For the first part of July, the heat was terrible in Maine—at least for Mainers. The heatwave coincided with the Maine International Film Festival, and Clif, Dee, and I were more than happy to sit in air-conditioned cinemas as we watched movies.
Then, around July 18, it was as though the weather gods flipped a switch, and suddenly we were in August. Black-eyed Susans and Queen Anne’s lace, not normally July flowers, were in full bloom. Crickets, another August treat, were singing at night, and during the day, grasshoppers buzzed.
And the weather? Delicious as only a traditional Maine August can be: hot and dry during the day and wonderfully cool at night. The windows are open all the time, and the air inside the house smells so fresh.
What will true August bring us, I wonder? More of the same would be nice, but in this time of climate change, who knows? Whatever the case, Clif, Dee, and I are enjoying this weather. We are spending as much time as possible in our screen house on the patio.
As we chat about this and that—often movies—we sip our drinks, and listen to the noises from the woods and yard. Gold finches twitter at each other as they vie for spaces on the feeders. A fledgling blue jay calls to its parents. Nearby, crickets sing their sweet song of summer, and in the far distance, in the woods, we catch the ethereal song of a hermit thrush.
Magical might be a word that is overused, but magical is what this time is.
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Watching: World Cinema
Alexander Nevsky directed by Sergei Eisenstein
In my previous post, I wrote about how much I like foreign movies, and that our daughter Dee has a huge DVD collection of them. To be more specific, the major part of her collection is Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films released by the Criterion Collection. Janus Films is a film distribution company founded in 1956 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and they helped bring world cinema to the United States with such classics as The Seventh Seal, one of my absolute favorites.
There are 50 movies in the set, and this should keep us busy for a while. (Don’t worry. I don’t plan to write about all of them. Only the ones that catch my attention.) The DVDS are in alphabetical order by title, and this is how we will work our way through the collection, starting with the first one, Alexander Nevsky, a 1938 Russian film directed by Sergei Eisenstein.
Alexander Nevsky is billed as a historical film, and strictly speaking, this is true. The movie is set in the thirteenth century, centering on the real-life conflict between Teutonic Knights and Prince Alexander. But really it’s a Russian propaganda film, featuring Russia against Germany, a reflection of the situation between the two countries in 1938.
As a result, the characters are stiff and one dimensional, with Prince Alexander being all virtue and valor and the Teutonic knights being a rotten bunch. Indeed, one of the bad guys even looked like an evil sorcerer, as though he had just slithered in from a fantasy movie. As someone who prefers character-driven movies, whatever the genre, this should have been a deal killer.
But it wasn’t. Alexander Nevsky has such a crazy energy that it carried me along. The battle scenes between the Teutonic Knights and Prince Alexander’s forces are nothing short of jaw-dropping, with hundreds and hundreds of extras and horses rushing toward each other. I don’t suppose there were many retakes of these battle scenes, and this was well before the time of CGI and special effects.
In addition, the movie is in black and white, and the cinematography captures everything in crisp detail.
So, in the end, who wins? Prince Alexander or the Teutonic Knights? No spoilers here. Watch for yourself and see how a propaganda film can still be a marvel of early cinema.
July 31, 2024
Addendum: Yikes! I forgot to mention the rousing score and the composer, Sergei Prokofiev. The music certainly added energy to an already energetic movie.
Notes From the Hinterland 
Much less is seasonably predictable these days, and as July comes to an end, I too wonder what the coming month will bring us.
I enjoyed your review of Alexander Nevsky. Sounds like a good one, Laurie!
The weather certainly is erratic. Terrible floods right now in northern Vermont.
Nevesky is a movie worth seeing.
You always find a fun movie to report on. 🙂 Screen house on the patio? You’ve upped your outdoor game – good for you! There will be no bugs in Laurie’s drink! 🙂
We certainly did up our outdoor game. Hooray for no bugs in drinks!
Your patio is a perfect place in which to enjoy a fine summer day (and night).
It certainly is! Feel so thankful to have it.
Isn’t this weather something? We also braved that incredible heat and now, we’re suffering through beastly mugginess. I’d love opening the windows, but it’s far too humid to do so comfortably. One of these days, this “mess” will break, and we, too, will be in the delights of Fall. Enjoy your movies!
So sorry about the mugginess. “Beastly” is exactly the right word for it. Draining.
Nice to see your summer garden with our currently grey winter skies.
The film – I saw that in my 20s and don’t think I fully appreciated it at the time,
I don’t think most twenty-year-olds would appreciate it. I know I wouldn’t have, that’s for sure.
The gold finches are so playful and fun to watch! Aren’t you good – watching a 1938 film in Russian! How was the soundtrack?
Yikes, I forgot to mention the soundtrack. It was rousing, and done by Prokofiev.
