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What was the last film you watched?
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<blockquote data-quote="Willie Oleson" data-source="post: 435585" data-attributes="member: 8"><p>2026 is the year of action, not intentions.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]58330[/ATTACH]</p><p></p><p>Starting my comment with "this is a sentimental drama" will probably sound a bit ominous, but sentimental drama is a genre just like any other genre.</p><p>And I always say that the genre itself has no bearing on the quality of the film.</p><p>The first interesting thing to notice is that Billy is not introduced as the archetypal prodigy, all we know is that he likes to dance.</p><p>The fact that his masculine miner's family doesn't take kindly to his dancing lessons was to be expected of course, and to see them overcome their initial aversion is probably the most sentimental aspect of this story.</p><p></p><p>What makes this such a great film is that every moment that could veer into mawkish melodrama territory is mercifully and meticulously undercut by something surprising.</p><p>Not cynical or overtly comical, but more a matter-of-factly kind of humour or relativity (or brutality, depending on the scene).</p><p>The scene in which Billy and his dance teacher read Billy's mother letter shows that you can achieve the same or even more without the heavy waterworks.</p><p>The information speaks for itself and the audience doesn't need a cue.</p><p></p><p>Another thing I like is that the concept of dance is not limited to the protagonist; even the more violent scenes like the protests and the attacks on the strikebreakers have a sense of choreography.</p><p>Billy's father joining the strikebreakers is something that could have been dealt with more ferociously because it seemed like such a big thing, but this wasn't the kind of film for that.</p><p>After Billy's audition we even get that Willy Wonka's golden ticket moment, and it was funny to watch the family waiting and waiting and waiting until Pa Elliott can't take it anymore.</p><p><em>Billy Elliott </em> is sort of the upbeat counterpart to <em>Kes</em> (1969) which I also love.</p><p>Thank you, <em>Man On A Ledge</em> and <em>Billy Liar </em> for making me discover this gem.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Willie Oleson, post: 435585, member: 8"] 2026 is the year of action, not intentions. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1768655359954.png"]58330[/ATTACH] Starting my comment with "this is a sentimental drama" will probably sound a bit ominous, but sentimental drama is a genre just like any other genre. And I always say that the genre itself has no bearing on the quality of the film. The first interesting thing to notice is that Billy is not introduced as the archetypal prodigy, all we know is that he likes to dance. The fact that his masculine miner's family doesn't take kindly to his dancing lessons was to be expected of course, and to see them overcome their initial aversion is probably the most sentimental aspect of this story. What makes this such a great film is that every moment that could veer into mawkish melodrama territory is mercifully and meticulously undercut by something surprising. Not cynical or overtly comical, but more a matter-of-factly kind of humour or relativity (or brutality, depending on the scene). The scene in which Billy and his dance teacher read Billy's mother letter shows that you can achieve the same or even more without the heavy waterworks. The information speaks for itself and the audience doesn't need a cue. Another thing I like is that the concept of dance is not limited to the protagonist; even the more violent scenes like the protests and the attacks on the strikebreakers have a sense of choreography. Billy's father joining the strikebreakers is something that could have been dealt with more ferociously because it seemed like such a big thing, but this wasn't the kind of film for that. After Billy's audition we even get that Willy Wonka's golden ticket moment, and it was funny to watch the family waiting and waiting and waiting until Pa Elliott can't take it anymore. [I]Billy Elliott [/I] is sort of the upbeat counterpart to [I]Kes[/I] (1969) which I also love. Thank you, [I]Man On A Ledge[/I] and [I]Billy Liar [/I] for making me discover this gem. [/QUOTE]
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