by Richard Subber | Oct 7, 2023 | Theater and play reviews
ya gotta have heart!
Emperor of the North
(1973, rated PG, 118 minutes)
Emperor of the North is a heroic film.
They don’t make too many like this one.
If you plan to watch it, do yourself a favor: plan to watch it twice.
Watch it once so you get the picture: a tramp named A No. 1 (Lee Marvin) is a devil-may-care legendary figure in the hobo camps. He teaches a thing or three to the inexperienced Cigaret (Keith Carradine). He challenges the thuggish railroad policeman, Shack (Ernest Borgnine), there’s a supremely brutal fight on a rolling flatcar, the best ‘bo wins, he finally rides Shack’s “No. 19” to Portland, and, you guessed it, A No. 1 is the king of the road.
Sounds like a few of the “B” movies you’ve seen over the years?
All routinely imaginable stuff, but Marvin’s imperial performance stirs the imagination.
Watch it again. Watch Mr. Marvin show you everything you ever wanted to know about classic heroism of the spirit. See him surpassing his impoverished circumstances to enjoy a rich life, embracing independence, rugged optimism, casually competent leadership, generous mentoring, and the dauntless strength of a Viking in mortal combat.
Finally, A No. 1 abandons the feckless Cigaret. “You had the juice, kid, but you didn’t have the heart!”
A No. 1 rides off, northward, soaring, in high majesty, singing his victory.
American hobo.
American hero.
Emperor of the North.
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Movie review. Copyright © Richard Carl Subber 2023 All rights reserved.
Book review: The Financier
Theodore Dreiser’s villain…
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As with another eye: Poems of exactitude with 55 free verse and haiku poems,
and the rest of my poetry books are for sale on Amazon (paperback and Kindle)
and free in Kindle Unlimited, search Amazon for “Richard Carl Subber”
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by Richard Subber | Oct 5, 2023 | Language, My poetry, Poetry, Reflections
this end, the one…
Amaze
Countless possible beginnings,
uncounted possible turns of each one,
the one end seems finally certain…
This creature on the sand,
forlorn, lifeless,
this end the one, it seems…
Still.
It will change.
Decay?
A careless word,
a haughty view,
a narrow disdain,
ignoble, incurious.
If life is the course of change
in consequence of itself,
with no limit,
then this creature,
mutely changing now,
may yet have futures…
We do no harm to give it leave to linger,
and respect its changing prospect
for moments more,
and leave it
to walk around the new curve of the dune…
Chatham, Cape Cod, MA
June 15, 2000
My poem “Amaze” was published in my sixth collection of 73 poems, Above all: Poems of dawn and more.
You can buy it on Amazon (paperback and Kindle),
or get it free in Kindle Unlimited (search for “Richard Carl Subber”).
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My poetry. Copyright © Richard Carl Subber 2023 All rights reserved.
Book review: Tales from Shakespeare
summaries by Charles and Mary Lamb…
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As with another eye: Poems of exactitude with 55 free verse and haiku poems,
and the rest of my poetry books are for sale on Amazon (paperback and Kindle)
and free in Kindle Unlimited, search Amazon for “Richard Carl Subber”
Your comments are welcome—tell me what you’re thinking.
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by Richard Subber | Oct 3, 2023 | American history, Book reviews, Books, History, World history
a nightmare in slow motion
Book review:
Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War
by William Manchester (1922-2004)
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1980
401 pages
Manchester’s quietly passionate memories of being a young Marine fighting in the Pacific theater in World War II are terrible to behold.
He tells all of his story, the good, the bad, and the really hard to read parts.
Reading Goodbye, Darkness means watching another man’s nightmare in slow motion.
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Book review. Copyright © Richard Carl Subber 2023 All rights reserved.
Book review: An Empire on the Edge
by Nick Bunker
The British wanted to win
the Revolutionary War,
but they had good reasons
for not trying too hard…
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As with another eye: Poems of exactitude with 55 free verse and haiku poems,
and the rest of my poetry books are for sale on Amazon (paperback and Kindle)
and free in Kindle Unlimited, search Amazon for “Richard Carl Subber”
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