Wow! A great Russian composer
Indeed!
Without a doubt, the weather has been all over the place! However, like you, I prefer cool nights for chilling the house and open windows to listen to katydids and crickets as I fall asleep. 🙂
Love those cool nights where the windows can stay open.
I saw a goldfinch at my feeders this morning; it’s always a treat when they arrive, although it’s very early for flocks to appear. If they’re smart, they’ll stay north for a while. The synonym for August in these parts is ‘hell,’ and everyone simply grits their teeth and waits for it to be over. We’ll have similar conditions to you present delights — in October!
I didn’t know that some goldfinches traveled south. Our goldfinches stay put, weathering the cold.
Oh, gosh, your August sound grueling. At least you have October to look forward to. Our Octobers are glorious, but in a different way from yours.
I am glad that you are getting some good weather. It seems to have been very scarce almost everywhere this year.
So nice to have good weather!
I’m glad your weather has turned more enjoyable and I hope that it will continue in the same vein into and through August. It looks as though you won’t run out of films to watch on a rainy day!
Fingers crossed about the weather. I have absolutely no idea what August will bring.
Yes, plenty of films to watch on rainy days and weekend nights.
I absolutely agree that it does sound magical. Wishing us both a not-too-hot and not-too-cool August.
Great review of Alexander Nevsky.
Thanks so much! Glad you liked the review.
Plants and birds have a knowledge and understanding of weather we cannot begin to guess at. Some of our Pompon trees are pushing out some exploratory blossoms in the middle of winter – we only expect them to bloom in November! I love the description of your garden and spending time outdoors!
Thanks, Anne. Those of us who lived a long time in one place can clearly see the changes.
Oh, my, Alexander Nevsky! I love that music. The part where the enemy army is falling through the ice is so visceral! Someday I hope we’ll be able to appreciate all Russian culture again without the shadow that hangs over it today!
Yes, yes! And I forgot to mention the music and the composer. Will do so soon.
Looks like you’ve got August nicely sewn up already. Enjoy!
Many thanks! Now, let’s hope we have actual August weather in August.
Our Queen Ann’s Lace and wild chicory are also quite early this year and have been in full bloom for a couple of weeks.
In Maine, it is astonishing to see Queen Anne’s Lace in full bloom in mid-July. Same for you, it sounds like.
I always think of them as August, and end of summer kind of feeling. What will we have left?
Excellent question! One that I will be thinking about this August.
Sergei Prokofiev composed the score for Alexander Nevsky, adding to the thrill of the action scenes. When I lived in Washington DC, I sang in the chorus for a live performance of the score.(with the National Symphony Orchestra). The movie was shown on 30 foot screens behind us. Wonderful memory
Yes, yes! Silly me for not including that information. I’ll add an addendum. That must have been quite the experience. A wonderful memory indeed.
Let’s hope Aug 2024 follows it’s usual pattern. I was discussing weather patterns today with Mr Piglet. Our weather is all over the place for this time of year. I feel sorry for the holidaymakers who arrive in their droves to be greeted by indifferent, cool and misty weather with only the occasion glimpse of blue sky. Worst July we can remember.
Sorry to read this! I think the weather has been trying in many places this summer.
Your garden looks fabulous and love the new patio screen!! Beautiful descriptions of the summer scene and we were lucky to have a few days where the windows could be opened, but now we’re back to extremely hot and humid days. I’ve collected many Criterion movies and tell Dee I’m absolutely jealous of that DVD collection!!🙂
Thanks so much! Criterion movies are the best, aren’t they? I often give their DVDs as presents. I related your message to Dee.
It sounds lovely to have a screened in patio to escape to during the hot summer days. It is getting a little warmer every year, right?
The flowers in your garden are so beautiful. I especially like Black Eyed Susans 🙂 Cheer to a a new beautiful month!
The screened house is a godsend, especially this summer, which has been a banner year for mosquitos. And, yes, every year is getting a little warmer. Sigh.
Your screen house on the patio sounds lovely! The summer has been rather patchy in the UK this year, but we’re currently in the midst of a mini heatwave, which makes a pleasant change from the rain!
Too much rain is no fun, either. We had that last summer and my potted plants rotted. Hope the heatwave isn’t too bad.
You sound to be having great fun!
I certainly am.
Your garden is thriving, Laurie. Everything looks lush. When I think of the soothing sounds of the woods, I’m reminded of camping. It’s hard to imagine that you get to experieince that in your own back yard. I’m happy for you.
We have lived here for 40 years, so those sounds are part of our everyday lives. Fun to think of how different people’s lives are, isn’t it? One of the joys of blogging.
It is!
Heat is not what I would expect in your space, Laurie. Another gift from global warming. Wishing you an August which will allow more patio lounging!