Back around 1997, two small independent British movies were released with somewhat similar there -- a quiet English town hit with major economic troubles and layoffs, and the efforts a group takes to address those challenges. One was a huge worldwide hit, even becoming a Broadway musical, and other did well in the U.K., but disappeared everywhere else and most people probably haven't even heard of. I enjoyed both, though wasn't bowled over by the one that so many flocked to, but I loved the other that is unknown here. The big hit was The Full Monty. The other was Brassed Off. Forget seeing it, if you even know of it, raise your hand, Anyone?? The film had a wonderful cast, starring Ewan McGregor, Tara Fitzgerald and Pete Postlethwaite, so it's not like it didn't have actors who Americans wouldn't know of (though this was near the beginning of McGregor's career.) It was written and directed by Mark Herman, who also wrote and directed the equally wonderful Little Voice. (Definitely recommended with Michael Caine, Brenda Blethyn and a tour-de-force performance by Jane Horrocks, who played the ditzy 'Bubble' on Absolutely Fabulous.) And also the farce, Blame It On the Bellboy. As I said, the story of Brassed Off is not totally dissimilar to The Full Monty. It's about the likely closure of the town's coal mine, which is their main sustenance. In the center of this is the town's pride, its colliery band, which has been around for 100 years And if the mine gets shut down, so will the band. Its leader (played by Postlethwaite) desperately wants to keep the musicians together, at the very least to have a chance to win one final national contest. And amid all this, Tara Fitzerald returns to town, and crosses paths with McGregor her old flame. [UPDATE: What I meant to include, but forgot and left out mentioning is that I almost never buy movie soundtracks, maybe I've bought two or maybe three over the past 30-40 years -- and one of those is the wonderful soundtrack for "Brassed Off."] I mention all this because I just came across my favorite scene in the film. Oddly, it has very little to do with the plot, and is really just music. But it's just a glorious music scene and so unexpected on several levels -- close to being a four-minute scene of just a band playing music. But what also stands out is that it's a famous guitar piece, "Concierto d'Aranjuez" by Rodrigo, arranged for, of all thngs, brass band. And when I saw it in a theater, not only did the audience sit mesmerized, but when the scene ended, it's so beautifully played that the audience...watching a movie...burst into applause. The set-up is that the colliery band is and has been for 100 years all men. And they're on the verge of breaking about. When into their midst Tara Fitzgerald walks into the room. It's wonderful here. In the context of the movie, when this scene suddenly occurs -- it's rivetingly glorious. I was going to leave it at that, but then I figured, what the heck, toss in a bonus. So, for anyone now who might be interested in seeing the movie -- it's available on Netflix as a DVD though not for streaming -- here's the trailer.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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