Django

Of course I’d heard of Django Reinhardt many times, and I’ve heard his style of music in concert from many of our performers. It was nice to have a bit of background story to the struggles he had on his way to fame. Being a Roma during the Second World War put Django in a difficult position; if he didn’t perform as he was told to there would be consequences but if he refused to perform the consequences would be just as serious.

The Divine Order

I always think of Switzerland as being a very modern country but it wasn’t until 1971 that women, through a referendum voted on by only the men, won the right to vote. This movie tells the story of one woman’s fight to gain equality with her husband (she wants to take a job but can’t unless her husband agrees), and the advocacy movement she started in her small town. In the beginning there were only three women willing to stand up to their men, but by the time they decided to go on strike their numbers had ballooned.

I didn’t enjoy the opening movie of the 2018 Film Festival. Although I accept that this is a way of life for many, it certainly wasn’t my idea of entertainment. The kids are cute and their acting was impressive. At the beginning of the film they were kind of cute, but they soon became obnoxious. But they can’t be blamed once you see their mostly irresponsible mothers.

The story follows three kids and their mothers who live at a motel near The Magic Kingdom in Florida. They run free most of their days and get up to a lot of “no good”, as does one parent in particular. William Dafoe plays the motel manager and, for me, he was pretty much the saving grace in the film – his character really seemed to care about his “guests”.

I’m so glad we didn’t miss this film. I would usually shy away from a movie with Woody Harrelson but here he is playing a very sympathetic character and he is quite charming in the role. It’s been a long time since we saw Frances McDormand in a movie and she, too, is great. Although the subject matter isn’t fun, the dialogue and characters had us laughing in moments that were inappropriate – it doesn’t get better than that!

The setting for this movie is worth the price of admission – a beautiful southern plantation home. Scenes shot through the trees are spectacular.

Towards the end of the Civil War an injured Union soldier asks for help from the mistress of a boarding school for young women. Although everyone is fearful of Unionist, they agree to take him in until his injuries are healed. At first his presence is thrilling for everyone in the house but when he is re-injured during a midnight assignation the house becomes a scary place ending in a murder.