A Tea Movie

Love and scandal

are the best sweeteners of tea.

- Henry Fielding, "Love in Several Masques"

Polish your best teapot. Break out the cucumber sandwiches. Arrange some pastries on a dainty plate. Prepare yourself for the best movie with tea that I have ever seen.

Most of you have not heard of it. It was never a major motion picture hit. But it has won our a special place in our lives. Every winter my husband and I watch it together. It's our movie.

Persuasion (1995), starring Amanda Root as Anne and Ciaran Hinds as Captain Wentworth, was produced for British television with a stellar cast, many of them from the Royal Shakespeare Company. Amanda Hinds brilliantly portrays the quiet, understated heroine of Jane Austen's last and tender novel about waiting after all hope is gone. Her fresh-scrubbed countenance reveals the character's deep emotions and thoughts under the surface of her strong sense of propriety. Ciaran Hinds plays a stunning counterpoint to her reserve as the wandering, charismatic naval captain who does not know his own heart and whose wounded pride almost causes him to lose the one he loves.

If you have read today's post on The Moon Boat Cafe, you know why I do not generally like movies based on books. This is one of the exceptions. It's faithful to Jane Austen's original vision. The characters are everything I could have asked for. The entire film is as delicate and as lovely as a china teacup -- because it's Anne's story, and that's just the way it should be.

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Can you think of a good movie (which you like) with tea in it?

Amazing Grace

I have been thinking a lot about the story of William Wilberforce (1759-1833). He was largely responsible for the end of England's slave trade in 1807. While this accomplishment has earned him enduring admiration from people around the world, the story of his life is even more inspiring.

When he became a Christian in 1785, this led to an extensive overhaul of his life and values. Two years later, he met a group of abolitionists who revealed to him the horrors of the slave trade and challenged him to consider taking up their cause. He was deeply convicted.

He became a passionate advocate for this group of people who had no voice, for whom society had no regard. For 26 years, long after most of us would have left the fight, he led a campaign in the British Parliament that ended with the passage of the Slave Trade Act.

That's not all. For a quick overview of the many efforts he made on behalf of others, you can go here.

Some historians argue that his life leveraged a profound influence on Great Britain, that his faithfulness, courage, eloquence, and diplomacy made morality and the Christian life appealing, compelling, and popular -- even to the point of ushering in the Victorian period with its return to traditional values and and reverence for faith. In truth, it's hard to measure the effects of his life -- the difference he has made for so many people. All because he was willing to stand up, alone if necessary, and do the right thing.

Wilberforce inspires me. He reminds me that living honestly, with integrity and courage, according to my true convictions, will make an impact -- quite possibly a larger one than I ever imagined. The lessons of his life easily transfer to homeschooling. We are about freedom, after all -- the freedom of parents and children to choose the education that is best suited to them. This matters, and probably more than most of us realize. It matters not just for us, but for the future as well. The world will be different because we homeschooled our children. That's something to think about.

If you haven't watched the recent movie about the life and accomplishment of William Wilberforce, you should. Amazing Grace (2007), named after the hymn written by his longtime friend, John Newton, is a faithful rendering of his life. It's well done and tastefully executed. I would advise, however, that you watch it before showing it to your children. Some of the information about the treatment of slaves is more appropriate for mature viewers. When you have seen the movie, you will understand better why this small man with his odd views, so out of step with those around him, changed the world.

Like me, you will be inspired to be faithful to your own mission, and to be an example of grace to those around you.

The Thin Man

Nora: (commenting on another woman) Pretty girl.

Nick: Yes, she's a very nice type.

Nora: You got types?

Nick: Only you, darling. Lanky brunettes with wicked

jaws.

This comedic mystery series, staring William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles, is the ideal escape for a hardworking mom who wants to take a mini-vacation. These vintage flicks have a little of everything: romance, humor, adventure, mystique, escape, and a touch of glamour. Watch them alone or with your husband for a cheery jaunt into the lives of this endearing couple as they solve the mysteries that knock at their door. The six titles are:

The Thin Man (1934)

After the Thin Man (1936)

Another Thin Man (1939)

Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)

The Thin Man Goes Home (1944)

The Song of the Thin Man (1947)

The Thin Man, a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, was the basis for the first film. Although he never wrote a sequel, the first film was so popular that five movie sequels were produced. The dynamic chemistry between William Powell and Myrna Loy was one of the reasons, along with their witty banter. The Thin Man (1934) was nominated for four Academy Awards and After the Thin Man (1936) received a nod for Best Picture. But comedies rarely win Oscars. They lost to stiff competition from the Oscar-sweeping smash hit, It Happened One Night, in 1934 and to The Great Ziegfeld in 1936.

