Movie number 20 of 2023
The Movie: Ennio - The Maestro
The Cinema: The Deckchair Cinema, Darwin
Stars: 4.5
Anybody knows I'll go to the opening of an envelope. I'll also give new experiences a try. So, when my colleague, a Darwin resident, said that I'd probably like the Deckchair Cinema, and that it was opening night tonight, and there was a documentary about Ennio Morricone playing, of course I jumped at the chance.
Of the things to do in Darwin in the Dry Season, this has to be top of the list.
My colleague picked me up from what I call home (the hotel next door to work) and we made our way down to the Waterfront cinema.
This has to be Darwin at it's very best. We got there an hour before the 7 p.m. screening, reserved a deckchair with a cushion, bought a beer and some food (they have different catering companies come in every night to feed the masses) had a chat with some of my colleague's mates, then after eating and drinking and slathering ourselves in the natural bug repellent available, we settled in to watch this fabulous documentary about the legendary Ennio Morricone, prolific composer and genuine genius.
Morricone passed away in 2020, but his legacy is immense.
Providing a view of his life, from his humble beginnings in Rome, to his first jobs as a trumpet player, to his learning composition at the local conservatory, to him starting to work on films, writing the scores, this documentary gives a great run down of his life.
It's fascinating.
For movie lovers, this is a must watch. For all of the Morricone scores you know, there are hundreds you won't attribute to him. He was a humble man. Prolific as much as he was generous.
The movie interviews many of the great directors he worked with in his time, along with many of his contemporaries.
You don't need to know more than this. It's fantastic. A touch long, but the movies and the music take you along with the ride. It left me wanting to go back and revisit such films as The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, The Mission, The Untouchables and Cinema Paradiso - among many others.
For me, however, it was the joy of watching a movie, in a deckchair, in the warmth of the Darwin night, with the sun going down behind the screen, and the geckos scurrying amid the film, as the constellation of Orion slowly disappeared into the horizon, along with a couple of hundred other film lovers, which really made my night.
I can see the Deckchair Cinema becoming a regular feature on these work trips to Darwin.
It's a national treasure.
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