A review of “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood
November 10th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
“The Handmaid’s Tale” was published in 1985 and I eventually read it in 1994. When the sequel “The Testaments” was published in 2019, I was keen to read it, but I wanted to reread the original work first. The first book is a record made by a Handmaid called Offred who serves a senior Commander in what used to be the city of Bangor, Maine, USA before, in the near future and after a violent insurrection, the country became the closed, totalitarian state of Gilead in which the role of women is subjugated entirely to the aim of restoring a declining birthrate caused by a variety of environmental disasters. As Offred explains: “We are two-legged wombs, that’s all: sacred vessels, ambulatory chalices”.
There is not a lot of plot, since not that much happens over the short period of the story and the ending is inconclusive, but there is a great deal of exposition as Offred constantly recalls and records the creation and organisation of Gilead in all its macabre, ritualistic detail. This is a terrible world of typecasting through colour of clothing, such as Handmaids themselves in red, Wives in blue, Marthas in green, and Commanders in black. It is a nightmare vision with places like The Red Centre, The Wall, and Soul Scrolls and horrific events called Prayvaganzas, Salvagings, and Particicutions.
At the black heart of it all is The Ceremony when the Handmaid has to have sex with her Commander while the Commander’s Wife holds the Handmaid in place. Births themselves are semi-public affairs and less than perfect babies simply disappear. Offred slowly strikes up forbidden relationships with key actors, but will this lead to her escape and freedom? Canadian author Atwood presents a compelling story that seems sadly prescient now that we have a United States in which women’s rights, especially in relation to their own bodies, are under such challenge.
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A review of the latest Ken Loach film “Sorry We Missed You”
November 10th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
Nobody produces screen work like British television and film director Ken Loach. Now in his 80s, ever since the 1960s – with “Cathy Come Home” and “Poor Cow” – through to “I, Daniel Blake”, he has created a series of trenchant pieces of social commentary that dissect the causes of the darkness faced by so much of the working class.
This time, he critiques the insecurities and unfairness of the gig economy through the story of Ricky (Kris Hitchen), who has just started working for a parcel delivery company, and his wife Abbie (Debbie Honeywood), who is a social worker, struggling to pay the bills and bring up two children in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
Ricky’s fictional company is called PDF, but it is a thinly disguised metaphor for the real-life DPD, which, in February 2018, faced widespread criticism due to the treatment of Don Lane, one of its couriers who was fined by the company for attending a medical appointment to treat his diabetes and ultimately collapsed and died of the condition.
Like some earlier works from Loach – including the hard-hitting “I, Daniel Blake” – “Sorry We Missed You” was written by Paul Laverty and stars an unknown cast which, plus research with courier drivers who did not wanted to be named, gives the film powerful verisimilitude.
This is not an easy film to watch, presenting a grim tale in uncompromising fashion with an inconclusive ending, but it has an important political message and, at its heart, represents the resilience of a loving family.
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A war to end no wars
November 9th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
This evening, I was returning home in the dark when an elderly couple asked me for directions to a location on London’s South Bank and I took them to the place they were seeking to link up with their son.
The husband told me that a short animation had been made about his wife’s grandfather – a veteran of the First World War – by their daughter. I looked it up on YouTube and wanted to share it with you:
If you would like to know why and how the animation was made, check out this short television news item:
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How did Britain’s two-party system come about?
November 7th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
I’m doing a six-week evening class at London’s City Literary Institute entitled: “The Making Of The United Kingdom 1603-1801: Restoration, Revolution, and Political Unions”. This week’s session – the second – was all about the reign of King Charles II, a period which saw the emergence of the two-party system of politics in Britain.
The political division in Parliament came about as a result of the Exclusion Crisis of 1679-1681. This saw an attempt – ultimately unsuccessful – to prevent the Catholic James VIII of Scotland and James II of England from coming to the British throne following the imposition of Protestantism in Britain and Ireland.
