#55 - The Unbearable Lightness of Being

#55 is one I had heard the title of for years but never gotten around to - The Unbearable Lightness of Being - a story about the lives of bohemians and lovers in 1968 Czechoslovakia at the time of the Soviet Crackdown

This was based on a novel, and at 3 hrs, must have gotten most of the source material in, I hope - an exquisite performance by Daniel Day Lewis, Juliette Binoche, and Lena Olin -

I've always been fascinated by the ideas of intellectual revolution and what one keeps hidden in a repressive authoritarian regime - A German film called "The Lives of Others" takes place in East Germany under the similar circumstances of Communism over all

As a whole the film got my attention but at 3 hrs I was hoping it could go a bit quicker - the Criterion Edition is out of print but I think the 2006 print by WB has the same commentary with the director, writer, and Lena.

Possibly my favorite part of the movie is the invasion where authentic footage of the Russian invasion is interspersed with the actors interacting - for example, in one scene, footage of two covered bodies is seen, and on the other side you see new footage (in B&W) of the actors cut into this historical footage - and with other scenes of action and motion it's even more pronounced - it's almost worth watching that part again for those 20 minutes alone

It's a book about life, exile, and love translated to the big screen - I heard the writer was unhappy with the film's adaptation and never allowed another one to be made of his books.

I liked it - not greatly - I wouldn't buy it but I might watch it again :)   BUT that's what we got - they ain't all gonna be Yojimbo - LOL

Interesting sidenote - Milos Forman was asked to do this film but turned it down because he had family living in Prague so he couldn't put them at risk doing this subversive movie :)



RB