Conference bookie::movies

> Has any seen "The Englishman who went up a hill but came down a
> mountain"?  I saw it this past Sunday and enjoyed it very much.
> I'd be interested what others thought of it.

	Seeing you saw it, why don't you be the first one to give the
	rest of us who haven't seen it a synopsis, and maybe even a
	real review (ie. why did you enjoy it very much)?

re: .1 - lighten up Jeff!

Also saw this film this weekend.  It based on the true 
story of a Welsh village being surveyed by the Ordnance
crowd during WWI.  They are distinguished by having
the "first mountain of Wales", that is, the first 
significant elevation across the border from England.

The Ordnance Survey team of two Englishmen who have
seen the end of their war (one was a wildly incompetent
office and the other shell-shocked) arrive to survey
the mountain.  They discover that is only 986' high
and therefore not a mountain.  Ergo it will not appear
on the maps.  Attacking the core of their regional
pride (without their mountain they might as well be
in England!), this situation is unendurable; they 
proceed to add another 14' to the hill.

For the rest, see the film.  It is a very charming,
warm story, with some superb performances.  Colm Meaney
(ST:TNG and DS9, "The Snapper", and others) and
Kenneth Griffiths are particularly good.  Hugh Grant
is there, but the movie is certainly not focused on
his character (even if the advertising is).  Tara
FitzGerald ("Sirens", "Hear My Song", etc.) is also
excellent.  Saw her the same weekend as Ophelia on
stage, and was again struck by how effective she is
on film.  Her Ophelia was only marginal.

    I'll look forward to checking this one out.
    
    One point though. I don't understand how the guy was taken out of the
    army because of shell shock as I thought the British army during wwI
    didn't recognise it as a medical condition. I remember hearing of the
    case of a soldier who was shot for disertion when in fact it was clear
    he was suffering from shell shock. Anyway I digress...
    
    Royston

    Re-1
    Why is it that an American can slander the British Army and his note
    isn't deleted??
    After all my original reply to this note slandering the American Army 
    has been deleted.
    
                                  Biased Moderator??

    
    	Is it slander to ask a question about something you think you
    	remember?
    
    	I don't think so.
    
    	There's a big difference between
    
    	"Roseanne gained 10 pounds last week, right?"
    
    	and
    
    	"Roseanne is a fat slob".
    

RE .5 - Right on.

RE .4 - I don't see how .3 can be taken as slander.

Let's keep the discussion on the movie, shall we?

-- Nina, co-moderator

    �Why is it that an American can slander...
    
    I can't believe this was addressed at me ! For a start I am British,
    and was just relating what I think is a very important point in the
    hope that someone may clarify it.
    
    My apologies if I offended anyone.
    
    Royston

RE .7 - I certainly don't see any reason for you to apologize...!  

And, having seen the movie over the weekend (and finding it charming), I would
be curious to know the answer to the question asked in .3 as to whether shell
shock was recognized as a medical condition by the British army in WWI.
The movie certainly gives that impression, seeing as two of the characters
were out of the war for that reason...

-- Nina

    Thanks Nina for the reply. Here is what I know...
    
    The reason I mentioned it was that I saw a documentary on (UK) TV about
    a WWI British soldier who survived action but all his comrades had
    died. He basically 'lost it' and just wondered around the countryside.
    He was picked up and later shot for disertion even though it was clear he
    was mentally ill. It was interesting the note that all the soldiers in
    the firing squad missed their target completely and the general shot
    the guy with a hand gun.
    
    Apologies that this does not relate directly to the film in question
    but it may be interesting background to the barbaric conditions of the
    time.
    
    Royston

A long delay later, I watched this film on video over the weekend.  I really
enjoyed it...strikes me that the creative team had spent some time watching
films like Whisky Galore and Local Hero.  Some of the humour was very similar
indeed.

regards,
//alan