Vision

Sorry for the long hiatus.  I temporarily had a life.  This week, I'm recommending Vision, a German movie about St Hildegard. It's beautifully produced, with lovely sets and costumes (you know how much I love that!). The lead actress is very good, and St. Hildegard is an interesting character. She was a 12th century christian mystic who taught a life of harmony with nature, scientific learning, and an omniscient, all-loving, Living Light. I wish there had been more of Hildegard's art and music, but it was overall entertaining. The first half is better than the second, which gets a little slow. If you, like me, love sets and costumes and beautiful shots of sunlight filtering through trees, you'll like it. If that's not enough, you should probably look elsewhere. Visually: A-, plot-wise, B+.

Brooklyn Babylon

Brooklyn Babylon is one of my favorite movies.  Many other people refer to it as a retelling of Romeo and Juliet, but it's not.  It's a retelling of Solomon and Sheba.  You should watch this movie, even though it's actually not that great.  If for no other reason, then watch it to hear the AMAZING sound track by The Roots.  If you don't know The Roots, I don't think we can be friends anymore.

The movie tells the story of a  Rastafarian hip hop artist named Solomon, played beautifully by Tariq Trotter (aka Black Thought of The Roots) and a chasidic girl named Sarah who live in the same Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, but are divided by family, religion, race, class, and politics.  After they meet in a traffic accident, the two begin a secret romance in defiance of both of their circles.

Now, I'm not usually much of a romance fan, but the combination of the Song of Songs, The Roots, and a girl named Sarah in love with a gorgeous, contemplative, black artist hit all my buttons.  While Tariq Trotter is excellent, the actress who plays Sara is not very good.  Several supporting roles are outstanding, including Sarah's grandmother as a less-than-Haredi European with progressive notions and Sol's mother, a hard-working West Indian woman who wants to best for her son. The music and art direction are both lovely.  I give this movie an A, but if you're not a Jewish girl named Sara who dates a contemplative West Indian artist, it's probably actually a C-.

ps: If anyone has any idea where I could acquire the soundtrack to this movie, you'd be my new hero.