Rendering - Week 7

This article was published on the 29th of March, 2013  on the site of
The Guardian paper  by James Corden  and called  "Richard Griffiths - goodbye Rizzo – we miss you already" which tells us about  Mr. Griffiths, the comedian and actor who recalls fun, kindness – and Uncle Monty's brief return – in tribute to Griffiths, who has died aged 65.

The author firstly met  Richard Griffiths ,standing in the vast space of rehearsal room 2 at the National Theatre and about to begin his first day as a History Boy , clutching his script and hoping that his northern accent was up to scratch when Richard walked over. What is more, the author didn't know that day what the play was going to become or quite how much time they as a company were about to spend together.

 The author can't deny the fact, that the whole process lasted about three years, and Richard was at the centre of its success. In addition to that, we knew, that he  had became the ninth History Boy: and they nicknamed him Rizzo.  Furthermore, we shouldn't forget that the author emphasizes the idea, that Griffiths was the man of a brilliant soul, inviting author with friends  to his dressing room for cocktails after the show or even the odd poker game ,  joking , making sure , that they were  enjoying what they were doing – that they knew how very special this moment was for the group of friends and colleagues.

The author also can't ignore the fact, that Richard's performance as Hector, like every other performance he gave in his career, was perfect – and he was quite unaware of how brilliant he was. Audiences and critics loved him from the very first scene.

 The author points out the fact, that Richard had an ability in even the biggest comic creations to give his characters a humane quality – he always played the truth of the scenes, never the jokes and  saw Monty for what he was, a lonely man in desperate need of company.

It wouldn't be unfair for Corden not to say, that  he never stopped asking him and he never stopped saying no, until one day, when they were performing The History Boys in Sydney and during one of the classroom scenes the author said one of hislines too early and accidentally cut two of his, been mortified and   but as soon as the curtain came down he rushed to his dressing room to apologise. And it's a noticeable and memorable  fact that   Griffiths  placed his hands firmly on author's shoulders, squinted and in that deep voice of Uncle Monty telling him about his forgiveness.

The author draws conclusion, remembering one of play's scenes  when Richard had to began to speak but paused for a moment, with  voice cracking under the emotion, when the lines were so meaningful it was as if he wanted these eight young actors to really hear them.

A very sad news and to my mind, Richard  Griffiths was one of the most influential  actors of his generation in Britain.The most powerful emotion can be born only at the stage of a theater, and only a prominent professional can arise a burn inside the heart and appeal to our minds in order to create our own special emotional status and he did it his way, with glance and success.

Film Review - Lust For Life ( 1956 )

Lust for Life (1956)
122 min -
Biography | Drama -
26 December 1956 (Sweden)

 Ratings: 7,3/10

The life of brilliant but tortured artist Vincent van Gogh.

Director: Vincente Minnelli
Writers: Norman Corwin (screenplay), Irving Stone (novel)
Stars: Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn, James Donald



In brief, the plot of this film ( as I've understood ) is one of Gogh's creative periods, showing us his magnetic power as an artist with some insane inner world, his relationships with his brother and the society. It starts with the life of van Gogh as a missioner worker, who had a very bad health status ( actually, his mind was in gloom ) He's lost all his possessions, goods, was nearly extreme conditions of living, the period of a real crisis - but eventually he was supported by his brother Theo , who found his relative , sinking up to the down of social man - he took him away to Netherlands . At home,  Vincent decided to concentrate his powers to the field of painting  , and so he isolated himself from the outer world just to produce things, that can bring humanity to people . He couldn't live for a long without some care and support, so he tried to live with somebody - but his attempts were fails, he wanted to be with family, and even tried to ask his cousine to live with him - but she had to dismiss his proposal. He worked hard, tried to use his imaginary world to create something more ambiguous, filled with paint of your own soul, like a skinned with yourself body . He found a young prostitute to live with him ,who had become his model and his housekeeper.He acquired some technical proficiency confining himself almost entirely to drawings. Theo continued to help and support his brother financially . He visited his cousin Anton , a landscape painter - who offered brother Vincent to teach  how to work with color and oil With time he had improved his skill in oil painting more and came to Paris in order to join some separate artists to use some new techniques and discuss some new features in painting . Vincent met Gauguin,  and others painters , who had some similar aims to do. He knew much new about the world of post-modernist France and worked together with Gauguin , they had similar features, but they were too distant from each other in ideas and thoughts . After some time he had to come back home and continue his work in Netherlands. Theo, who had understood the status of his brother especially sensitive could ask for a doctors help. During his last years Vincent van Gogh began to drink much , and especially an absent - the poison of a "green fairy", the potion, which had lead to some serious epileptic disease and Theo decided to bring his brother to a hospital  and after a year back to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, and in that period , during  a walk he suddenly shot himself with his last words in the hospital ( where the doctors were trying to save him) , which Theo reported , - last words as "The sadness will last forever."

