Words of wisdom

The darkness that surrounds a candle,
is no more dangerous than the candle flame itself.

Monty

Famous Last words #1

Noel Coward
(1899-1973)

"Goodnight my darlings, I'll see you tomorrow."
(On going to bed.)

A great little site I want to share

For anyone with a love of Movie titles (and end cards) from the beginning of cinema or just an interest in typography-

Enjoy:

http://www.annyas.com/screenshots

The most Beautiful shot in Cinema #1

The Passenger - 1975.

A film directed by Italian filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioni and staring the one-trick-pony himself; Jack Nicholson. I only watched this film very recently with a good friend and a couple of ales - or was it a couple of friends and a good ale? Either way I was in good company and hadn't really expected to be profoundly blown away. It was a flippant choice of sunday matinée and I often think Nicholson is a little over-rated; already my ultimate opinion was marred.

The film was relitively slow; typically european *pause*

For those who have not seen the film - Plot:
Jack Nicholson stars as a television reporter in Africa who assumes the identity of a dead stranger to escape his past life and to be free only to unravel the strangers identity is darker than his own.

*un-pause* Nicholson was surprisingly subtle and tolerant, but I'm not here to tell you about the film - that's your job, go see - I'm here to spoil it by expressing my love for the last shot, yes unfortunately the greatest shot is the second from last; I waited a whole two hours for this! and unknowingly, sitting becoming rather bored and lured into a sense of lull by the Bishops finger I had in me (the ale). But all of a sudden this tracking shot that started in the leads bedroom suddenly floated through wrought iron bars within a window, continued outside to follow the love interest only to rotate 180º and onto the bars we had just previously squeezed a huge panaflex 35mm camera through! I've not even finished yet, we go back through the bars that look solid as the earth they are built on!

Well, I believed I was watching black magic of some degree or a David Copperfield performance. All done so beautifully over seven minutes.

Like all magicians I will not tell you the secrets how they performed this shot (but Wikipedia will, they are just big tell tales), But I advise one and all to persist the movie only to be greatly rewarded with this work of art and self awareness.