What are you watching?

[Ent]

PBS Nova science series is running a miniseries on the Solar System.

Only too cool..!!! I'll check it out for sure. Eventually I hope to see them all....if it's on YouTube I think I can download them for later watching.

 

[Tyelkormo the Fair]

Walnut Tree. This movie is pure pain.

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

<Groan>"Oh no -- not again!" 🙄

Yes, I'm afraid so.

I had to watch it at reduced speed to catch a lot of things (symbolism of which I certainly don't understand.)

Here's one bit of symbolism that sent me down a rabbit hole: the pile of clothes that bookends the beginning and end of the video. The symbolism is obvious at face value, the discarded clothes of people taken by the cubes, but it goes further than that, in both origins and significance.

People have immediately seen a connection with a 2017 music video by BTS, "Spring Day":

But the original inspiration in both cases appears to be a 2010 Paris art installation by Christian Boltanski, in which a pile of clothes is the centerpiece:

I'm not qualified even to attempt an analysis of the symbolism in the BTS video, other than to say there are references to Ursula K. LeGuin's SF story "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas", which is about a society that survives based on the torture and death of innocents.

Boltanski's work was about the Holocaust, and its title, Personnes, plays with an ambivilance in the French word, which depending on context, can mean either "people" or "no one". The pile of clothes in the BTS video was widely seen as referring to the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster, in which 300 people, most of them high school students, died. The event shook the nation, including Kpop artists (n fact, the BTS song and video is regarded as marking their breakthrough from "boy band" to serious artists). Along with a number of other people in the Korean music industry, they donated to families affected by the tragedy.

And so did IU, who donated the entire proceeds from her 2014 concert tour, and several of whose songs, especially "Dear Name", appear to directly reflect the deep effect it had on her. Given all this, I can't imagine no connection to the pile of clothes in "Love Wins All"; in fact, Boltanski's installation featured a crane which periodically lifted, then let fall, clothes from the top of the pile; the fall of the suit and wedding dress in the video seems an echo of that.

Speaking of "Dear Name", it provides an insight into the kind of person IU is: asked to perform at the 2017 Melon Music Awards ceremony, rather than centering the performance only on herself, she instead invited a number of the "unsung" of the Korean music industry to appear on stage:

I've read that some of the names appearing on the walls are of the Sewol ferry victims; I can't be sure of this, but I do know that she was heartbroken over the deaths of so many young people, many of whom were fans of hers. And I know this is another video that brings me to tears, every time I watch.

PS: I see the "Love Wins All" video has gained another million views since I last posted about it less than a week ago.

Edit: I should perhaps mention the jars people on stage are holding represent fireflies, which I understand are traditionally taken in Korean culture as being messengers, including to and from the departed, as well as symbols of hope. They've appeared in some of IU's music videos, such as "Through the Night":

(English captions available)

They also featured in her Kdrama "Hotel del Luna":

(That's not her singing BTW; apparently it's rare for someone to perform soundtrack songs on dramas in which they appear)

 

[Halasían]

I've been watching some of these amateur war film shorts by Paralight WorX on youtube. They are pretty well done!

I'll link it as it may be a bit too realistic for some. Added a screenshot.

German Fallschirmjäger vs Soviet Troops

The second episode is set in Normandy in June 1944...
One Battle in Normandy

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

The 3rd episode of this Nova series tonight at 9 PM Eastern:

Though it will be up on YouTube tomorrow.

Followed by another of my favorite series:

 

[Rivendell_librarian]

After a long day walking around various Street Libraries, I was pleasantly surprised to see 'The Great Escape' on tv last night. One of those films you can watch again and again and still fully enjoy (with the James Coburn 'Australian' accent perhaps being the exception!)

Maybe just one time Gordon Jackson won't be so stupid when getting on the bus.

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

I've posted Hwasa's "LMM" before, but one of her most moving performances of the song was at the 2023 SBS Drama Awards. She'd prepared elaborate staging of two recent upbeat songs, but shortly before the ceremony came news of the tragic death of beloved actor Lee Sun-kyun, costar with IU of 2019's "My Mister"

and the award-winning "Parasite" from 2019.

The Korean actors community was in a state of stunned grief, so Hwasa canceled the scheduled songs, and sang LMM instead, offering a note of comfort and hope.

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

A 2000 episode of "Midsomer Murders" featuring Orlando Bloom, plus a brief bit of Tolkien dialog, has been mentioned in threads here a few times. PBS is running it now, but I see it's on YouTube, for anyone interested:

 

[Halasían]

I hate Geoblocking.

Me, I'm watching the movie 'Alice's Restaurant'. Usually watch it closer to Thanksgiving, but it just seemed right to watch it today as I thought about the news of someone on RP Repository who died at the young age of 24.

 

[TrackerOrc]

Just watched 'John Wick'. Forgot how good this was; now going to watch the rest of the series.

 

[Rivendell_librarian]

I recently watched a seven part 1977 serial called Children of the Stones first shown as a teatime children's programme but with a fairly high horror content for children and an intriguing story set in the weird village of Avebury in the UK (not far from Stonehenge) with its many standing stones. There are echoes of The Wicker Man and The Midwich Cuckoos.

 

[TrackerOrc]

Just watched 'Memoir of a Snail', the latest animated movie from Adam Elliott. Bittersweet and quite dark in places.

 

[Tyelkormo the Fair]

Technically, I watched quite a while ago, but I forgot to recommend it here back then.

This movie traumatized me, and I won't be watching it again because my heart can't take it, but it doesn't make it any less of a masterpiece. All things aside, Park Jinyoung's stellar acting makes it worth the watch.

The movie is called Christmas Carol, btw.

And no, don't watch it during Christmas if you want to enjoy the holidays. 😕

 

[Halasían]

Still watching through the Paralight Worx world war 2 clips when I found this full-length movie. Apparently they did a multi-part series around six years ago and decided to edit it into a full movie. Very well done, and in 4K 60fps!

 

[Server Room Gremlin]

Just watched Christmas Carol (2022). Safe to say, it's not suitable for Christmas.🙂

Technically, I watched quite a while ago, but I forgot to recommend it here back then.

This movie traumatized me, and I won't be watching it again because my heart can't take it, but it doesn't make it any less of a masterpiece. All things aside, Park Jinyoung's stellar acting makes it worth the watch.

The movie is called Christmas Carol, btw.

And no, don't watch it during Christmas if you want to enjoy the holidays. 😕

You did actually mention it back then. 😂

 

[Tyelkormo the Fair]

You did actually mention it back then. 😂

Maybe it's because I actually want to watch it again...

SOMEBODY STOP ME!!!

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

I'll be watching the next installment of Nova's Solar System miniseries tonight.

 

[TrackerOrc]

Well just starting my umpteenth binge of 'The West Wing'.

A few episodes in and i'm loving it all over again. the sheer amount of stuff they were able to introduce in the first couple of episodes is amazing.

 

[Server Room Gremlin]

I just rewatched Dinotopia (2002 three-part miniseries). I have it on DVD, it was one of my favourite things when I was a little kid.

 

[Ashley]

I just watched Jaws for the first time, and quite enjoyed it. The special effects were better than I would have expected for the time period, particularly the shark.