Rosemary’s Baby and The Story of Late Chrysanthemums

Rosemary’s Baby – I liked this movie. Don’t think I’ve seen another horror movie that has such good humor throughout it.

“Awful things happen in every apartment house.”

The Story of Late Chrysanthemums – Only saw this movie because it was on the BFI list. Even though it was long and in a foreign language, I really liked it. (Long movies are tiring for me as well as reading subtitles for 2 hours). The story is a strong one and I liked the long shots. I read that originally the director chose long wide shots to disguise the age of the actor. In the movie he’s about 20; in real life, closer to 40. This had a strange effect on the viewing. Because facial features weren’t always clear, alot of it, based on context, you imagined yourself. It’s similar to reading a book. If you can take the length & reading subtitles, I strongly recommend this movie. The title refers to how chrysanthemums that are late in the season bloom for a very short period of time. It’s a metaphor for happiness throughout the movie, and how it came too late for the main characters, and thus lasted a very short period of time. The quote below is a metaphor for how success doesn’t mean much without the one he loves, just as the parade in his honor is useless without him.

“The parade wouldn’t make sense without you.”