Giorgio Perlasca (1910-1992): history, books, films.

Today is the twentieth anniversary of the death of Giorgio Perlasca. See his website in Italian. It is surprising to me that someone who, alone, has done so much for so many should still be relatively unknown, especially outside of Italy and perhaps Israel. Perlasca saved over five thousand Jews, far more that Schindler did with his "list" of Hollywood fame.

Anche in Italia indifferenza per la sua morte, con un funerale disertato dalle maggiori autorità politiche, anche locali. Un altro caso di come il nostro paese trascura i suoi eroi. Quelli veri, non quelli costruiti in televisione e in certi libri di storia.

Puoi comprare il box con due DVD in italiano qui




Unfortunately this film is not available in English.

Il film è tratto da materiale contenuto in questo libro:




Altri libri su Giorgio Perlasca sono disponibili qui.

Arrival in Bali, Indonesia

Uneventful flight to Bali over a necklace of Indonesian islands.

The car that is supposed to be waiting for us is not there and after a few sms Luca and I decide to rent a taxi to go to our hotel in Sanur. We'll have to overnight here before catching our domestic flight to Komodo tomorrow.

Traffic out of the airport in Denpasar is horrific. We drive bumper to bumper for almost two hours amidst unbearable pollution. A little man pulling a huge cart easily overtakes us. He is carrying I don't know how many hundreds of kilos of everything. Reminds me of rickshaw pullers of another time.

Before dinner we take a walk along the beach. Because of the tides, swimming depth can be very very far from the shore. I can't really see why one would come to Bali for its beaches, though there are plenty other reasons to. In fact, I was initially concerned this would be a much too commercialized destination. However, as I will see in the course of my visit after our diving cruise, it is not necessarily so as long as one is ready to move out of the beaten path.

The main street of Sanur is rather uninteresting: shops overflowing with junk for tourists and restaurants. We decide to dine at the Savana, attracted by the lobster on display. There are very few patrons. Too few perhaps. After they take our orders the staff, slowly, starts the charcoals to cook the lobster. It takes more than two hours before the food is on our plates! Eventually they apologize and offer a 20% discount on the bill. Oh well! Lobster was very good though.

Singapore city tour: Chinatown, Maxwell food center.

We wake up at dawn because of our jet lag, and out of our hotel window we can admire the silhouette of the iconic Marina bay Sands (MBS). After a sumptuous breakfast, we proceed to a full day tour of Singapore with Luca and our local guide.

Merlion

Singapore welcomes us with a sunny and hot day. I never have enough of this wonderful city state, a mixture of tradition and modernity that blends many cultures into a proud and vibrant society. The Chinese majority (about three quarters of the population) coexists with the Indian (Tamil) and Malay minorities and the many Western expats.

About two hundred Jewish families are known to live here, but I am told they mostly keep to themselves. It is possible to visit mosques, churches, Hindu and Buddhist temples, but our guide says it is not easy to visit the two synagogues for non Jews.

Streets are calm and clean, public transport works well and everything seems to be user friendly. The country is not really a full democracy, and limited dissent is tolerated, just, alive, especially online. Economically, the former British colony began to develop as a freeport, taking advantage of its strategic position. It then diversified into manufacturing, oil refining, finance and more recently into tourism. Tourists are also attracted by the possibility of gambling.

Politically, Singapore is tightly connected with the West and especially with the US, which keeps a discrete military presence on the island. Military cooperation with Israel is quite developed as well.

The Chinatown underground market is pulsating with trade and (for me) unusual foods, like fish bellies and pork stomach. There is ample opportunity to taste different delicacies as we work our way along the neon lit alleys of the market.. A friendly seller of more familiar bananas poses for me without a problem. In one cafè I try a drink of chestnut juice, barley and lime.

Live frogs are for sale along with many different kinds of meat and fish.


At the Maxwell food court Chinese, Indian and Malay food offer an endless wource of enjoyment for the adventurous. Here you sit casually at big round tables that you share with whoever happens to be there. You buy your food and drinks and eat at your pace. Many ladies scurry around cleaning up after you are done, and other ladies patrol the alleys selling paper tissue.

Actually you don't really have to be so adventurous. Just curious. Unlike a group of Italians whom I met. The two guys were looking around and ready to plunge into some chicken masala or pork liver, but the two ladies looked horrified and asked their men to leave and go look for some more readily recognizable food. Oh well, their choice. And their loss. We stayed and tried different stuff, including "century old egg", a darkened hard boiled egg that is kept underground for some months before being offered for consumption. Different from what we are used to, but good.

A very special egg

Of course, western symbols like McDonald's are everywhere to testify the cosmopolitan nature of this country.

