Movie #4 Shadowlands

[DawnFae]

C. S. Lewis (Anthony Hopkins), the renowned author of "The Chronicles of Narnia" series, is a bachelor and Oxford University professor who spends his free time debating with fellow academics at a pub. Although he seems entirely uninterested in love, Lewis agrees to marry Joy Gresham (Debra Winger), an American writer who is looking to secure British citizenship. Their arrangement soon becomes a romance, and, when Joy is diagnosed with terminal cancer, their bond grows even stronger.

Dear Piccadilly siSSters let's get inside that Wardrobe and have a peep. Who knows what lies on the other side of this adventure?

Spoiler:

Watching night is Friday January the 5th, 2018

Feel free to express your feelings and thoughts on the story as you sense and experience it in your inner world and heart. !

[Lori]

Yay!! I look forward to it, DF!! Thanks for the beautiful setup. Looks as though Kleenex is a good idea! I'm nearly ugly-crying already...

[Dee]

I'm in. I think my hubby yet again won't be able to handle it. I remember how "Terms of Endearment" has nearly ruined him.

[NurseRatched]

[DawnFae]

Shadowlands

The hero of the story had been successful at keeping risky involvements with life at bay for as long as he could until life came knocking at his heart’s sleeping doors with such a beautiful insistence that he had no choice but to leave his cozy little world for an adventure that transformed him from a boy in a man’s body to a man in every sense of the word.

Love is such a powerful magic that it can bring about miracles and initiate profound changes in our lives despite our kicking and screaming that we are “perfect” the way we are and we are until we are not because life is intended to be a perpetual evolution. Change is love and life perfecting itself in mysterious ways.

The movie is based on a true story which gives it a whole different power to inspire and show us that love is the only way to go despite the pain of loss through death. Yet the death of a loved person isn’t the end of life itself if anything it deepens the sense of awe and love that keeps us alive and ever changing to reach new heights and new maturity as human beings.

The parallels between the lives of the main characters are mind blowing. The boy who lost his mother at the same age his step father lost his own mother and went living on while carefully avoiding “love” to not have to suffer the pain of loss through the death of a loved one has got the chance to choose a new path in life, one that embraces all of life despite the pain in can bring about through loss. Joy said: “the happiness now is part of the pain then”. She meant when death would have taken her away. She said it when they were savoring the moment of found paradise, the place he believed to be heaven when he was an innocent child. The impact and the truth of her wise saying were heartbreaking but also healing at the same time. When the presence of death became her constant companion all illusions fell away, only truth remained and the immortality of love. Of course C. S. Lewis did not want to hear it then…

Somehow, I believe that the people we love keep on living inside of our hearts and souls and remain with us until we die and if there really is a life after death, I am convinced that we will meet them again. The boy who lost his biological father (who did not care much about him or so it seemed in the movie) found a real compassionate one in C. S. Lewis, a decent and good man who will continue to be a mentor to him and a true inspiration in his life.

I was delighted by Joy’s strong personality, her strength and maturity. She saw through the comfortable patterns of C.W. Lewis’s life that served as defense mechanisms and protective walls and never let go of the love she felt for him until they were united and shared their lives. Even if their union was for a short time, it still was worth experiencing.
Probably her suffering in life with an alcoholic husband and his betrayal to her gave her this no BS attitude and her outspoken ways. Cut to the chase seemed to be her approach in life’s difficult situations. This is a beautiful and authentic love story. There was no time for filler anywhere as
Joy’s life was threatened by cancer.
The remission gave the lovers a wonderful chance to deepen their love and enjoy each other’s company, sharp minds and golden hearts a little longer.

It takes tremendous courage to keep a clear mind despite excruciating pain and knowing that an innocent child would soon become an orphan after he lost his biological father. It was certainly extremely painful for Joy to know that the love she had been dreaming of her whole life would be short lived so it had to be lived intensely and truly.

I loved how Joy freed C.S. Lewis to finally be himself without first seeking the “approval” of the cumbersome entourage, forsaking the "safe" stiffness of his old life. She gave him a last gift when she insisted on going on a field trip to find the magical place illustrated in a painting he kept for years in his study. It was heartbreaking when she asked him to let her go and to take care of her young boy.

