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Monday, January 11, 2010

Music and movie vs. movie and music: Benjamin Britten/Derek Jarman's "War Requiem"



Chance rules (mine, everyone?) world... few days ago - I almost cancelled this superbly moving, shocking piece of cinema under everyday life - I turned on my television... it happened during Christmas' time, maybe right on Christmas' Eve night... RAI 3, the most clever national broadcasting italian company, did it...

At first, I noticed something I was already aware of... a music... then got captured in Ektachrome-like, old-timey colours, like in an Hitchcock's movie...

A battle, some aircrafts fighting in English countryside... bombs, and that, THAT music... male and females voices and chorus... superb scenes, effects, drama, moving, violent beauty...

WAR.

I quickly realized - I admit I listened to the whole "thing" only once - 'twas Benjamin Britten's War Requiem...

I was like attracted from tv screen... THAT music, the scenes so near to the music... horrible, deep, moving and shocking, I told you...

For one hour, 'til 1,20 A.M., me and my wife were like paralized, totally in awe following one of the most... weird thing I ever saw...

Since now... the remembrance of that experience - oh, it was... - made me to Wikipediate;-) for "War Requiem"... Britten... movie...

... my fault: I wasn't aware of this masterpiece, Tilda Swinton, Laurence Olivier... the 1963 Kingsway Hall, Britten directed music score with Galina Vishnevskaya, Peter Pears and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau... pure poisonous bliss and hell-like beauty.

I almost have no words... BUT I ordered THAT movie in DVD today... a must have and, possibly, one of the best, deepest movie/music experience I ever had... it's so imperfect, heavy, deep, overwordy, dangerous, painful you'll hate it... like everyone should hate ANY war.

It's like observing a battle from a top hill... a surreal, dream-like view, from afar: the colours of uniforms, the cannons and weapons shots, the red of the blood... an awful beauty!

Children should see this very movie at primary school... my opinion youngsters would blame and hate war.

War Requiem

and

the movie

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