It is with great pleasure I welcome the first of hopefully what will be many guest commentators to Itchy Quill HQ, Mr Miles Buckingham: cinemaphile, radio host, exceptional laksa companion, and beer conniseur. Miles has graciously agreed to post his thoughts on the 41 best documentary films according to 17 of my Facebook friends.
Many years ago, when I was but an over zealous volunteer, I met Miles at Radio Active 89FM. I later became Radio Acitve's breakfast host then moved on, as did Miles, although he returned to base camp eventually.
Being lucky enough to be paid to work somewhere like Active is still my fondest memory of employment to date: so big ups to Miles for returning, and still presenting Cinemania just after 5.30pm each and every weekday. That little featurette must have been going for nearly fifteen years now.
Many years ago, when I was but an over zealous volunteer, I met Miles at Radio Active 89FM. I later became Radio Acitve's breakfast host then moved on, as did Miles, although he returned to base camp eventually.
Being lucky enough to be paid to work somewhere like Active is still my fondest memory of employment to date: so big ups to Miles for returning, and still presenting Cinemania just after 5.30pm each and every weekday. That little featurette must have been going for nearly fifteen years now.
Miles has seen a lot of films, and I remember used to keep diaries recording his thoughts on each and every film he saw. I think Radio Active branch off into publishing and turn the highlights of these into a coffee table book, with big thick pages and glossy film stills and the like...
"First of all, I have always been a firm believer in the cultural superiority of the French. They should appologise, but, merede, zey are ze French & above such things, sacre bleu!
Made in 1969 by Marcel Ophüls, the son of the great Max Ophüls, The Sorrow & the Pity or Le Chagrin et la pitié is a monumental two part documentary that shatters the myth of an omnipresent French resistance during the Nazi occupation & the rule of the Vichy government. Interviewing an ex-german officer, collaborators, resistance fighters and a very cool gay English spy type, as well as a charming French aristocrat who not only embraced fascism, but fought in a german uniform on the Eastern Front, slowly, surely the image of a brave little rooster that pecked at the nazi oppressor, crumbles. From the dust comes an air of anti-semitism, anglophobia and a fear of communists & Soviets. Some try to justify their actions, others shrug their shoulders, and life continues. The unapologetic aristocrats mansion was still looking pretty lush, while the real hard-core resistance hero remained a potato digging peasant. Although since he is french, I am sure by the time the potatos reach his table, & the onions too, they would be delicious. If you can deal with four hours of subtitled talking heads, this film is the bomb. "Allo, Allo" is, unfortunately, a work of fiction.
The Sorrow & the Pity is also the film Woody Allen takes all of his dates to in Annie Hall. This is one of Woodys best jokes, like Steve Martin, he has become less & less funny, although unlike Steve Martin, Woody is not yet at the point where he should be shot. Peter Sellers turns in his grave to Steve Martin's Pink Panther."
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