We had a change of plan for our August Film and Literature session. We were a very small group as several people were unable to attend. Instead we watched an episode of an Agatha Christie short story, The Case of the Missing Woman.
This was an entertaining movie, which we decided was a satirical comedy rather than a traditional Christie crime movie. There was an element of mystery as the main characters, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, seek to locate a missing woman at the request of her fiancée, Gabriel Stavansson. She had been staying with her aunt, Lady Susan Clonray while Stavenssen was away for two years. Stavansson did not get on with Lady Susan who he thought of as fat, and she was evasive about her niece’s whereabouts. Tommy and Tuppence eventually located the missing woman only to find that she was undergoing radical treatment to lose the weight she had put on while her fiancée was away.
Costuming was great, with Tuppence wearing matching dress and hat in one scene. Lady Susan’s portrayal as a fat lady did not work as well as we would have liked, with a thinner person’s head on a supposedly fat body. Her costume though was bright and impressive. We did discuss the current issues around obesity, and what is considered fat or obese. Finally, we enjoyed the butler who was serving Lady Susan as he was portrayed as old and doddery, one of many comical scenes in the movie.
Our September movie will be either Belle or Ladies in Lavender. Belle is based loosely on the story of Dido Belle, the illegitimate daughter of a Royal Navy captain and a slave woman in the 18th century. This will be the movie if the internet behaves well for streaming the movie. If we have internet problems we will watch Ladies in Lavender, starring Judi Dench and Maggie Smith.
With all the movies we watch, our aim is to focus our discussion, covering ideas around genre, characters, plot, but also adding the aspects that relate to film, such as cinemascope, music and atmosphere. We aim to start promptly at 1:00pm to allow time to discuss the movie.
Joy Shirley
This was an entertaining movie, which we decided was a satirical comedy rather than a traditional Christie crime movie. There was an element of mystery as the main characters, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, seek to locate a missing woman at the request of her fiancée, Gabriel Stavansson. She had been staying with her aunt, Lady Susan Clonray while Stavenssen was away for two years. Stavansson did not get on with Lady Susan who he thought of as fat, and she was evasive about her niece’s whereabouts. Tommy and Tuppence eventually located the missing woman only to find that she was undergoing radical treatment to lose the weight she had put on while her fiancée was away.
Costuming was great, with Tuppence wearing matching dress and hat in one scene. Lady Susan’s portrayal as a fat lady did not work as well as we would have liked, with a thinner person’s head on a supposedly fat body. Her costume though was bright and impressive. We did discuss the current issues around obesity, and what is considered fat or obese. Finally, we enjoyed the butler who was serving Lady Susan as he was portrayed as old and doddery, one of many comical scenes in the movie.
Our September movie will be either Belle or Ladies in Lavender. Belle is based loosely on the story of Dido Belle, the illegitimate daughter of a Royal Navy captain and a slave woman in the 18th century. This will be the movie if the internet behaves well for streaming the movie. If we have internet problems we will watch Ladies in Lavender, starring Judi Dench and Maggie Smith.
With all the movies we watch, our aim is to focus our discussion, covering ideas around genre, characters, plot, but also adding the aspects that relate to film, such as cinemascope, music and atmosphere. We aim to start promptly at 1:00pm to allow time to discuss the movie.
Joy Shirley
