Well, I just finished watching ‘Alfie’; the original version of course. It always seems to me that if a movie is worth re-making then it must have been pretty darn good – and that the re-make is subsequently disappointing. I very rarely see re-makes for that very reason – they usually suck, compared to the original.
I can never understand why contemporary audiences find it so difficult to relate to movies made more that a dozen years ago (with a few obvious exceptions). I think it ties in with the arrested adolescence that is so pervasive in our society. Everyone seems to consider people in their twenties as somehow not-quite adults (and the twenty-somethings are the lead purveyors of this type of thinking). And what goes hand-in-hand with this type of thinking? Disdain for anything ‘Old’. It makes me laugh really. On a regular basis. I enjoy being called old by someone ten years younger than me, because I know in ten years it will really hit them hard. Anyways, I digress – and not very gracefully or lucidly. I know what I mean and that’s all that matters! Ha ha.
‘Alfie’ is a great movie. Michael Caine is superb. I mean absolutely superb as Alfie. It’s a wonderful movie about the pitfalls of protecting your heart at all costs. Now, one could argue that he is a man without a heart – perhaps an anti-social personality even, but there is one scene where that little argument is laid to rest quite decisively – despite what the character says about it afterwards.
It reminds me of every playboy I’ve ever known – right down to the British accent. Not that they all have British accents but it seems to suit somehow – you know?
As an added bonus the movie has a young actress by the name of Jane Asher. I knew I recognized her face but it wasn’t until the credits that I realized who she was. At the time of filming she was engaged to Paul McCartney. She went on to have quite a successful career of her own – acting and writing – but she never married McCartney, and apparently to this day refuses to speak of him. Smart girl – very classy.
And last but not least I liked watching this movie because the year it was released is the year my Mum was pregnant with me – and I like to watch movies of that time period so I can say to myself ’so that’s what the world looked like when I came out’.
