a bit wrong in this movie and a bit too long. But otherwise I can only say when you wanna have a funny movie from him, an easy going too, fast and refreshing and don't want to cry while watching, then... it should be this movie.  (And if it's just because the funniest song number in an airplane)

Love & Light

When is the fun getting to far?

Yes again, it took a while to write again.. I was ill and had a lot to do, as you have surely read about earlier. This time I wanna write about something which takes it's rounds around facebook and co.
You know, people like to share clips from youtube, the funny stuff, the crazy stuff, the hero stuff and so on. Sometimes I do wonder why people react so heavenly on these youtube things... I mean they keep posting and posting the same stuff on and on and again... not sure if people realize that sometimes what they post is disgusting and should better not be shown... but they seem to enjoy it or make some bad jokes about it... Sometimes I wonder where the empathy went... Did we lost it...? 
Last viral video is about a little girl in an elevator coming out when it suddenly gets dark inside.... The people in the elevator are almost scared of the fact that the light is going out and then when the light is on again and there is this creepy girl... It scared the heart out of everyone and not that this was enough, they had to do it twice the same game... I think... here is en example where we should have said stop, because this is no fun at all and I am sure if this happened to me, I would have taken a advokat... 

I mean this joke was not like lets prank someone or make a little fun, lets make them jump a sec and tell them it was all fun...no this was much more and worse and so many people wrote on youtube that they had so much fun seeing people nearly die of fear... What is it with us? Why do they not say stop!?
To play with the fear of people is never fun and I may say that it is o.k. to make a little easy fun with this might be o.k. but that example drove it much to far... Here was a real risk of a heart attack and a nervous break down..the people cried, screamed and had to screamed again, they lost their strength and faith and I am pretty sure most of them will now fear the elevator. But no apologies... We can be happy that no one killed itself, like the nurse in England who was a victim of a prank from a radio show.. after her mistake, all the press of the country where making jokes about her and laughed and that was too much for her... 
So here we are again and asking where has the empathy for each other gone?
Who is starting telling to the others --Hey don't you see what you do? Don't you realize that you should remember respect... Do you really think this is fun when this happens to you..?
Will you do? Will you be one of them who opens the mouth, the mind the heart....?
Because in what future will this lead us, if we let these things go on and happen..?
Will we start laughing in the future when we see them die, just because it's on tv or youtube?
What you gonna do?

I hope you will go for the love and light way.... I wish we would do this more often.... and remember respect, empathy, human dignity....

Well..hope is the last thing to give up... that's why I send you all my

LOVE & LIGHT