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November 26, 2006
The Queen 2006
I saw The Queen yesterday. It's a good movie, great performance. Touching but not overwhelmingly sentimental.
Two things I want to mention here. First, Diana died in 1997, when I was still in high school. I saw the news at noon when having lunch at home. I was shocked and told my classmates later that afternoon. But it seemed that they did not believe me at the moment. I guess it must be unexpected for the Royal family, too. The other is why I wanted to see this movie. My interest in the British Monarchy started when I began to read I, Elizabeth. Elizabeth I was depicted as a passionate, brave and fearless queen in the old days, who married England, sacrificed for England, and refused to panic when England was in grave danger. Elizabeth I is already history now. Elizabeth II is still alive. I am happy after I saw the movie, because Helen Mirren's performance was superb. Elizabeth II may seem to be kind of cold and stubborn to the public, but Helen's portait successfully conveyed a reserved queen who cares about the British people (or their opinion) at heart and takes great pride to be who she is.
Diana died unexpectedly. Blair got popularity by refering Diana as the People's Princess. Meanwhile the Royal family gave no public statement and tried to keep everything private, which stirred quite some uneasiness. Eventually the queen accepted the “advise” from Blair. Initially the public took blame on the queen for being cold to Diana’s death. But I believe it’s not because “she hates Diana”, but because the queen cherishes the values of her generation. I believe she’s also in grave pain upon the bad news, although she never said so explicitly. I wonder what she wrote in her diary that night when she decided to devote extra time to write it. I think I finally understand or was convinced or was moved by the deer hunting scene. Queen Elizabeth drove the jeep to pass a river, but unfortunately the car broke down in the middle. She called the Buckingham Palace and sat on a rock at the riverside, looking distressed. All of a sudden, she caught a sight of this gorgeous deer. It’s quiet with mountains grass tainted with beautiful fall color at a far distance. The deer was ease, totally unaware of the hunters nearby. Elizabeth fixed her eyes on the deer and seemed to be moved by his beauty. There were tears in the Queen’s eyes. I know she loved the deer. Suddenly, gun shots. The queen gestured the deer to run away. I know she worried about the deer was in danger. The next moment the deer was gone nowhere to be seen. The queen was relieved and smiled. Then some time later, she got a phone call and rushed out. I did not what she was informed by the caller or what happened. But from her grave expression I know this could not be something good. The car stopped. It was the hunting service place- some guests got it, the deer. Its strong body was hanging upside down, its head cut off laying on the table, and wounded on the cheek. It’s a tough deer, took them quite some efforts to finally put it down. The guy said, while the queen quietly and gently looked at the deer. I know she was mourning the deer. Then she left the room passing compliment to the guests’ hunting, without saying anything about the deer. For some reason, I was deeply moved. Now I think the deer was a symbol for Diana. Both beautiful, both being chased around, both alerted by the Queen, both tough, both with tragic ending, both stirred the Queen’s emotion. The queen might seen be stone cold in time of Diana’s death, because she thought as a Queen she should not put her feelings on the sleeve, she reserved the feeling for herself. But the public should not be blamed for not being to understand her, either. The queen was isolated from her people, it’s implossible for people to understand her deep feeling from that far a distance, ironically even people physically close to her did not completely understand her. But maybe it is something magic about the monarchy, when she finally showed up at the piled flowers at the Buckingham front gate, people kind of forgot the grudge. “Can I put these flowers for you?” She asked the little girls with white flowers. No was the answer. Momentarily there was embarrassment. “These are for you.” “Oh, thank you.” It was relief out of expectation. Then, there was curtsey after curtsey. She was still their queen.
After the publicly broadcasted statement, she met with Blair again. This time Blair was much happier and light-hearted. To see them walking in the garden while talking about modernization is delightful. It’s an ending that gives the audience hope and joy.
Posted by renh at 01:06 PM | Comments (0)
November 23, 2006
Thanksgiving evening menu
1. fried turbot (traditional Chinese style).
2. yellow croaker soup
3. tri-flavored salmon (lemon&dill, teriyaki, and miso)
4. celery and seansoned fried tofu
5. appetizer dish (roasted asparagus wrapped with prosciutto, smoked sockeye salmon, and blanched bean sprout)
6. barbecued ribs (from Sam's)
7. shrimp scampi with linguini pasta
8. baked pumpkin spread (with hint of nutmeg and maple syrup)
Posted by renh at 11:46 PM | Comments (0)
November 12, 2006
US news
democrats won the majority of both the house and senate.
Nancy Pelosi will be the first female house speaker.
Donald Rumsfield resigned.
Posted by renh at 08:37 PM | Comments (0)
good eats
good eats today
Shrimp Scampi with liguini pasta (for recipe see foodnetwork)
Butternut squash soup- top healthy choice. Purree the oven roasted squash. Add water (or chicken broth), minced fresh thyme, a little sugar, salt, fresh ground black pepper, parmesan cheese. It's quick fix and super healthy. :)
Posted by renh at 08:28 PM | Comments (0)