茶碗蒸

One of the best things about being back in Nelson is the easy access to the wide range of arty films that I have within a short ten-minute drive from home. This afternoon I made another wise decision to see one of these at the local cinema, and it left me wanting to smile and snort and cry all at the same time.

At first glance, Elsa & Fred seemed like another cheesy American love story that beautified reality and magnified the impossible. It has a simple enough plot about an elderly man whose grey outlook on life after his wife’s death is gradually changed after meeting a passionate woman next door with boundless energy and a fiesty youthful spirit. Perhaps I really am getting old – somehow this theme of “don’t let age limit what you do” has been getting to me quite a bit lately (just look at what I wrote in my last article… goodness). But I just find the humour for elderly people so adorable and easier to relate to (forget jokes about sex and hangovers, I found myself cracking up at the scene where Fred’s daughter found all of his medicines bobbing up and down in a colourful jumble in the toilet after he had thrown them out… oh yes, SO easy to imagine that happening at work hahaha)

Needless to say, there were many touching moments in the film as well as the crazy and witty dialogues. I was aware that both Shirley Maclaine and Christopher Plummer are Academy-winning actors before I went and watched the movie, however I was still amazed at their effortless acting and the natural chemistry between the pair that just completely brought Elsa and Fred to life. (果然薑還是老的辣!! XD) Elsa’s elegance and fun personality was no doubt one of the highlights of the film, and even though there was a tragic shadow to her character that was not revealed until later as the story unfolded, it added depth and made her all the more loveable. Fred's hostility in the beginning and his foreseeable transformation were also wonderfully portrayed by Christopher Plummer (who I only found out after the film was the very same man who played Captain Von Trapp in Sound of Music!!). Call me a softie or a hopeless romantic, but one of the teary moments I had during the movie was seeing the warm smile on Fred’s lips and the twinkle in his eyes as he looked at Elsa, it was a love that was as subtle as a whisper but as joyful as seeing the first rays of sun in Spring. And the interactions between the pair were impossibly adorable – I simply cannot find the right words. If only all couples were as forgiving and treasured each other as much as them, the world would no doubt be a far more peaceful place!

One more thing that I do have to point out is I loved Elsa’s elegant (or is it flamboyant?!) choice of clothes (my Lord I definitely am getting old!) – perhaps it was all part of the package (along with her amazingly varied hairstyles) to get her liveliness across to the audience, but I kept finding myself admiring her selection of scarves and shawls. Hopefully when I am up there in age I will be able to pull off a fashion sense like hers too! XD

“Only the dead rest in peace.”

“If something is priceless, what is there to pay?”

“I don't like parks. It makes me feel I'm already in the cemetery.”

...And understandably there were many more memorable quotes from the movie. Unfortunately I could only remember a few, but I think this would be one of those films where different dialogues strike a chord with different hearts. So if I haven't convinced you enough already, let this be yet another encouragement to pop into the nearest cinema and see what pleasant surprises this movie may have in store for you! :)