Dinner at an Indian restaurant in the Esplanade. Wendy, a Chinese friend from Hong Kong, tells me how she is really worried about how the central government is slowly eroding HK's unique nature to make it conform with the mainland. In theory HK is autonomous until 2047 (fifty years after the end of British rule) but in practice she fears it might be amalgamated into the Communist system before that. On the other hand, China is changing fast as well, and it might well be that in 2047 the mainland will look more like HK today

Back to Singapore

My first flight on the huge A-380, the biggest airliner in the world. It's Lufthansa this time, they had a special deal that was impossible to turn down.


As we approach Singapore the staff handed me the immigration form. Name, date of birth etc... and then a dry statement in capital letters:

WELCOME TO SINGAPORE

WARNING

DEATH FOR DRUG TRAFFICKERS UNDER SINGAPORE LAW

OK could hardly be clearer than that. Singapore had a long history of opium smoking, dating back to the XIX century when the British actually encouraged it. Opium sapped the energy of society and memories last a long time in Chinese culture, so it is not surprising that there is such a determination to stamp it out today. Of course I keep reading that drugs are readily available in Singapore, so I am not sure about just how strong a deterrent the death penalty really is in Singapore.

Changi Airport, I gave it an "excellent"

At the airport (one of the best in the world, though I prefer Hong Kong's) Luca and I are welcomed by a plethora of shops, restaurants and super clean toilets, in which the management takes great pride. By the time we are processed through customs our luggage is waiting for us on the carousels and we are off to a twenty-minute taxi ride to the hotel. The road is lined by gardens full of flowers, trees, lawns, and not one advertisement board. With very few exceptions, these are banned in Singapore, which is rather funny as this is one of the biggest shopping capitals of the world.

In the evening Luca and I join a couple of friends for a seafood dinner at the one of the many restaurants along the famed Singapore East Coast. I want to try shark fin soup. Being a conscientious diver I am absolutely against the horrible slaughter of sharks that is perpetrated each year to privide for this fare, but let me try once. It is really nothing special, I can't understand what's the big deal about it, and I won't ever have it again.

You can watch a slideshow of my trip to Singapore here

Film review: A Good year (2006), by Ridely Scott, ***

Synopsis

Director Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe--who first worked together on the Academy Award-winning Gladiator--are reunited in this romantic film, which is based on Peter Mayle's book A Year in Provence.

Crowe plays Max, a workaholic London bonds trader who doesn't know the meaning of vacation. When his uncle dies, leaving him a picturesque estate in the south of France, Max views it as an opportunity to cash in the vinery and pocket the profits. The film is reminiscent of Diane Lane's Under the Tuscan Sun in the way the scenery plays as much of a role in the film as its characters. The lush village and streaming sunlight portray Provence as an idyllic, magical place. Even Max falls under its spell. While not a particularly likeable character, especially in the early part of the film, Max also isn't a bad guy. Nothing that happens comes as much of a surprise. Still, while the film doesn't fully utilise Crowe's range of skills, the actor is charming in his role and A Good Year provides fine viewing. --Jae-Ha Kim for Amazon





Review

A feel good movie to take you to Provence for a couple of hours. Crowe is not at his best, whereas Marion Cotillard is the real star.

The moral of the story is one I share: work to live, don't live to work. The setting (ruthless London city trader sees the light and a pretty woman and turns good) is a bit trite. But then again the point the movie is trying to make is a simple one. But a strong one.

But this is also a movie about wine. You learn a bit about French wine making specifically, though American wines enter the fray when Max's cousin comes into the picture. A couple of references are made to the France-California rivalry: I would recommend watching the film "Bottle Shock" together with this one. This movie was made the same year as the rematch of the  Judgement of Paris, again won by California over France.

The ending is predictable, sort of, but with a fun twist...

Film review: Egypt, Rediscovering a Lost World (2006), BBC, ****

Synopsis

Focusing on three of the most important discoveries from the world of the ancient Egyptians, this series journeys back in time to explore Howard Carter's discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, the Great Giovanni Belzoni's finds from the reign of Ramesses II and Jean-François Champollion's deciphering of the hieroglyphs. Join Carter, Belzoni and Champollion as they overcome immense obstacles to unlock the secrets of an as-yet undiscovered world and reveal their seminal finds. Then travel even further back, to the amazing period of Egyptian history unveiled by their astounding work.




Disc 1:
Episode 1 and 2 : Carter and Tutankhamon
Episode 3: Belzoni and Ramses, first part

Disc 2:
Episode 4: Belzoni and Ramses, second part
Episode 5 and 6: Champollion and the hieroglyphs

Disc 3:
The making of the pyramids
Extras: trailers, photo gallery, fact files, visual effects


Review

Tut Ankh Amun funeral mask, Cairo Museum

This is a fictional rendering of the life and work of the three most important discoverers of ancient Egypt. It is a comprehensive work, at least as much as can fit into three DVDs packed with action. The idea of a fictional narration instead of a pure documentary is a good one in this case, as it helps bring the characters to life. The three stories of research and discovery are interlaced with the personal lives of the three men, their strengths and weaknesses, and it all makes for an entertaining as well as instructive narration.