This is a real shame. For here, we see dramatic comedy at its finest. The pacing, the timing, the delivery of the lines, and the undercurrents of unspoken communication are marvelous. The scripts for the first three movies were brilliantly crafted by the husband-and-wife screenwriting partnership Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, who also created It's A Wonderful Life (1946), Easter Parade (1948), Father of the Bride (1950), and The Diary of Anne Frank (1959). William Powell was so good at his role, I simply can't imagine anyone else doing it. Myrna Loy portrayed wealthy, urban sophistication with an ease and accessibility that still charms us and draws us in, decades later. They made it all look easy -- a feat was made possible by their great skill as performers. In addition to this, there is an x-factor: William Powell and Myrna Loy did truly have something magical together, something they brought out in each other that "just happened" when they were interacting on a set. It's this special connection which brings me back to watch them again and again. When I do, I usually find myself wishing there were more of these.

There is one particular issue in the films I should address, since I know that quite a few of you will search the web for other reviews of these films. Some of the reviews I have read describe them as tales of a hard-drinking detective. I suppose one could argue for that perspective. But it could easily give us the wrong idea.

Nick does drink in the movies. It's right out in the open and part of the dialogue. But there are no offensive scenes that I can remember. He does not appear to be drunk or to have problems with losing self-control. He just seems to be man who drinks socially and probably likes his liquor a little more than is good for him. He isn't perfect. We do get the feeling that he has been reformed by his marriage, and perhaps he drank more heavily in his younger days as a hard-boiled, full-time detective. But we are not shown any of that murky history in detail.

If this is so, then why in the opening scene of the first film, is Nick Charles sitting in a night club where he apparently has consumed six martinis? And why does his wife want to keep up with him (she comically orders five, all at once)? This is a tongue-in-cheek parody of a generation for whom drinking held the unique allure of forbidden fruit. We should keep in mind that the first film attempted to connect with audiences who were celebrating the recent reversal of Prohibition. Drinking was viewed as a mark of sophistication, and, in the movies, nearly essential for adding interest to dramatic scenes. A perusal of flicks from the 30's and 40's makes this abundantly obvious. Every movie star seems to drink alcohol at some point, unless they are portraying a religious character or one with unusual scruples. Detectives on the hunt and sophisticated people in urban settings drank frequently on movie sets. Just take a look at Humphrey Bogart -- Nick's polar opposite -- how many times does he have a drink? I suspect strongly that the Thin Man series presents a droll mockery of this convention, along with other traditions in detective stories. When Nick does drink, we are encouraged by Nora to make fun of him and chide him to grow up a little, rather than to admire and imitate him. Eventually, he does. The alcohol gimmick wears itself out. By The Thin Man Goes Home (1944), Nick has given up alcohol for apple cider.

I simply can't bring myself to see the alcohol as a dark element. Instead, it seems to be used as a comedic device that produces a quantity of silly lines. While I don't drink, and don't approve of drinking to excess, I find Nick to be so much fun to watch that I laugh with Nora and love him anyway. I am convinced that drinking is never the point of any of these films, and it doesn't show us anything significant about the characters. It's merely a social convention and a dramatic device. Ultimately, it is used to parody the role of liquor in detective stories and to poke fun at it's exaulted position the minds of the public. The movies are a rolling, rollicking discusssion of human nature and human society. We aren't supposed to take them seriously, unless they cause us to briefly reflect upon ourselves and makes some improvements.

Although you can pick up their story at any point in the series, I recommend watching the films in the order of their production dates. It's interesting to watch Nick and Nora age, and their relationship develop and change over the years. This also gives the viewer a pleasant journey through the culture, style, and fashions of the 1930's and 40's.

A full set of the entire six films sells on Amazon for $39.49 . The individual titles can be rented through Netflix. Alternately, they are likely to be available through your local library, or found in the classics section of your local movie rental store.

Sweet Coffee Flick

For a romantic date night, or just to treat yourself, I recommend renting the movie Sweet Land (2005).

This charming little flick tells the story of Inge who traveled from Germany to Minnesota in 1920 as a mail bride for Olaf Torvik, a Norwegian farmer. It's a poignant, moving story of immigrant experience in America. The recent war with Germany, the language barrier, the restrictive laws, and the difficulties of adjusting to cultural differences all create problems for Inge and Olaf that they must overcome.

This is their story, so I won't tell it.

I know it's just a movie. But I swear to you, it seemed real to me. As I watched it, I kept thinking these must be flesh-and-blood people who lived, loved, and died there . I still can't convince myself that this is fiction. Maybe it's that the acting is so sensitive and subtle. Nothing is overdone. Maybe it's the lack of the Hollywood-style special effects that are ubiquitous in modern movies. Here is a simple story that moves along at the normal pace most of us experience in our own lives. Maybe it's the way the love between Olaf and Inge slowly wrapped itself around me as I watched it develop.

It's a wonderful love story, but it's not just another little romantic comedy. The themes addressed in the movie hold substance. Viewers must grapple with the moral issues of the difficulties facing Inge and Olaf. How can they solve their problems? Did they choose the best way? The director of the movie has exercised great restraint. He doesn't tell us what to think. He just shares their story with us and then lets us decide.

Coffee means something in this movie. I think it is the symbol of Inge herself: her dark and intense loveliness, her warmth, her aesthetic sensitivity, her delight in life itself. Watch for the coffee and how it's used. Tell me what you think, after you've seen it.