A barrel of laughs
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NovaIncognito — 12 years ago(May 23, 2013 04:57 AM)
Actually, you are the ingnorant one. Upon second viewings, I still cried at some of the sadder parts, but I also did get a little bit of a laugh at the way he was (and I believe it was on purpose, and your intellect or rather, lack of doesn't comprehend this) repeating what Mr. Stevens was telling him "I got me mops and me brooms." He also went on to say something like "If I find any dust, I'll give them a good going over with me mop here." It was rather humorous on second or multiple viewings (as you can see, I am a fan of the movie, having watched it countless times), so you not having a sense of humor is your problem.
Also, you are clearly British and ignorant in your understanding of history. Lord Darlington is based upon quite a few of the upper class in Britain at the time, specificaly Lord Halifax and Neville Chamberline and their appeasement policy towards Nazi Germany. The only silly part is the fact that this movie actually tries to make excuses for these ignorant AMATEUR appeasers, and that they did it out of their own ignorance and good intentions, but that is exactly what Christopher Reeve's character was saying in the film, that they were amateurs who were living in the past. He even said "do you realize the place the world is becoming around you? The day you could act out of your noble instincts is over" and he was correct. And perhaps that is what people like Halifax and Chamberline were trying to do, if we want to make excuses for them rather than call them traiterous dogs that helped assist hitler'sGgermany and are therefore indirectly responsible for the death of millions of people, many of them British. So, I suggest you learn a little bit more about your history before you start attacking not only one of the better parts of this movie and one of the more historically accurate parts of it, but one that tried to be understanding about the British appeasement policy towards hitler's Germany.
And calling the Americans amateurs, well, that is based on nothing, and the fact that the United States didn't have to get involved in the European side of WWII (remember, this was a world war, not a european war) but did anyway, saving countless European lives, many of them British, makes your comments about "the Americans" very immature and just demonstrates more of that ignorance.
The entire fact that you were actually calling someone else ignorant is a joke!!
Sorry, no animals in the discussion hall. You have to dismount your high horse to participate. -
Camargue — 10 years ago(March 31, 2016 11:54 PM)
"I'm guessing you're american, because some of the remarks are awfully ignorant . . . "
The word is American, and, most of us are NOT "ignorant."
" . . . its the late 30's, pre WW2 & we see a yank . . . lectures european politicians & calls them amateurs!"
Just exactly what was the history of military excellence, experience, and success in Europe, up to that point? [Honestly and truly, actually well executed battles, won with strategy and sense, that achieved a noble goal.]
" . . . well well, if i recall, none of the americans had that wisdom back at the time, & when america was enjoying its isolationism & refusing to take part in the war when it first started . . . "
Would you like to review the names and numbers of various countries, kingdoms, duchies, towns, villages, and other areas that held themselves OUT of wars, up to that point? [Honestly and truly, formal resistance to any and all wars in which they had a treaty (of any kind) or any type of signed agreement of mutual protection, or they were neighbors, colleagues, cohorts, or friends, were engaged.]
"i think its insulting to depict an american telling european they were amateurs, when its a known fact it was the americans who were amateurs."
It is both risky and careless to call someone who has NEVER lost any competition an "amateur," and then to defend those who have lost most competitions as "professionals."
Again, let's count the wars that America had been engaged in, and how many they won. (1) The American Revolutionary War (our first; it was successful and got the job done; we "evicted" the Brits and gained our independence). (2) Actually, rather than copying and pasting a list of all American Wars from 1776 to 1930 (the time of the movie) I'll let YOU look them up; the list is very easy to find; just Google "American Wars" and any accurate list begins with the American Revolutionary War even though it began before we were officially a country; (we didn't finish ratifying the US Constitution until September of 1787).
The rest are mostly Indian Wars, War of 1812, etc., but if you check the "win and lost" column you will not find a SINGLE "lost." This is NOT anything to brag about, but it needs to be ACCURATE! And, we NEVER lost a war, even though we "invented" a new way of fighting (based on advice from the American Indians, who were "on our side" and wanted us to sack the Brits and send them packing) beginning with the Revolutionary War that meant so much; our independence.
