1. My fellow Wesminster Basementeers and I spent almost three robust hours talking about all kinds of things on ZOOM yesterday. Some of it was fun talk about movies made 60-80 years ago. We always have retirement on our minds and talked some about both being retired and deciding when to retire and the finances involved. With all of us over sixty years old, the subject of our parents often comes up and that discussion was intense today as we discussed how our parents and other family members who are alive are doing and the impact of losing our parents and other aged relatives to death. It's a very serious topic and we aired out a lot of stories, insights, and feelings about relationships within our families and how family members have been affected by the loss of a mother or father. I didn't contribute to this part of the conversation except to ask questions and say a word or two about mental illness. Others had much more current and urgent stories to tell and important things to talk about.
I came away from today's ZOOM discussion concerned for what my friends are experiencing and have experienced in their families. I was also buoyed by our discussions of the power of encouragement and kindness, very aptly summed up in a poem by Tony Hoagland, "The Power of Butter".
2. Since Vizio University opened earlier this summer, I've discovered the writing and video presentations of Imogen Sara Smith and her breadth of knowledge and her insights into the noir tradition of movies has expanded my movie experience immeasurably.
I trust her.
Recently, over at Criterion, I've come across what's called a "Spotlight" talk she gave about the British movie Obsession (1949).
She called the movie "a hidden gem" and described how it perfectly balances a murder story with black comedy.
I was sold.
So I watched it.
It's a deft movie. At once, it gently parodies the British love of murder mysteries and the idea of a perfect murder while, at the same time, creating delicious suspense about how this particular murder plan will work out. The movie also is a smart study of jealousy, of (you guessed it!) obsession, and Robert Newton plays the role of the calm, sociopathic, methodical, avenging husband with eerie coldness and a touch of paranoia.
3. Obsession also features Taunton Wayne as a shrewd Scotland Yard superintendent who, I swear, might have been an inspiration for the television character Columbo. So, even though it was after 10:00, I was having some intestinal discomfort and knew I wouldn't be getting to sleep soon, so I randomly picked the first episode of the second season of Columbo and watched it, keeping me up until past midnight.
Well, almost right off the bat, I was sold on this episode because much to my surprise and delight, it starred Ray Milland! I won't go into the convoluted and entertaining tale this episode told, but I will say that I was right about Superintendant Finsbury of Obsession being a detective much like Columbo -- seemingly forgetful, always testing the patience of the suspects he was investigating, and, in the end, shrewd and insightful.
I realized that Columbo came out when I was a very busy senior in high school and continued its run through my very busy college years. I don't think I watched it very often and I'm happy that I have access to the series and will, especially when I might have trouble sleeping, watch more episodes as time goes by.
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