Those who supported the exclusion were called Whigs. Originally they went by the fuller name ‘whiggamore’, a term applied to the Scots Covenantators who wanted to keep Catholics out of the monarchy. Key values of the Whigs were civil and political liberty.
Those who opposed the exclusion were called Tories. The nomenclature comes from the Irish word for bandit, outlaw or cattle thief and was originally intended as a term of abuse against those who were content to see a Catholic on the throne. Subsequently the name was applied to those whose main loyalties were to ‘Church and King’. Hence they were the party of the Establishment.
By the end of the 1850s, the Whigs had been replaced by the Liberals. Then, in turn. in 1922, the Labour Party overtook the Liberals in the number of seats held in the House of Commons.
Meanwhile we still have the Tories and the Conservative Party is widely held to be the most successful in the democratic world in terms of winning national elections. They think that they’re heading for another victory in the current General Election. Let’s see …
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Enjoying the different versions of “His Dark Materials”
November 4th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
It’s great that at the weekend BBC One began broadcasting an eight-part television adaptation of the first novel in the brilliant “His Dark Materials” trilogy by Philip Pullman.
I really admired the books:
- “Northern Lights” – my review here
- ‘The Subtle Knife” -my review here
- “The Amber Spyglass” – my review here
The first novel was turned into a film called “The Golden Compass” [my review here], but it did not have critical success and the other two books were never filmed.
Also I saw the two-part stage production at London’s National Theatre.
The BBC adaptation gives eight hours rather than the two in the movie to a portrayal of “Northern Lights” (or “The Golden Compass”, as it is known in the US), it maintains the anti-clerical stance of the novel which was rather lost in the film, and it makes a point of using some black actors.
Today’s “Guardian” newspaper has a review headlined: “a riveting realisation of Philip Pullman’s magic”.
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Did you know that the Italians bombed Britain in the Second World War?
November 3rd, 2019 by Roger Darlington
I didn’t – even though I know a fair bit about World War Two and my mother was Italian.
Check out this short video:
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A review of the Depression-era musical “Gold Diggers Of 1933”
November 2nd, 2019 by Roger Darlington
The gold diggers of the title are New York chorus girls struggling to eat and pay the rent during the Great Depression who are not above seducing older men with more money than sense. If this seems an unlikely theme for a romantic musical, it managed to raise the spirits of its contemporary audience and still works a treat 76 years later.
Based on a Broadway comedy that had already been filmed twice by Warner Brothers, the story was opened up by director Mervyn Leroy with music and lyrics from Harry Warren and Al Dubin and fabulous dance routines choreographed by the legendary Busby Berkeley. The movie is astonishingly risque for the times with scanty costumes and songs such as “Pettin’ In The Park”.
What really distinguishes this particular musical from others of the time is the sombre ending: a dramatic appeal for social justice in the form of a number titled “Remember My Forgotten Man” which references the controversial 1932 Bonus March of jobless veterans. And there’s even a role for Ginger Rodgers before her famous pairing with Fred Astaire.
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Why the English civil war is a misnomer
November 1st, 2019 by Roger Darlington
This week, I started a new six-week evening class at London’s City Literary Institute. The course – deliver by Dr Jamie McDougall – is entitled: “The Making Of The United Kingdom 1603-1801: Restoration, Revolution, and Political Unions”. I thought it would be a good time to understand how the UK was created when we are conducting a general election which could lead to the break-up of the UK.
A major part of the first session of the course concerned what is usually called the English Civil War. In fact, like so much of our supposed knowledge of history, the concept of the English Civil War is a substantial over-simplification.
It was not an exclusively English affair but involved forces from, and battles in, Wales, Scotland and Ireland as well. Furthermore it was not so much a single conflict as a series of five wars: the First Bishops War of 1639, the Second Bishops War of 1640, the First Civil War of 1642-1646, the Second Civil War of 1648 and the Third Civil War of 1649-1651.
