I went to YouTube to get a decent version of the Eton Boating Song to post on my previous blog. I did, but I was surprised and delighted to discover that someone had had uploaded the arrangement by Mark Ryder and Phil Davies. It's sung by Helen Moore in a movie called Society, made in 1989.
I'm not quite sure what to say about Society other that it's possibly the most surreal movie I've ever seen. I caught it a few years ago on Sky Movies and was overwhelmed by the unfolding story, not sure if the director was being quite serious, not sure if it was a bizarre black comedy or a horror movie.
Oh, it's a horror movie, alright, and how! The debauch at the end - the shunt- has to be seen to be believed. Disturbing, fanciful, surreal, hugely funny, Society is my favourite horror movie, a parable if you like, of the relationship between the social classes, a predatory relationship, with the one preying, no, feeding on the other. There is no symbiosis here, no harmony. Yes, my head is still spinning from the best champagne and to society I'll be true. Just remember - society waits for you. :-)
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ReplyDeleteThe horror movie is one of my favourite genres. I always manage to find some comic elements even in the darkest stories. Society is such an astonishing movie. It was received better in Europe than the States, something that does not really surprise me.
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ReplyDeleteI don't really think it would appeal to you, though at a metaphorical level the exploration of class might interest you. Believe me this is not One Nation!
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ReplyDeleteMore Castlereigh. :-))
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ReplyDeleteIt depends where you stand, really. You see, one is either a member of society or one is not. And if you are not... :-)
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ReplyDeleteI'll add the trailer to my blog.
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ReplyDeleteOh, there was a lot more to Castlereagh than being foreign secretary! No, Adam, this is definitely not for you. :-)
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ReplyDeleteI remember Society from my days as a film critic.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen The Ruling Class (1972)?
No, I've not seen that.
ReplyDeleteSo you were a film critic, Calvin, how interesting. I'd love to know more. Were you employed by a newspaper or magazine, or was it syndicated work? Do you still write reviews, even if only as a hobby? I have a page on Flixster, where I add my own reviews.
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ReplyDeleteAdam, I have seen that and, yes, it's very good.
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ReplyDeleteI was managing editor of a national TV magazine for US satellite TV viewers, back in the 1980s.
ReplyDeleteMovie reviewing is actually quite a brutal job; as well as the gems, one must watch a great number of not-very-good movies and find something to say about them. One must also learn a great deal about actors and production staff and how each movie fits into its genre. It actually took years to get over watching every movie critically, and start to find some simple, light-hearted enjoyment in them again. I bear the mental scars.
I did get to interview some delightful people, though.
Thanks so much, Calvin. Yes, I can see the problems here. I can imagine restaurant critics going right off food!
ReplyDeleteDo you have a link to any of your work? I’d love to read it.
Pre-internet, I'm afraid, Ana.
ReplyDeleteWhat a pity, but if you have any hardcopies, anything on file, anything you could email me, I'd be interested in having a look. I do appreciate, though, that anything you have is not likely to be easy to translate into the virtual world.
ReplyDelete@Ana:
ReplyDelete"It was received better in Europe than the States, something that does not really surprise me."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIhcbIPLRIw
Jeremy, thanks for that. :-)
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