And, it can be said that we "gave the French hope" and they gained their independence in a similar fashion.
Before you start on the Indian Wars, consider how many decades and centuries that we lived IN HARMONY with the Indians.
My eleventh great-grandfather left England and landed in the area that is now Maine (USA) in August of 1635. I won't bore you with the details other than that he was a Puritan who did not feel safe during King Charles I, and, given their history then and for some years on, I doubt that anyone had much "faith" in the English monarchy at that time).
My ancestors lived next to the Mic Mac (many spellings) from 1635 until now. I strongly believe that if it were not for the Mic Mac, that many Englishmen/women of that time would have died or would have lived lives of much less comfort; they learned much from the American Indians. I try to imagine my eleventh great-grandmother getting "cooking lessons" from the Mic Mac women. It must have been a hoot! And, my poor great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother looking for "English" ingredients. It must have been very difficult for her. I wonder if American deer tasted different from British deer. Or milk; did they have cows? And what kinds of grain could they cook? I can't imagine!
" . . . so in conclusion, i think the only loser is you."
In fact, if you knew how to argue (most of us learned in college level English 101, or high school debate class; but that's how American education works) you would know that one of the first "rules of engagement" is that we NEVER lob ad hominem attacks. They are NEVER acceptable.
So, in conclusion, I think you had a point, but you delivered it with such ham-handed and negative attacks, and with such nonsense claims, that you put your entire argument at risk. [Case in point: Americans have NEVER been "amateur" fighters (since the first skirmish of the Revolutionary War). We won our country through blood and battle because the Brits refused to listen, or respect our views, and tried to arbitrarily tax us to death. They had goofy kings making bad decisions, and we were the beneficiaries of their errors.
We have NEVER been the aggressors. And, NEVER for personal gain. We do not wage war for fun. We were "begged" to save your (Europe's) bacon in WWI and WWII and Korea and Vietnam and the Gulf Wars. We TRY not to fight; our people are NOT hawks! We pay a GREAT PRICE to be the World's Po -
butaneggbert — 10 years ago(January 23, 2016 02:39 PM)
I have to confess, I had one moment of inappropriate laughter: when Miss Kenton is sprawled sobbing, and he creeps into her room to comfort her? Embrace her? And then all he's capable of doing is mentioning the new maid isn't dusting regularly.
I understood the point being made, but the incredulous look on her face made me burst out laughing. It was the one tiny moment where I felt the movie may have overplayed its hand portraying his inability to reach out.
Nothing to see here, move along.
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Edward_de_Vere — 15 years ago(August 14, 2010 05:15 PM)
The movie isn't about Mr. Stevens being likable or not likable. You may as well ask "was he a good guy or a bad guy." Like most real human beings (as opposed to comic book and video game characters who populate today's blockbuster films), Stevens had a combination of admirable traits and flaws, as did Lord Darlington. Darlington wasn't a "Nazi," he was a man with a misplaced sense of honor who was easily manipulated by Nazis, and who wound up making decisions that he later regretted (such as dismissing the Jewish girls). Try to see the world in something other than the cardboard cutout perspective that you've absorbed from action-packed summer blockbusters, sitcoms and reality tv.
Why do these 2 have such an absurd devotion to "service," i.e. a$$-kissing (Nazis at that)? Maybe we're just extraordinarily mean-spirited, but we were giggling like fools at all the best and funniest parts, like Stevens Sr. "me mops, me brooms," and when he was seen practicing his tray service delivery post-fall.