What were the main constitutional results of these civil wars?
- The feudal rights of the Crown and the Tudor prerogative courts were never to be restored.
- The King’s power to levy taxes without the consent of the House of Commons or his right to arrest members without just cause was destroyed.
- Parliament became an unchallengeable part of the British constitution and the Church of England ceased to be the sole religious institution.
In the next three and a half centuries, England has had no civil war. Not many countries can say that. But the current conflict over Brexit could be seen as a non-military civil war – certainly a profound clash of cultures that, in modern times at least, is an unprecedented strain on this United Kingdom.
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A review of the important new film “Official Secrets”
October 29th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
In 2003, 28 year old China-watcher Katherine Gun worked for Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) when she came across evidence that the British and the Americans were covertly monitoring members of the UN Security Council in an effort to obtain leverage on countries that might be persuaded to support a crucial second vote authorising the invasion of Iraq.
She leaked the information, it found its way into the “Observer” newspaper, and she was charged with a breach of the Official Secrets Act with the human rights organisation Liberty backing her defence.
This is the story told by this film which has taken a great deal of effort and an inordinate amount to time to be made (the script has been around for a decade). My four years in government are still subject to the Official Secrets Act and I have been a lifelong member of Liberty, so I can certainly empathise with the characters and issues in this important work.
Keira Knightley – who is really maturing as an actor – gives a convincing and nuanced performance as Gun and the impressive castlist includes Ralph Fiennes, Matt Smith, Rhys Ifans, Jeremy Northam and Tamsin Greig. Credit goes to Gavin Hood (“Eye In The Sky”) as director and co-writer for producing such a trenchant analysis of the whistle-blowing and the prosecution.
However, as cinema, “Official Secrets” has a number of problems. First, the procedures and issues are quite complicated so a fair bit of the dialogue is rather expository. Second, everyone knows that the leak failed to stop the invasion and that no weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq and many will know that the court case against Gun was abandoned, so the film lacks the vital element of tension.
Set against that, the work is really timely in reminding us that whistle-blowers often expose egregious misuse of power, that governments have to be held to account, and that foreign interventions have profound consequences.
Wikipedia page on Katherine Gun click here
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A review of “Terminator: Dark Fate”
October 28th, 2019 by Roger Darlington
I thought the first two “Terminator” movies (1984 & 1991) were terrific and the third (2003) and fourth (2009) were entertaining enough, but the fifth (2015) was disappointing and I felt that we’d seen the end of the franchise. However, it seems that – even after 35 years – you just can’t keep those killers from the future crashing into the present with seemingly unstoppable intent. In fact, pleasingly this is the third best segment of the franchise.
A major factor is that, as well as Arnold Schwarzenegger as the original T-800 Terminator (now with the funniest lines), we have Linda Hamilton back as Sarah Connor, looking great after all these years and packing a bigger arsenal than ever. We have a new Terminator – a Rev-9 model – with the metal skeleton of the original and the oozing liquid of the T-1000 plus the capability of functioning in both forms simultaneously (Latino actor Gabriel Luna). And we have a new protector in the shape of an female augmented human called Grace – she calls herself a “super soldier” – portrayed with style by Mackenzie Davis (who had the eponymous role in “Tully”).
Also we have all the classic tropes but with subtle variations. So there is no Skynet (that future was prevented) but there is Legion which is as bad. The new Terminator is not trying to kill the mother of the future leader of the human rebellion but such a warrior of the future himself or herself. And the original Terminator doesn’t announce “I’ll be back”; instead Connor utters the famous lines, while Arnie tells his ‘family’ “I won’t be back”.
All the usual chasing, shooting and fighting is there in entertaining formats and the storyline is very similar to the second film (although set in a post Judgement Day 2022), but there are some contemporary political references with a Mexican heroine and scenes at Trump’s border wall and US detention camps.
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