Elegy: Maurice Jarre (1924-2009)

Here it is, a day or so since my last post about Ryan's Daughter, and I discover that the film's great composer, Maurice Jarre, passed away in Los Angeles after a short illness. This, of course, fills me with as much sadness as his movie music moved me to excitement, tears, or even laughs. Jarre began his career in the mid-1950s scoring French titles, the most famous of which is now Georges

Elegy: Maurice Jarre (1924-2009)

Here it is, a day or so since my last post about Ryan's Daughter, and I discover that the film's great composer, Maurice Jarre, passed away in Los Angeles after a short illness. This, of course, fills me with as much sadness as his movie music moved me to excitement, tears, or even laughs. Jarre began his career in the mid-1950s scoring French titles, the most famous of which is now Georges

Film # 119: Ryan's Daughter

I had long stayed away from David Lean's Ryan's Daughter (1970) because it had been so thoroughly drubbed by critics upon its release. But, in watching it in its newest DVD release, I was convinced that it was nearly as fine, in its own way, as Lean's previous efforts; it was really given the shaft by snooty film writers who expected something more "important" from the Oscar-winning director who

Film # 119: Ryan's Daughter

I had long stayed away from David Lean's Ryan's Daughter (1970) because it had been so thoroughly drubbed by critics upon its release. But, in watching it in its newest DVD release, I was convinced that it was nearly as fine, in its own way, as Lean's previous efforts; it was really given the shaft by snooty film writers who expected something more "important" from the Oscar-winning director who