Posts like this remind me of the line, "I speak, but make no sense. I read, but do not understand. I hear, but don't comprehend." -
lolarites — 15 years ago(October 28, 2010 01:35 PM)
Your post was a barrel of laughs to many on this forum I'm sure. It saddens me to know such ignorance is so bold. You are obviously not educated nor traveled and maybe ignorance is bliss, but to those of us who know the history and culture of this country and unashamedly admit to being Anglophiles, your braying brings only pity from me. The dance the English played with the Nazi's pre WWII almost came to pass if it has not been for the abdication of HRH Prince of Wales on 12/11/36. He was a Nazi sympathizer and was his future wife and had he not stepped aside, England would be Germany today. This film to me is first and foremost about unrequited love. I still can't understand why Mr. Stevens didn't drive Ms. Kenton back home instead of letting her stand in the rain. Also, her striking out at him for not asking her to marry her was so painful to me. It was so cruel to tell him she and her boyfriend make fun of him. I am sorry you aren't evolved enough to enjoy this love story because set against the backdrop of the world's ever escalating crisis, was so beautifully told. What you don't know or maybe incapable of understanding that these people who are "in service" were very proud of their positions because it was a well respected profession at the time. The most important your employer was, the more important you were. It gave one a sense of great satisfaction that in some small way, they helped their employer with his position in worldly affairs. I should stop here, because I know it will all be lost on the flat wasteland of your ever shrinking base of knowledge.
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megacalamares — 14 years ago(November 24, 2011 12:19 PM)
well I completely agree, I think Ivory Merchant production are pompous , they just take themselves seriously but are not as deep as they think they are. Hence they are often involuntarily hilarious, as pompous people often are! Also I was shocked to realize that James Ivory is not british at all but desperately tries to be. Guess it is pretty easy to make fun of him too, he probably wouldn't notice!
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agnieszka01 — 14 years ago(December 22, 2011 08:04 PM)
OP, the whole thing really seemed a commentary on the whole "I was only following orders" mentality. While Stevens seemed good-natured, he had an ignorance about him that we now know can be a very dangerous and insidious thing. The character devoted his life to being a sycophant; what a way to live. So, it is not exactly meant to be a joke. And of course you are supposed to disapprove of Lord Darlington, and Stevens' blind devotion to him. Some of the other moments you point to are obviously intended as levity. Also, I don't think Stevens Sr. was "practicing his tray service delivery." He was trying to prove to himself that his fall was caused by a paving stone that was sticking out; rather than any nervous problems he may have had. You could see how he was kicking at the stones, trying to find a loose one that may have caused the fall. You seem to have a bit of a dull, black-and-white way of looking at things. Not all movies feature characters that are clear heroes or villains; I thought those in this one showed complexity and, at times, sympathetic qualities.
Showtime, Synergy! -
chilone — 11 years ago(November 19, 2014 03:03 PM)
Either a) You're a jealous, third world living, hovel dwelling
idiot
Or b) You're an illiterate, jealous, third world living, hovel dwelling
idiot
= You are irrelevant either way.
I don't love her.. She kicked me in the face!! -
cyninbend-149-610489 — 10 years ago(January 23, 2016 04:11 AM)
There are plenty of very intelligent Americans. And lots of idiots around the world. Try watching Big Brother on British TVan English girl a couple of seasons back did not know who Hitler was or who the Nazis were. And another kid did not know where countries were to the point of placing Canada in China, the U.S. in Canada, and Africa over in Mongolia or Siberia. Neither American nor British kids knew what the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea were, where they were located, or what the difference between a sea and an ocean is.
Stupidity and ignorance are not geographical, they are educational. Kids who don't pay attention in school, don't aspire to go to college or become a professional person, so they never study anything. They can look up anything and everything online, so they never bother to internalize any knowledgebecoming the most vapid creatures seen for hundreds of years. They have never read a non-fiction book, don't ask questions, and announce they "hate" just about every subject that used to be what people discussed with each other sociallypolitics, religion, weather, literaturenow it's all too controversial, so they stick to reciting lines from movies. But they all do it. And they watch other vapid idiots on reality TV shows like the Kardasshians. Geordie Shore. There are as many in Britain as America, and we have 318 million people and a dedicated group of billionaires and Creationist home schoolers trying to destroy the public education system here.
What's your excuse? -
Pgeen — 11 years ago(April 17, 2014 10:24 AM)
There's no accounting for taste, and your inability to grasp the somewhat simple concepts of this movie is disheartening.
You and your sister should probably stick to reality TV. Perhaps you will have a better comprehension of the situation.