I am not sure why the authors chose this particular order of the episodes, in that Belzoni should come first, as his discoveries preceded the work of the two others. Carter's episodes should be the last: not only did he work a century after Belzoni and Champollion, but his subject, Tutankhamun, lived a thousand years after Ramses and the inventors of the hieroglyphs. The viewer might want to watch episodes 3 and 4 first, then 5 and 6, and finally 1 and 2.

Abu Simbel before restoration

Acting is not going to win any Oscars but that's not why one buys this set. The third "bonus" DVD on the pyramids is the worst of the three. The CGI are rather poor (more like 1990s than 2010) and the narrator's voice tries to be solemn but is just boring.

You can read my review of the book on Giovanni Belzoni by Marco Zatterin (in Italian) here on this blog.

Buy the European DVD set here:




In the US you can buy it here:

Film review: The Odd Couple (1968) by Gene Saks, *****

Synopsis

Neil Simon's beloved story about two divorced men who decide to share a New York apartment. Felix (Jack Lemmon) is fussy and fastidious to a fault. He proves that cleanliness is next to insanity. Oscar (Walter Matthau) wreaks havoc on a tidy room with the speed and thoroughness of a tornado. An enduring and endearing picture with the intelligence one usually misses in comedies.


Review

Today I have seen this great film for the first time, nearly half a century after if was made, and I had a ball. Not only is the film superfunny. Not only it keep a nice clip throughout. It is actually a pretty serious analysis of many of the most common idiosyncrasies of men. All men, or at least most men, in any country. On the one hand we just want to be left alone, but on the other hand, when we are, we resent it and look for relationships.

Also, I sympathized a lot with oscar for setting up the two girls only to see them fall for Felix, who could not care less, at least in the beginning, and ends up reaping the fruits. It happened to me so many times! (I am usually the Oscar, not the Felix, in this kind of circumstances!)

Some memorable quotes:

[When Oscar can't take it anymore and asks Felix to leave]
Felix: In other words, you're throwin' me out.
Oscar: Not in other words. Those are the perfect ones!

Felix: I think I'm crazy.
Oscar: If it makes you feel any better, I think so too.

[When Felix is very tense]
Oscar: Look at this. You're the only man in the world with clenched hair.

Film review: Chaplin blu-ray box set, *****

This is a collection of five films:

The Kid (1921) silent
A moving story of poverty and generosity.

The Gold Rush (1925) silent
Irony about greed. Poor man against poor man, in the hope of striking gold and turning the page.

The Circus (1928) silent
Love and desperation intertwined in a moving story.

Modern Times (1936) last silent film by Chaplin
A timeless classic about the dehumanization of man by machines.

The Great Dictator (1940)
Filmed as WW II was getting underway, it is a totally unveiled veiled satirical attack on Hitler and Mussolini. A movie about the need to speak up for freedom, then as now.

These are among the best masterpiecess made by Charlie Chaplin. They are timeless works, and each evokes as much emotion and humor today as it did almost a century ago.

The BD rendering is very good, even though I am not sure it justifies the expensive price tag. Perhaps a DVD set would be enough. Yet, I would still recommend this set, considering one is likely to view them again and again with undiminished pleasure.

Film review: Julie and Julia (2009), by Nora Ephron ****

Julia Child in Time magazine

Synopsis

A culinary legend provides a frustrated office worker with a new recipe for life in Julie and Julia, the true stories of how Julia Child's (Meryl Streep) life and cookbook inspired fledgling writer Julie Powell (Amy Adams) to whip up 524 recipes in 365 days and introduce a new generation to the magic of French cooking. Stanley Tucci (The Devil Wears Prada) co-stars in director Nora Ephron's delicious comedy about joy, obsession and butter. It was to be the last of her movies, as she died in 2012. Bon appetit!

Film review: Olympia (1936), by Leni Riefenstahl ***

Synopsis

A documentary of the 1936 Summer Olympic games held in Berlin.



Review

This is undoubdtedly great photography, and controversial director Riefenstahl was very innovative in her positioning of the camera, especially in the low angle. For its time, it was a masterpiece.

Today I find it a bit boring. The sequence of events is monotonous and repetitive.

Interesting to hear the British version commentator cheer for a "European" runner (who happened to be an Italian) runner when an American and a Canadian were in the lead in the 800 meters. An indication that at the time the ideological differences between fascist Italy and democratic Britain did not prevent him to voice sympathy for a fellow European when competing against an American.

Also interesting to hear him use of the term"negro" when referring to black athletes. This is of course politically incorrect today, but did not have a pejorative connotation at that time. Indeed, Martin Luther King and Leopold Senghor used the word even much later.

Funny to see swimmers as they swam "breast stroke" also with butterfly strokes, at will, as it was not differentiated at the time.

The audio in this DVD is pretty bad, could have been remastered better.

An interesting piece of history nonetheless.




Buy the US version here