I stumbled across this by almost accident on Netflix. It is a pretty nice short story and the acting isn't half bad. Sometimes short stories skimp on actors but they did OK here. As a history buff and reenactor, I could pick some things apart, but not too many. It is nice to see something that does not bash the south. The last poster mentioned the horsemanship as being pretty nice and I quite agree. My guess is that the non-leading actors are reenactors in fact and are skilled riders and likely using their own horses. I may have done one or two things differently to the story, but it was still good. 30 minutes was a good length. I wish there were more shorts about the ACW.
Reviews
9 Reviews
The Big Premiere
(1940)
Alfalfa's song
1 January 2009
The song that Alfalfa was singing was a remake of a very popular civil war song, Lorena. Of course the words are changed, but the original was well liked on both sides of the conflict and caused many soldiers from each side to go AWOL due to Homesickness. The actual lyrics are:
The years creep slowly by, Lorena The snow is on the grass again The sun's low down the sky, Lorena The frost gleams where the flowers have been But the heart throbs on as warmly now As when the summer days were nigh Oh, the sun can never dip so low A-down affection's cloudless sky.
A hundred months have passed, Lorena Since last I held that hand in mine And felt the pulse beat fast, Lorena Though mine beat faster far than thine A hundred months...'twas flowery May When up the hilly slope we climbed To watch the dying of the day And hear the distant church bells chime.
We loved each other then, Lorena More than we ever dared to tell And what we might have been, Lorena Had but our loving prospered well But then, 'tis past, the years have gone I'll not call up their shadowy forms I'll say to them, "Lost years, sleep on Sleep on, nor heed life's pelting storms."
The story of the past, Lorena Alas! I care not to repeat The hopes that could not last, Lorena They lived, but only lived to cheat I would not cause e'en one regret To rankle in your bosom now "For if we try we may forget" Were words of thine long years ago.
Yes, these were words of thine, Lorena They are within my memory yet They touched some tender chords, Lorena Which thrill and tremble with regret 'Twas not the woman's heart which spoke Thy heart was always true to me A duty stern and piercing broke The tie which linked my soul with thee.
It matters little now, Lorena The past is in the eternal past Our hearts will soon lie low, Lorena Life's tide is ebbing out so fast There is a future, oh, thank God! Of life this is so small a part 'Tis dust to dust beneath the sod But there, up there, 'tis heart to heart.
The years creep slowly by, Lorena The snow is on the grass again The sun's low down the sky, Lorena The frost gleams where the flowers have been But the heart throbs on as warmly now As when the summer days were nigh Oh, the sun can never dip so low A-down affection's cloudless sky.
A hundred months have passed, Lorena Since last I held that hand in mine And felt the pulse beat fast, Lorena Though mine beat faster far than thine A hundred months...'twas flowery May When up the hilly slope we climbed To watch the dying of the day And hear the distant church bells chime.
We loved each other then, Lorena More than we ever dared to tell And what we might have been, Lorena Had but our loving prospered well But then, 'tis past, the years have gone I'll not call up their shadowy forms I'll say to them, "Lost years, sleep on Sleep on, nor heed life's pelting storms."
The story of the past, Lorena Alas! I care not to repeat The hopes that could not last, Lorena They lived, but only lived to cheat I would not cause e'en one regret To rankle in your bosom now "For if we try we may forget" Were words of thine long years ago.
Yes, these were words of thine, Lorena They are within my memory yet They touched some tender chords, Lorena Which thrill and tremble with regret 'Twas not the woman's heart which spoke Thy heart was always true to me A duty stern and piercing broke The tie which linked my soul with thee.
It matters little now, Lorena The past is in the eternal past Our hearts will soon lie low, Lorena Life's tide is ebbing out so fast There is a future, oh, thank God! Of life this is so small a part 'Tis dust to dust beneath the sod But there, up there, 'tis heart to heart.
Lazy Days
(1929)
They have done better
27 December 2008
This was a slow moving short picture. The general theme is lazy days of summer, but the film just plods along. It was only okay. There were some scenes that should have changed that could have helped the film along. The crying baby was annoying and the director should have reassured the baby so that the child wouldn't be crying so much. I'm sure a parent was on the site so the dad or mom was likely there to have assisted. Farina got the most screen time and did okay with what he was given. All the kids just had to do was act out being tired in the hot summer day and it made you tired watching it. The contraption that the Farina family invented for rocking the baby, rocking Farina, fanning Farina and playing music was clever.