The story was incredibly emotional but in a creative and deep way. After such a huge loss, C. S. Lewis grew to be a strong and compassionate man. I believe that Joy’s love accompanied him and inspired him until his last breath on earth. His mature approach to teaching would have helped many more human beings and it was a lot truer and deeper than his theological theories about death, loss and grief before he had such a powerful experience of love, life and grief.

C. S. Lewis tasted the sweetness of love and the magic he had been writing about in his fantasy stories. And even though as Joy said this precious gift comes with the suffering when death strikes as it usually does, it was the most beautiful relationship and experience in his life.

Death is just the beginning of a new life…

[Dee]

Thank you for introducing the film, DF, and your review, written by a true romantic.
I've ended up watching the first Shadowlands film as well from 1985, it was interesting to compare.

It's nearly 2am here so I'm gonna come back tomorrow to chat about it!

[Dee]

Yet the death of a loved person isn’t the end of life itself if anything it deepens the sense of awe and love that keeps us alive and ever changing to reach new heights and new maturity as human beings.

That was beautifully put, Mz DF, along with your conviction how we carry people we lose, in our hearts.

The film's message is built on these lines:

"The pain then is part of the happiness now.

The pain now is part of the happiness then."


And the message is delivered convincingly and wrapped in a moving story, with two fabulous actors.

I have found the first half of the film more enjoyable. I just couldn't really believe how the nature of this relationship was not dawning on Lewis sooner and the sudden dramatic revelation of the depth of his feelings, brought on by Joy's diagnosis and the prospect of losing her, it was just too much of a leap for me.

What I loved most in the film is actually Joy's character (sooo much better than how it was written and acted in the 1985 version), the beautiful singing of the choristers and most of all the wonderful shots of Oxford and the English countryside. My children keep talking about their desire to travel the world and of course I'd like that too, but England has so much beauty, right here on their doorstep, and I'm just at a loss why they don't love it and want to explore it more. It's like what is harder to reach, seems to be more desirable.

Which brings us back to the film. The idea at the beginning, discussed in the literature seminar: how a perfect rose bud is the symbol of romantic love, unattainable. And how Lewis only recognised romantic love in his heart when it suddenly became "technically" unattainable, with Joy's advanced cancer. It was wonderful though that the remission allowed them a little time at least, and they seemed to make good use of that.

The other interesting aspect of this story was a religious man's anger and then reconciliation with god. I wish we had a bit more of that, I always find that a fascinating subject, but I guess that wasn't the film's focus.

I also liked the little lad who played Douglas, he was very authentic. It was hard not to get emotional watching him and Hopkins crying together. That moment will stay with me.

I thought I had seen this film before, but I didn't.
Thank you so much for the recommendation, DF.

[Dee]

A little real life information from Wikipedia:

In later life, Lewis corresponded with Joy Davidman Gresham, an American writer of Jewish background, a former Communist, and a convert from atheism to Christianity. She was separated from her alcoholic and abusive husband, novelist William L. Gresham, and came to England with her two sons, David and Douglas. Lewis at first regarded her as an agreeable intellectual companion and personal friend, and it was on this level that he agreed to enter into a civil marriage contract with her so that she could continue to live in the UK. The civil marriage took place at a register office, in Oxford, on 23 April 1956. Lewis's brother Warren wrote: "For Jack the attraction was at first undoubtedly intellectual. Joy was the only woman whom he had met ... who had a brain which matched his own in suppleness, in width of interest, and in analytical grasp, and above all in humour and a sense of fun." After complaining of a painful hip, she was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer, and the relationship developed to the point that they sought a Christian marriage. Since she was divorced, this was not straightforward in the Church of England at the time, but a friend, the Rev. Peter Bide, performed the ceremony at her bed in the Churchill Hospital on 21 March 1957.

Joy Gresham's cancer soon went into remission, and the couple lived together as a family with Warren Lewis until 1960, when recurrence of the cancer caused her death on 13 July. Earlier that year, the couple took a brief holiday in Greece and the Aegean; Lewis was fond of walking but not of travel, and this marked his only crossing of the English Channel after 1918. Lewis's book A Grief Observed describes his experience of bereavement in such a raw and personal fashion that he originally released it under the pseudonym N. W. Clerk to keep readers from associating the book with him. Ironically, many friends recommended the book to Lewis as a method for dealing with his own grief. After Lewis's death, his authorship was made public by Faber's, with the permission of the executors.

