David Lean's Summertime (1955) marks a notable departure from his earlier study in conflicted romance, Brief Encounter (1945), for that black-and-white film, with its grimy wartime atmosphere and claustrophobic camera angles, contrasts with the evocative location work in Venice and vivid Technicolor cinematography. (1) Summertime is also significant for the substitution of Lean's distinctly English characters with candidly American personalities who evince typical directness while navigating their Italian vacations. Two such Americans are Lloyd and Edith McIIhenny of Kankakee, Illinois, whom we first encounter on a vaporetto water taxi exchanging pleasantries with the film's protagonist, Jane Hudson. All three have travelled by ocean liner or aircraft to partake in the splendor of Venice. Their shared experiences, the similarities and marked differences, offer clues to postwar travel consumerism. As historian Jan Morris notes, Americans emerged from the Second World War with a new sense of optimism and purpose. (2) Gone were the economic tribulations and self-doubt of the Great Depression as wartime investments had rejuvenated the nation and bolstered confidence. For many Americans, the defeat of the Axis powers had reinforced the preeminence of their way of life, a model premised on consumerism-the liberty to purchase both material goods and, to a larger extent, life experiences. For all the outward superiority of the American way of life, this film reveals the cultural and emotional shallowness that undermines assumptions of superpower status. On a personal level, the tourists must individually address the torment with loneliness for lives that, in many respects, remain unfulfilled. The question would be if this European adventure would help assuage a persistent and shared sense of regret.
Amazing Dolphin Encounter Candid
Download File: https://tinurli.com/2vCfLB
2ff7e9595c
Comments