Well, I like this film and plot of this story, as the life of such world-famous artists will always be interesting for people, who are really fond of esthetic beauty . The life of van Gogh is shown without any unnecessary features,  a bright canvas was combined with the mediocrity of his day, and the flash joy of his mind was slowly fading by a very sulfur palette, so as we are have to live in the modern world.

The director of this film, Vincent Minnelli ( by the way a famous husband of a famous Judy Garland and with their famous daughter - Liza Minnelli ) could transform the story of Irving and some biographical notes of Theo on the screen - to give a chance for a mass to live several hours in the world of Gogh's post- modernism - to show us the beautiful world of art . And of course, the cast is really favotable, Kirk Douglas, as  Vincent van Gogh, Anthony Quinn  as Paul Gauguin and James Donald as Theo van Gogh could create a special mental trio, playing with our thoughts and senses. This film is my first time, when I can observe and discuss the life of a famous artist ( Jack as an artist in "Titanic"  does not count :D) and this experience is very bright.

Pleasure Reading . "A Tale of Two Cities" by Dickens. Book the Second: The Golden Thread Chapters 14-24

One day a man, Cruncher, who worked for a Tellson's Bank saw a strange group of people, going down the street ( actually it was a funeral procession ).  The dead man was Roger Cly,  a person, who was against Darnay in the court case several years ago. After the bury, Cruncher, a simple mind man, (but rather sharp mind )and with a desire to avenge a comrade, he went to the cemetery and  dug up the body of that man, just to sell it to some black-scientists. During this night adventure, his son was also with him, following father's steps and as a young boy was surprised 'cause of such deal and told his father, that he'll be a "ressurection man" and father was.  At this time, in Paris, Defarge had found the hidden place of Doctor Mannete in the wine shop and joined other people. The also had known a stroy about poor man , who assassinated  Marquis ( Gaspar)  . He was on the run for a long time, but unfortunately had been caught and  hanged  in the middle of the town. The time period was unstable, but aristocracy  was in blind state.  Defarge and his wife toke the mender of roads to Versailles to see King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. Mender was absolutely pleased and praised the king . This performance pleased the Defarges, who had understood, that aristocracy was on the wrong way, believing in  peasantry's obedience .Then, they had returned to their home, continuing their secret mission to raise the mass in the name of Revolution ( but they had to meet an opponent , the spy Barsad, who came to their shop as an ordinary revolutionary .He told them about Lucie's marriage. Doctor Mannete was absolutely happy 'cause of such great daughter Lucie and her future husband and began to forget about his past times in prison. Few days before the marriage Doctor Mannete came into strange health stage, he became lost and pale, and a new pair of Lucie and Charles was afraid, that they had to stay with the father, despite some plans to  go on a honeymoon. The relapse was caused by the Mannete past times - the main item , which had an ability to restore Doctor's painful memories was the forge with its tools, and by the Lorry's scenario they had to keep Doctor away from that thing  ( to go on a honeymoon ) and just to destroy them during the absence of a Doctor. After the Darneys arrival back home they were met by Carton, who wanted them to forgive him and to establish good relationships, as it was some years ago. Darnay was angry , but nevetheless he claimed his wife to respect Carton and forger about past mistakes. After some years the Darnay family has a new member - their daugher Lucie.  By 1789, the echoes reverberated “from a distance” and made a sound “as of a great storm in France with a dreadful sea rising". The revolutionary times has come. The Bastille Castle was under the attack, and the leader of one group of people was the Defarge family, who captured the building, killing guards and rescuing imprisoned people. The furious fire of the mass was lighted up and the country of France became the area, surrounded by revolutionaries. A wealthy man in the town of Saint Antonie was found dead in at his own house by the mod, leading towards the landowners by madame Defarge with her new nickname - the Vengeance. The rage of the mass was unlimited and the whole countryside was attacked by peasants army. An old note with unknown name Jacques - was the symbol of this rebellious mass, and each revolutionary was named Jacques. The fire of saint rage was around the castle of Evremonde - the murder, revenge, revenge and madness continued. After some years of instability  in France, an England had become a safety land for many people a good political and economical shelter. Tellson wanted Lorry to go to France and establish there a stable status of a Tellson's bank filial and to protect many of papers and notes from fire and crazy citizens . Darnay didn't want to leave Lorry alone and decided to accept this mission, only if Crucnher would go with him ( and Lorry received a strange letter from Evremonde, and had no chance to understand the location of this man, but actually Darnay was that person in fact, but he decided to hide this fact from Lorry and created a legend of a friend. A pea of Darnay, who was imprisoned in France, chanted for a help and Darnay decided to save his old friend.

