3 Good Things (The English Patient edition)

1. The intensity of Count Almásy’s stare.
2. Kip’s wisdom and ability to make magic.
3. Hana.

After a ten year hiatus, we watched it again last night. It's a damn fine movie.

Comments

Michael Randall said…
I avoided 'The English Patient' like the plague, when it first came out. After much arm twisting though, a friend finally got me to see it and I of course thoroughly enjoyed it.

However it has now been about eight years since that one-and-only viewing. Again I remember really liking it, but because of the length and theme of the movie I have not considered watching it again.

So my question is... after your ten year hiatus, do you think five to ten years is required between viewings or is it a movie that can be consumed on a more regular basis?

I’ve not seen much great for a while, but both ‘Gran Tranio’ and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ were good and I liked ‘He Is Just Not That Into You’.
February 16, 2009 at 5:26 PM
Lynne said…
Hello there.

I'm not sure that our viewing habits of this movie are typical, but after an unprecedented three viewings at the movies and then a few at home, we were due for a big break.

While I remembered the entire movie, I had forgotten how much I really enjoyed the beautiful music and the story surrounding the patient rather than the one of the mapmaker.

So, if you liked it, I think it's safe for you to see again; however, even knowing that, you'd really have to be in the mood to make that kind of time commitment.

I haven't seen Gran Torino, but I really enjoyed Slumdog Millionare.
February 16, 2009 at 5:47 PM
Stephen Bourque said…
The English Patient is not only one of our favorite movies, but I will add that it is one that completely transcends the book - an unusual occurrence.

Unfortunately, it has been a dozen years since I read it (along with the prequel In the Skin of Lion), so my memory of it is slight. I do remember my dominant impression was that the book was... how shall I put it?... much smaller than the movie was.

Don't get me wrong; Michael Ondaatje is a good writer. But if I had read the book without seeing the movie, there is simply no way that I would have recognized it as being an enormous exotic tale with a ferocity of passion and desire that is epic in scope. In my opinion, screenplay writer and director Anthony Minghella and composer Gabriel Yared turned a quiet, introspective book into Lawrence of Arabia.
February 20, 2009 at 8:32 PM
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