1962
Noah’s Barks pages covering things relating to the year 1962.
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Ivan’s Childhood
Very solid stuff. Burlyaev’s performance is one of the best I’ve seen from a child. Tarkovsky’s dream sequences and the lighting techniques he uses to divide them from reality are a highlight. Otherwise, Ivan’s Childhood didn’t grab me too much on a personal level. With so many “horrors of war” films, something either connects or… (read more)
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Ray Charles – “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music”
Ray Charles could sing “white” music as well as just about anyone, but to his and everyone else’s benefit, he could never hide the fact that he just sounded “black.” His wonderful singing voice was probably a new flavor to many listeners during his time. Charles’s introduction of blues into a predominately white pop vocabulary… (read more)
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Sanjuro
Though not as interesting or tense as Yojimbo, also directed by Akira Kurosawa, Sanjuro has essentially everything Yojimbo had, just in lesser amounts. The same appeal exists in watching the clever Sanjuro repeatedly outsmart his enemies with the occasional stunning action scenes. The plot itself isn’t as gripping as Yojimbo, since it’s politically-driven. We only… (read more)
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Knife in the Water
Considered Roman Polanski‘s first triumph, Knife in the Water is still a modest one at that. One of those simple “portrait of life” films, this one portrays a rivalry between a young boy and an older man as they both envy each other’s age, joined only by the older man’s wife. Conflict and tension arise… (read more)