 

Pleasure Reading . "A Tale of Two Cities" by Dickens. Book the Third: The Track of a Storm Chapters 1–15

Charles Darney came to France and rapidly was stopped by the revolutionaries and imprisoned to the castle, even despite his  protests, connected with with Evremonde roots. His legend was secret and guards transported him to his new home - an isolated camera. During the period of transportation he met Defarge and and tried to find some support from him, but all what he's got was the pure ingorance and actually Darney thought, that he was already dead man. Mannete family understood, that a husband and a son-in-law was imprisoned and the only chance to save him to use Doctor's past period ideas or just to raise a rebel, but without any strong idea they decided to go to France . In order to save his business and life of innocent , Lorry went to new apartments with Lucie, her daughter and miss Pross and told Cruncher to protect them from any evil. The Defarge family came to England and Lucie have had a note about her husband imprison and begged madam Defarge to show some mercy to her husband, but Defarge said, that there is no mercy during the rage of revolution. Doctor Mannete, who visited La Force castle transformed from a poor old man with some insane features to full of strength and confidence mature warrior, who could keep Darnay away from his death ( he was hired to this prison and have an ability to visit and communicate with Charles and could be nearly for year and more ).  As times went by, Lucie had found a good way to visit her husband and talk with him , up to the day of Darnay's trial court. The day of Charles's trial had come, and the crowd was happy to see this kind and prosperous man with his gentle father-in-law Mannete. The court had established, that he disapproved his dirty title  and gave to a discuss a list of Darnay's respected things he did  and in addtition to it - he was a loving husband with beautiful family, daughter and today's reputation and so he was released  and  the crowd carried Darnay home in a chair on their shoulders. But even after such victory a group of soldiers came to Darnay's house to arrest them - by the wish of madam Defarge and some other unknown people. Carton tolrd Cruncher and Lorry about Darnay's second arrest , but he had a plan to save him - the plan, that he must be convicted , as he threatened to expose Barsad as an English spy ( actually Barsad was Pross's brother? with a true name of Solomon, a spy , working for a Republic forces ) and so Carton finally made him to accept his plan to save Charles. Lorry had known about Cruncher's "dark deals" with corpses and told him a lecture, giving him a thought to escape this dirty thing. Carton decided to visit Darnay shortly before the trial and walking all day long, digging inside his mind, floating over different thoughts and ideas. At the morning of the trial start, the judge began their work. The main item was the note, hidden in the tower of Bastille, one of Doctor Manette's notes, written during the period of imprison. It told us a story about two Evremonde brothers, Charles's father and uncle, who hires Manette to heal a younh peasant woman, who was near the state of death and her brother, who was critically damaged. And Charles's uncle raped this poor woman and backstabbed her brother and after telling this story with some different features, Darnay was sentenced to death, to payback for what his father and uncle did. Darnay was send to the room, to await his execution the next morning and the friends of Charles tried to use their finals ways and attempts to save him, but without any success. Then Carton went to Defarge in the state of shock and suddenly he heard the talk of madam Defarge, who wanted to find good way to accuse and eliminate the lack of Darnay-Evremonde family with their old Doctor Manette - she was the sister of that woman and man, killed by the Charles's uncle and father. She rapidly returned back home to hurry up Lucie and her daughter to leave this town. At the morning of execution Carton came to camera of Charles with some clothes and some mysterious potions - and both of them , Darnay and Carton understood the situation. They switched their clothes ( with Barsad help ) , gave him a final-word letter and forced him to use a flask with sleeping pills - and Barsad went away, delivering  a real Darnay to his family and Lorry, helping them to escape from this town. Madam Defarge, following her plan to eliminate the lack of Darnay's family came to their home and just met miss Pross and Cruncher. The anger of fail came to Defarge's soul and she tried to kill both of them, and during the fight with Pross, old lady shooted her with a gun . The hour of the execution has come and Carton was forced to reach the guillotine  - without any fear and terror, without any agony and sadness of his last minutes , without pain and cold fewer - just with bright eye and strong confidence, with blessed thoughts and pure mind - the man, who had fails and made some epic mistakes. He imagined the beauty of Darnay's family , the power of friendship and love, he could see the future of happiness , he understood, that he would always be in the hearts of such gold-hearted men . He died with a thought, that the world would be much better in a few decades . The history was over and old friends and family of Darnay had returned to London.

