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European Princess and the Piano

 Tuesday: Her Highness and the Bellboy (1945)

     Jimmy is a bellboy at a fancy New York hotel. His best friend, Albert, also works at the hotel. He spends his evening with a woman who lives in their building, Leslie. Leslie is bedridden due to a past illness. Jimmy does his best to make her happy. Even saving to buy her a radio. Then he and Albert run into a beautiful young woman in the staff area. They think she is a new maid. Jimmy is friendly with her and shows her around. It turns out she is Princess Veronica, a European royal staying at the hotel. Veronica takes a liking to Jimmy and has him be her assistant. Jimmy falls hard for her, believing she feels the same. Really Veronica is in New York to see an old love. Poor Leslie tries to be happy for Jimmy, who she is secretly in love with. I thought this movie was good.

Friday: The Brutalist (2024)

     A Jewish architect, Laszlo, escapes to the U.S. from post-war Europe. He was separated from his wife, Erzsebet. When he arrives in the U.S. his cousin tell him his wife and niece are alive. It will be difficult to get them out of Europe. Laszlo works at his cousin't furniture store designing furniture. They get hired to redo a library for a very wealth client, Harrison Van Buren. Harrison takes a liking to Laszlo. He finds out Laszlo is a well known architect with a unique style. He hires Laszlo to build a cultural center near his home. Even helps bring over Erzsebet and their niece Zsofia. Erzsebet has become wheelchair bound due to starvation. Tensions rise and relationships become complicated. This movie was alright. I can see why it's nominated for so many awards. Good acting. It's shot differently to. On widescreen film. I just didn't like it that much. It is almost 4 hours long. There's even an intermission. I don't get why these awards movies are so long. They should all be 2 1/2 hours or less. 

Saturday: Fallen (2016)

      Lucinda is sent to a reform school after she is blamed for a boy's death. She has always had shadows that follow her and cause problems. At the school she learns about angels who fell when they didn't pick a side between god and Lucifer. They can't return until one angel chooses a side. He instead chooses love. Lucinda feels a connection to a boy at the school, Daniel. She feels like she's known him for a long time. Others are keeping secrets from her. Secrets that could put her life in danger. I thought this movie was ok. It's not very good, but not horrible. It's based on a book series. I never read it, but I read something similar with fallen angels.

Sunday: The Piano Lesson (2024) 

       A black family, the Charles, has dark history with a piano that has been in the family for more than 25 years. The family were slaves to a white farmer, Sutter. He made a deal to get a piano for his wife that affected the Charles family. Their connection grew deeper to the piano when one of them was hired to decorate it with carvings. They ended up stealing the piano. Years later when the kids are grown up Boy Willie comes to visit his sister Berniece who has the piano. Stutter died and Boy Willie has the opportunity to buy some land. He needs to sell the piano to have enough to buy the land. His sister will not let it go. Too much has happened surrounding the piano. This movie is good. It is based on an August Wilson play. He is a great playwright. Two other of his plays have been adapted to movies, Fences and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Denzel Washington has been involved in all the movies, either acting in or producing them. His son John David plays Boy Willie. His son Malcolm is the director. 

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