One part was fun to see. In the background of the last quarter of the film, the kids are out near a public area and fairly close to a regular gas station and street and you can see the traffic going by. It was nice to see all the old autos and trucks going about their business unawares as this was being filmed on the next block. That road is probably a big 6 lane road now.
One part was fun to see. In the background of the last quarter of the film, the kids are out near a public area and fairly close to a regular gas station and street and you can see the traffic going by. It was nice to see all the old autos and trucks going about their business unawares as this was being filmed on the next block. That road is probably a big 6 lane road now.
The Chicken of Tomorrow
(1948)
Good in it's Day
21 December 2008
I'm giving it a 10 because it wasn't meant for our generation. It is interesting to see how information was distributed back in the 40's. The whole purpose it was even on TV these days was for the MST3K crew to poke fun at it. It wasn't meant to educate anyone and it wouldn't even be on if not for MST3K. I'm sure it was helpful in it's day before the internet and the mass communication we have today. I like to see what our "fathers" or our "father's father" may have watched. Since I need 10 lines before I can post this, I googled "chicken + poems" and copied a couple poems I found there. Okay, these poems are weird..............Roses are red, Violets are blue, You're a great chicken, Cock-a-doodle-doo............Dearest chicken, lovely bird, Love is not too strong a word For the way I feel for you, And hope you feel it for me too. I love you more than I can say, And even more each passing day
Harry Reser and His Eskimos
(1936)
Interesting music video
10 July 2008
This is an interesting music video from 1936. Good music and lively dancing. The dancing is actually excellent as my feet were hurting when I was watching the short clip because their style looks very painful. This was made 70+ years ago and most, if not all, of the people in it have to be dead by now. Watch it with that in mind too. Just sit back and see how this kind of entertainment was offered to everyone. It probably played along with newsreels during the days before TV. They just don't have the big bands or the swing bands like they used to. This was just a few years before WWII so the innocence of America is on the surface. I doubt many or any, will look this short clip up on this site. I just wanted to leave something of my opinion for anyone who does.
Epic Movie
(2007)
Bored to tears
16 March 2007
I have never seen a movie so slow and dumb and boring than this. It dragged on and on and without generating laughs from persons of all ages that were in the theatre. All the remotely funny stuff is in the trailers. I have a warped sense of humor and like weird humor too and this did nothing for me. Just watch the trailer on IMDb and you will see it all. My fear is that some people will go just to see how bad it really is. If you feel this urge, fight it. Save the 1.5 hours of your life from being wasted and gone forever. I'm at a loss at describing how bad this movie is. One can only hope a lesson is learned by the producer. That lesson being to never do this again. How embarrassing it must be for him with such universal loathing for this film.
United 93
(2006)
Excellent & moving
18 May 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I just went to see it this evening. I was worried I would be let down by it by expecting too much. The movie wasn't anything like I expected. It gave you a knot in your stomach at certain points and when it was over, the whole theater was quiet and nobody moved for a minute. It was tastefully done and without taking any sides. The hijackers weren't drooling madmen and the passengers weren't extra special heroes who decided to farce a crash of the plane to save others. They were just regular people that wanted to live and knew they had to do something and do it fast. No one really knows what exactly happened, but enough info can be compiled from phone calls, recordings, flight data recordings and other means to come up with a likely scenario of how things played out. 10/10
Three Kings
(1999)
Well worth seeing!
6 October 1999
I really enjoyed this movie. It showed the confusion of battle and war and the inhumanity and humanity. Finally a movie showing how we shamefully abandoned the iraqs that were going to overthrow Saddam after the US govt. told them we would be there to help them. There was even a little morality included at the end. It was better than I expected.
The Blair Witch Project
(1999)
What a waste of time and money!
3 October 1999
The only thing scary about the movie is that there might be a sequel. I got sucked in by the hype and watched this home movie of "adults" not being able to find their way out of the woods...passing streams (you follow a steam if you're lost, by the way) and spending most of their time cussing each other out while walking in circles. They did so many dumb things that I was ready to cheer at their demise. The movie critic for our paper had told us the movie had no "BOO" scares, just mental ones. Maybe knowing there wouldn't be anything jumping out at you helped make it boring. Regardless, I give it a 2.
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