Pleasure Reading . "A Tale of Two Cities" by Dickens. Book the Second: The Golden Thread Chapters 7–13

A lord Monseigneur came to Paris with all his pathos and superfluous bravado, guarded by dark-minded people - the greatest corrupt individuals both in Britain and in France. During the official reception at his house, filled with much excessive mush, one of the guests, marquis Evremonde decided to escape from this place and take a carriage. On the way home his carriage suddenly crashed into something. And it was a young child, already dead after the hit. In order to compensate the loss, Evremonde gave a coin to dead child's father  ( and another coin he gave to Defarge, who was near to console the  torture of a man. ) Then Evremonde came to the village of his patron ( an area with complete oppression and dictatorship politics ). During his way he had to meet some of peasants, asking him to help ( to give a stone in order to make a common grave and so on) , but the ignorance of marquise was eternal. The only thing he wanted that time - to know something about Charles Darnay  - who was marquis's nephew, just taking another surname .( Out of disgust with his family, Darnay shed his real surname and adopted an Anglicised version of his mother's maiden name, D'Aulnais ). Charles came to his with a strong desire to restore the family name and to get an inheritance and to destroy the bad fame of their Name, the Name of terror and fear, damaging living creatures bodies and souls, but the first answer of Evremonde was negative - he thought, that Charles should be natural and just to accept his destiny. After the incident on the road with the death of young boy, the victim of a gloom mind - the father of a boy, Gaspard decided to follow Evremonde's carriage , full of rage thoughts and revenge ideas. He could climb to his room later at night and gave marquise a critical deadly backstab with a knife, leaving a little note, saying  "Drive him fast to his tomb. This, from Jaques." A The time had passed and after some events Darnay became a teacher of French language at London school, having warm relationships with Mannette family  (especially with Lucie - he felt in love passion )  Doctor Mannet was confident in Charles's positive intentions to his daughter, and it was moment, when Charles even told them the true legend of his person and open the secret of his family, but nevertheless he didn't. (He will hear Darnay’s secret on his wedding day.) And in that time Carton also had feelings to Lucie and in his arrogant manner told Stryver during the drink-time, that he had a wish to marry Lucie. And the next day he went to Mannete house, but suddenly had to meet his old friend Lorry and opened the secret of his mission - but Lorry advised him to slow down a little , in order to understand future words of Lucie ( Lorry understood , that she was in love with Charles ). And he just give him a sign, that if Carton were to propose, the Manettes would reject his proposal. But nevertheless she came to Mannette house and had a talk with Lucie and told her, that she was the last dream of his gloomy and gray way. giving some heat to his life. With all Lucie's tenderness she could save his damned soul and bring a salvation light.

