Film Persona

  Robert Wise's "The Sound of Music" Undoubtedly one of the most popular films in history, 1965's " The Sound of Music " continues to be in the forefront of conversations regarding great cinema. Its songs are iconic (and still sung), its Technicolor is remarkable, and its themes continue to be relevant. Winner of 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, the film also was a commercial smash it, By 1966, it had surpassed " Gone with the Wind " at the U.S. box office to become the highest grossing film in history. The film is an adaptation of an adaption of an adaption of a real-life even. Specifically, the real Von Trapp family fled Austria in 1938 and Maria wrote about their experiences in the 1949 memoir " The Story of the Trapp Family Singers " after the death of the patriarch in 1947. That memoir was turned into a Broadway production in 1959, which was then turned in to the 1965 musical film. It centers on Maria, a young woman studying...

  Jan Kadar & Elmar Klos's "The Shop on Main Street" The 1965 Czechoslovakian film " The Shop on Main Street " iterates familiar concepts we've come to understand about the World War II period of Europe, particularly the roaming laws against Jews. Various filmmakers approach these subjects in different ways and from different angles. Jan Kadar and Elmar Klos decided to balance the tragedy with humor, resulting in a film that points out the absurdities of these conditions and do so in a commercial format. The film centers on a carpenter named Tono, who is chosen by his Nazi brother-in-law to become the Aryan controller of an elderly Jewish widow's haberdashery (as part of the Aryanization program happening in the First Slovak Republic at the time). The Jewish woman, Rozalia, is nearly deaf and assumes the man is there to be a helper. The Jewish community takes Tono in, even giving him a stipend for assisting the elderly Rozalia. However, when the Jewi...

  Satyajit Ray's "The Coward" Based on the short story " Janaiko Kapuruser Kahini " by Premendra Mitra, Satyajit Ray's 1965 film " The Coward " proves equally short. Clocking in at only 1 hour and 9 minutes, it makes for one of Ray's shortest features. Although it did not go on to aspire acclaim, it remains a vital film in the renowned Indian director's filmography. The film centers on a young screenwriter named Amitabha whose car breaks down in the countryside. A local tea planter, Bimal Gupta, offers his home to Amitabha as a place to stay for night. When Amitabha arrives at Gupta's home, he discovers he is married to Karuna, a girl he once loved back in his days as a student. Amitabha spends the rest of his visit attempting to reconcile with her, even encouraging her to leave with him. Similarly to the film of Jean-Luc Godard (minus all the New Wave tricks), Ray seems to suggest with " The Coward " that real life is no film...

  John Schlesinger's "Darling" Despite its forced charm, John Schlesinger's 1965 film " Darling " lacks any morceau of it. Centering on a young model who sleeps her way up to the top of the British fashion and film industry, the film tries its best to emulate the thematic notions found in films like " La Dolce Vita " or even " I Know Her Well " from the same year. Sure, like " I Know Her Well ," our protagonist feels distant from the viewer as a means to be an object and product for the purposes of her profession.  However, " Darling " lacks a thematic center that illustrates the vibrancy of the rest of the film. No vibrancy can be found in the film aside from colorful moments to paint the film more entertaining. That being said, Julie Christie's performance is stellar. Beyond this, the film itself appears unengaging and paper thin.

  Fred Zinnemann's "A Man for All Seasons" Based on Robert Bolt's 1960 play, the 1966 film " A Man for All Seasons " centers on Thomas More and his defiant resolution to silently oppose King Henry VIII's dissolution of marriage to Catherine. Beyond a simple period piece, the film acts as a more contemporary reflection on how authoritarian figures demand cohered narrative. As the fifth highest grossing film in the U.S. in the year it was released, " A Man for All Seasons " went on to also gain critical acclaim and even win 6 Academy Awards.  The film spans the years of 1529 to 1535 during King Henry VIII's reign. Sir Thomas More, a Lord Chancellor to the king, is intellectually opposed to the King's dissolution of his marriage to Catherine and his eventual ascendancy to the title of Supreme Head of Church of England. Despite avoiding direct dissent, Thomas's opinion causes concern to the crown. Thomas is stripped of his titles, impri...

  Martin Ritt's "The Spy Who Came In from the Cold" Based on the 1963 novel of the same name by John le Carre, Martin Ritt's 1965 " The Spy Who Came In from the Cold " is yet another great film that exemplifies Cold War paranoia. Starring the incomparable Richard Burton, the film follows a British spy infiltrating the East German Intelligence Service. Although it did not rake in a substantial box office receipt, it received a few Academy Award nominations and remains a sought after artifact of its era. Although we are loosely told the nature of our protagonist's mission, there are specificities that are kept from the audience. So, certain plot points are left for us to determine if they are indeed part of the 'mission' or not, leaving a certain level of suspense and uncertainty to the mission's success or failure. This creates more drama than a typical spy film in which you are simply watching them try to execute a laid-out plan. However, the...