Movie Notes: Days of Heaven

Days of Heaven (1978)
Director: Terrence Malick

This is a beautiful, languorous movie full of golden light, bucolic wheat stretching into the horizon and the twilight heart of man.  I think that it's trying to say something about how these are all inter-related, but I have to admit I do not understand it.  I think to a degree it is a non-rational film, full of evocative moments and images that appeal to our emotions and appetites before it connects to our intellect.

The plot, which is undoubtedly important, if not the most important part of the movie, involves a man and his woman -- pretending to be brother and sister -- fleeing the city after he accidentally kills a foreman in an act of rage.  Sound familiar?  Later, the farm owner where they're working the harvest under these false pretenses will fall in love with the woman.  Before the end, there will be a plague locusts, the land will be cleansed by fire, and there will be more death.  Malick's film making is essentially from a Christian place, whatever he believes.

The thing everyone talks about from this movie is the imagery.  It's undeniably lovely.  There are scenes that powerfully evoke the feeling of a summer evening, and there are herons, and there are biplanes floating as if by magic off of the ground.  It seems like Malick is searching to sample those moments of life that flit by unless we stop and take a breath and look around and notice them.  If you have the patience to do that, you'll have the patience for this movie, and I think you'd enjoy it.

Movie Notes: How to Train Your Dragon

How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
Directors: Chris Sanders, Dean DuBlois

This was a really good non-Pixar animated feature. It's formulaic and conventional in its themes, but the world, the characters, and the visuals are all top notch.

As per normal practice, it's the relationship between the parent and child that is the weakest in the film. It's so incredibly hard to understand that dynamic in the best of times, and to boil it down to a simple misunderstand/ forgive on the part of the parent -- essentially the same theme here as we saw recently in Brave -- seems cheap to me.

Anyway, the movie is formulaic and toothless in theme (get my little joke?). It's also a lot of fun. The dragons are great. The main character is really sympathetic. Toothless is a great movie pet, reminiscent of the Black Stallion. The flying scenes are exhilarating, and both the final confrontation and the conclusion are satisfying.

Movie Notes: Easter Parade

Easter Parade (1948)
Director: Charles Walters

This is an entertaining technicolor musical.  It contains several very fun numbers that take full advantage of the talents of its stars.  Astaire's dancing is always fantastic, and Garland's singing equally so.

The plot was also interesting, as it kept me guessing until near the end as to who would end up with whom.  Part of this stems from a lack of chemistry between Garland and Astaire, but there was also some interesting commentary on the nature of feminine attraction and empowerment.  This is typified in the two women to whom Astaire's character is drawn.  In their climactic and competing headliner acts, they express their talent very differently.  Garland dances dressed as a man alongside Astaire and uses her powerful voice and comedic ability to bring the house down (in "A Couple of Swells"), while the character played by Ann Miller depends on her looks and sensuality in an act about cover girls (in "The Girl on the Magazine Cover").

All in all, a decent musical.  Not the best for either actor, or for Irving Berlin, but it was a bright, light hearted way way to spend a couple of hours.

Piute Creek to Merriam Lake

The next day we headed to Merriam Lake.  This involves an easy hike down Piute Canyon to Hutchinson Meadow, an easy hike up French Canyon, and then a strenuous hike out of French Canyon to the meadows below Merriam Lake.  From there, you meander through meadows and up some benches to the lake itself.

View Piute Creek to Merriam Lake in a larger map

The day wasn't uneventful, however.  We got out of camp around 8:00 (our normal starting time the whole trip).  As we crossed French Creek in Piute Canyon, Libby slipped into the stream and banged up her shin and knee pretty badly.  The pain would linger all trip, but was fortunately didn't impact her ability to hike!

Dad and I had been up this trail together before, but the only part that was really familiar to me was the changing view of Pilot Knob and the meadow in French Canyon where we had lunch.

 

I didn't remember the hike from the above meadow to Merriam Lake being such a grunt.  It's a very steep and sandy knapsack trail to the left of the outlet stream with only very small switchbacks. You basically go straight up the hill.  Thankfully, that's a fairly short stretch, and then it becomes much more mellow.

That night we camped along the shore of Merriam on a rocky area above some pretty beaches.  It was a good opportunity to bathe, and I took the chance to go fishing.  The fishing wasn't great, but I caught two for dinner.  After eating, we enjoyed watching the sunset and alpenglow in the east on Mt. Humphreys across the lake.

 

More pictures at the usual place.