Pleasure Reading . "A Tale of Two Cities" by Dickens. Book the Second: The Golden Thread Chapters 1 - 6

After the arrival of Lorry and Lucie to London with her new-find father we have to teleport in 1780 year, and the narrator tells us about Tellson's bank , that was in very bad place to make deals and a very unstable economical condition. Jerry Cruncher, who worked for Tellson familyy as a bottle-washer, had a mission to visit  the Old Bailey Courthouse in order to hear and see the trial, connected with the criminal action of Charles Darnay, a young aristocratic man (French immigrant )  - he was guilty in the deal of treason ( and this was the turning point for the story and personally for Darnay). The judges accused his as a person, who gave some secret information to Loius XVI's  about English plans to send their military troops to the battlefield of US. And strangely, Lorry and Lucie came to this place to protect this young man. The most important part of judges, prosecution witnesses, who could prove the term "corruptibility of the conspirators" , such as  an attorney  general and solicitor-general with John Barsad practically had a heavy-weight methods of running the trial-deal, using controversial arguments and facts. But the different part of the court had some strong doubts . Lorry and Lucie also had their stands, during which they told the judges some uncertain assumptions and scattered ideas,  but she trying to help young men, told them about Darnay's support during the trip ( especially with her ill father ), but she unwittingly  even aggravated   the case, telling the court about some severe and stinging phrases,  Darnay's quotes  (  his statement that George Washington’s fame might one day match that of George III). The trial was very close to the failure, but another man, Sydney Carton, who was very ambitious lawyer, who decided to protect young soul.  Darnay was practically imprisoned, however, when a witness who claimed,that  he can to recognise Darnay in any pose at and any place  was just unable to recognize Darnay  from this Sydney Carton, who was looking critically identical to Darnay and Mr. Darnay was acquitted . Then the whole group of people came out of this place with glory, Darnay remembered his bright feelings to Lucie and even the reputation was resurrect ,  but the dark times had already came. After that Sydney and Stryver had a talk with some alcohol, talking about their today's trial and discuss their ways of doing this case, and remembering their days at school, having fun and so on. But Carton still was that shy and gloomy man, jumping from the negative to positive ( and during the talk he said, that had some feelings to young Lucie. Aftet some time Lorry and his freidn came to Manette house to talk with Lucie and during her absence he had a brief talk with Miss Pross, and the main theme of their discussion was the choice of love for young Lucie ( Pross said, that hundreds of young men came here to meet this lovely creature, but nobody of them can be with her, the ideal was only her brother, a brave and aristocratic Solomon). Darney was a worker in the Tower of London and one he was in the Tower of London, working with some specific stone-job, had discovered a hole in the wall with the words DIG - and also found a strange piece of paper with a special message from an imprisoned person. The story ,written on the list shocked  Manette.

Rendering - Week 6

This article, which is called "The Winslow Boy, Old Vic Theatre" was published on www.telegraph.co.uk site by By Charles Spencer on 20 Mar 2013 and tells us about Lindsay Posner directs a beautifully judged, elegantly designed and splendidly acted production of Terence Rattigan's The Winslow Boy, says Charles Spencer.

The author points out , tha tTerence Rattigan (1911-1977) was the writer who posthumously came in from the cold, the dramatist who was once the toast of the West End received a terrific clobbering during the Fifties and Sixties when plays by Osborne and Wesker suddenly made him seem old hat.

In addition to that, Spenced says, that Rattigan was both a consummate theatrical craftsman and a master at showing the deep emotion that often underlies the English reserve of his characters. Indeed seeing his plays now is particularly poignant since the British stiff-upper-lip that he so potently portrayed has been one of the chief casualties of the emotionally incontinent times in which we live.

 Analyzing the situation it’s necessary to admit, that The Winslow Boy (1946) is a sterling example of Rattigan’s dramatic skill and humanity , that  is based on a true story of a 14- year- old naval cadet who was expelled from his college for the alleged theft of a five shilling postal order, and his father’s two-year battle to clear his name in the First World War surroundings .

Moreover, the reader should not forget that author clearly gives us a thought, that one of the remarkable things about the play is that it is all set in the Kensington home of the Winslow family, where Young dramatists are constantly told that they should “show, not tell” yet Rattigan triumphantly breaks this rule. He also adds, that  it’s undoubtedly a well-made play, but not one made in the way we might expect  and confirms, that is part of its genius.

It's necessary to admit the fact, that despite all this Henry Goodman movingly shows the terrible toll the case inflicts on Ronnie’s father and in conclusion he says, that there isn’t a weak link in the cast while the play itself is as near flawless as makes no difference.

In conclusion, I'd like to say, that it's a very interesting article , giving us a motivational tool to see the relaunch of a famous story . Pre-war drama is full of ideas, that are always appropriate and accurate. Son's mistake or just government structure fail ? This play will put everything in its place , on its place, where the guilty men should be punished and the fire of  a justice will warm our hearts.