Brief Encounter (1945)

A suburban woman of Milford, England, Laura (Celia Johnson) once a week travels to the city where, after shopping, she  watches a film at a cinema, returning by the evening train to her conventional marriage and two children. Much of the story centers around the small tearoom, and it's mostly comical residents, near the train's waiting platform, wherein traveller's sip tea and munch on pastries.

On one such visit, Laura stands on the platform when another train, not stopping there, passes, throwing a small cinder into her eye. Inside the tearoom she asks for a glass a water to wash her eye free of the painful bit of grit, whereupon a man, Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard), stands up to help, noting that he is a doctor.

This simple event is almost forgotten until the following week the two run into each other again, this time at a busy restaurant where almost every table is taken. Accordingly, the two share a table and, later, an afternoon at the movie house. Charmed by the idealistic doctor, Laura intrigues the married Alec with her strong sense of self and her easy laugh (as he later puts it: "I love you. I love your wide eyes, the way you smile, your shyness, and the way you laugh at my jokes"). Feeling a bit guilty, the couple furtively make plans to repeat their outing the next week, but this time the doctor, who fills in once a week at the local hospital for a friend, does not show up until Laura is at the tearoom at the train station, where he hurriedly explains his absence as his train, travelling in the opposite direction as hers, arrives. The two again plan an outing the next week.

Their next venture together, a comical boating trip downstream, quickly develops into a furtive relationship, in which they both admit their love for one another. When they take a drive into the country on this penultimate meeting, however, he purposely misses his train, intending to stay at his doctor-friend's flat, into which he invites her. She refuses, returning to the station and her voyage back to Milford, but at the very last moment, rushes from her train, running through the rain to the flat in which she has left Alec. At almost the same instant she arrives, however, the friend returns early, so that she is forced to rush out the back entrance, ashamed for what has almost occurred.

 

 

Realising the impossibility of their relationship, and the dark consequences arising in both their relationships with their spouses, he announces upon their final meeting that he will be travelling with his family to Africa, and will never see her again. Painfully, they sit together in the tearoom—which, in fact, has been the very first scene of the film—awaiting perhaps a tender goodbye, until one of Laura's chattering, suburban friends enters, and the two are unable to say anything. When Alec's train arrives he has no option but to tenderly squeeze her shoulder before disappearing forever, Laura rushing out of the tearoom as another train passes, possibly intending suicide to squelch what she describes:

 

"I had no thoughts at all, only an overwhelming desire not feel anything ever again."

 

She returns, however, to the tearoom, riding home with her incessantly chatting friend to suffer out the night, as she mentally repeats the events to her seemingly unaware husband, as he studies a crossword puzzle. As they are about to go up to bed, he approaches:

Fred Jesson: "You've been a long way away."

Laura Jesson. "Yes."
Fred Jesson: "Thank you for coming back to me."

 

 

 

Brief Encounter is one of the most poignant films I have seen.  I love it! :) xx

  

  

  

    

Downton Abbey (Christmas Special 2012)

 

 

September 1921. The Crawley family heads north, to Duneagle Castle in Scotland - the ancestral home of The MacClare family - to visit Lady Rose and her warring parents, Susan and Hugh ("Shrimpy"). Bates, Anna, Molesley, and O'Brien also make the trip.

 

 

 

 

Gregson, the man who hired Lady Edith on at the newspaper, tells her that he is going to be in Scotland as well. After Edith informs her family of this Mary and Matthew disagree about Gregson's motives. Gregson later declares his feelings for Edith and hopes to find an ally in Matthew. "Shrimpy" tells Lord Grantham, that he will have to sell his estate because he did not modernise it like Downton and now the money is all gone.

 

Tom remains at Downton with baby Sybil. The staff looks forward to the approaching country fair, and Carson struggles to keep them concentrating on work.

 

 

 

 

A new housemaid, Edna, joins the staff and is quickly fired after Mrs Hughes discovers her getting too close to Tom.

 

 

 

Mrs Patmore becomes involved in a romance, but it does not last as she realises he is only interested in her cooking.

 

 

 

 

At the country fair, the Downton staff win the tug of war. Jimmy is nearly robbed after winning money from betting, but is saved by Thomas, who is beaten in his place. They later agree just to be friends.

 

 

 

 

Lady Mary goes into labour early, rushing home to the local hospital to deliver her baby, a son.

 

 

 

 

 

 Matthew soon joins her to meet his heir. But on the way back to Downton, he is killed in a car accident.  Mary cuddles their baby, unbeknownst to her, now a single mother.

 

 

 

 

 

This episode is so sad. I loved Dan Stevens as Matthew! xx

 

 

Mildred Pierce (1945)

 

 



The film uses voice-over narration (the voice of Mildred). The story is framed by the questioning of Mildred by police after they discover the body of her second husband, Monte Beragon. The film, in noir fashion, opens with Beragon (Zachary Scott) being shot. He murmurs the name "Mildred" as he collapses and dies. The police are led to believe that the murderer is restaurant owner Mildred Pierce's (Joan Crawford) first husband, Bert Pierce (Bruce Bennett), who under interrogation confesses to the crime. She then relates her life story in flashback.

We see housewife Mildred married to a newly unemployed Pierce. Bert at the time was a real estate partner of Wally Fay (Jack Carson) who propositioned Mildred after learning that she and Bert were about to divorce. In the divorce, Mildred obtained custody of her two daughters: 16-year-old Veda (Ann Blyth), a bratty social climber and aspiring pianist, and 10-year-old Kay (Jo Anne Marlowe), a tomboy. Mildred's principal goal is to provide for eldest daughter Veda, who longs for possessions the family cannot afford. Mildred needs a job and the best she can find is as a waitress – a fact she hides from Veda.
 

 

 

 

 

 

One day, Veda gives their maid, Lottie (Butterfly McQueen), Mildred's waitress uniform, thinking nothing of it, until Mildred admits her employment as a waitress, infuriating Veda, who thinks it lowly. Kay contracts pneumonia and dies; to bury her grief, Mildred throws herself into opening a new restaurant on the coast (next to what appears to be the Santa Monica beach). With the help of her new friend and former supervisor, Ida (Arden), Mildred's new restaurant is a success. Wally Fay helps Mildred buy the property, and then it expands into a chain of "Mildred's" throughout Southern California.

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mildred continues to smother Veda in affection and worldly goods, but Veda is nonetheless appalled by Mildred's common background and choice of profession while becoming obsessed with money and materialistic possessions. Mildred goes as far as entering into a loveless marriage with the formerly wealthy Monte Beragon in order to improve her social standing to regain her estranged daughter. Beragon lives the life of a playboy supported financially by Mildred, much to Mildred's dismay and potential ruin. Mildred ends up losing the business thanks to Monte's manipulation and Veda's greed.
 

 

 

 

 When Veda takes up with the scheming Monte, a showdown ensues at the beach house where the film began. We discover what really happened: that Veda, furious over Monte's unwillingness to marry her, is the one who shoots him. Mildred can cover for her daughter no more, and Veda is led off to jail. Before Veda leaves, she changes and says "I'll be alright." instead of saying what she usually says: " How could you?!", and gives Mildred a kiss on the cheek after realizing what Mildred has gone through to shower her with happiness. As Mildred leaves the police station, Bert is waiting for her.

 

 

Enjoy xx