Songcatcher, Cat in Paris

Yesterday, I watched two beautiful films.

Film 1 was Songcatcher, and it was about the academic discovery of the ballads of the Scottish people who had immigrated to the Appalachian mountains and handed their songs down to their children. The story was engrossing, and the music was superb. The cinematography was lovely, with the same type of richness that Merchant Ivory used in Room with a View. In typical modern film, they had to have a feminist and a gay couple, but they weren't as heavy handed about it as some films I've seen, so it didn't distract from the story.

Film 2 was a stunning animated feature called Cat in Paris. The story was so-so, but the visual values were marvelous! It was like watching a series of exquisitely colored chalk drawings. The cat reminded me strongly of Laurel Burch's cats, and the humans were reminiscent of Modigliani. Modigliani has never been one of my favorite artists, but last night I saw how his paintings really could reflect people, and I think this film gave me a better understanding of why he chose to portray them in that style.