Lewis continued to raise Gresham's two sons after her death. Douglas remains involved in the affairs of the Lewis estate.

Lewis died on 22 November 1963 from renal failure, one week before his 65th birthday.



So the sad part is that Joy's children lost Lewis as well three years after their mother died. It's interesting that the 1993 film didn't included Douglas' brother. In the 1985 film version Joy had both of her sons with her.

The good part is that they had three years of happiness, a bit longer than the film suggested.

[Dee]

C.S. Lewis about Joy:

"She was my daughter and my mother, my pupil and my teacher, my subject and my sovereign; and always, holding all these in solution, my trusty comrade, friend, shipmate, fellow-soldier. My mistress; but at the same time all that any man friend (and I have good ones) has ever been to me. Perhaps more."

[Dee]

Some more interesting facts about C.S.Lewis:

First, the explanation of why everyone was calling him Jack:

When he was four, his dog Jacksie was killed by a car, and he announced that his name was now Jacksie. At first, he would answer to no other name, but later accepted Jack, the name by which he was known to friends and family for the rest of his life.

[Dee]

Then there is the story of his relationship with Jane Moore.

During his army training, Lewis shared a room with another cadet, Paddy Moore. Maureen Moore, Paddy's sister, said that the two made a mutual pact that if either died during the war, the survivor would take care of both of their families. Paddy was killed in action in 1918 and Lewis kept his promise. Paddy had earlier introduced Lewis to his mother, Jane King Moore, and a friendship quickly sprang up between Lewis, who was eighteen when they met, and Jane, who was forty-five. The friendship with Moore was particularly important to Lewis while he was recovering from his wounds in hospital, as his father did not visit him.

In 1930, Lewis moved into "The Kilns" (the house in the film)on the outskirts of Oxford, with his brother Warnie, Mrs. Moore, and her daughter Maureen.

He routinely introduced Jane as his mother, referred to her as such in letters, and developed a deeply affectionate friendship with her.

Jane Moore suffered from dementia in her later years and was eventually moved into a nursing home, where she died in 1951. Lewis visited her every day in this home until her death.

There have been speculations (suported by Maureen's conviction) that the two of them were lovers for a while. Wheteher they were or not, it is interesting to note that Lewis had another very deep affectionate relationship with another woman prior to Joy, where the lines of friendship and romantic love were blurred.

[Lori]

First let me say, DF, that your exquisite and insightful review made me love the film even more.

Shadowlands

Love is such a powerful magic that it can bring about miracles and initiate profound changes in our lives despite our kicking and screaming that we are “perfect” the way we are and we are until we are not because life is intended to be a perpetual evolution. Change is love and life perfecting itself in mysterious ways.

Change is love and life perfecting itself in mysterious ways.

Just WOW. That is such an amazing statement! Love is magic and does produce miracles in our lives. I usually do not buy completely a person who thinks themselves capable of living without this deep connection to the extent it would be a preferable choice. I agree that we have so many forms of love in our lives through other sources that make our existence incredibly meaningful - my friendships are incredibly powerful - but to me it means they either have never touched the hem of such a gift or they indeed have experienced the magnitude and cannot shoulder the subsequent pain. Magnitude....with the root of the word Latin for "great".

It was with this perception I watched Jack (Jacksie ) with a sympathetic and knowing eye. I loved the unfolding and the trickery he used with himself, while Joy waited in the wings. I thought the movie could have perhaps delved a bit deeper into that which enticed Jack to consider her his equal intellectually and professionally. It did very successfully show the flavor, respect, etc., but I would have liked more of a grasp on her bent. We only knew that she considered her book at the time not ready for public viewing. I would have liked her to sit and read some excerpts to Jack. Of course, she imparted her incredible wisdom throughout. Dee, I love the research you have found. Is the below not the most poignant expression of love?

C.S. Lewis about Joy:

"She was my daughter and my mother, my pupil and my teacher, my subject and my sovereign; and always, holding all these in solution, my trusty comrade, friend, shipmate, fellow-soldier. My mistress; but at the same time all that any man friend (and I have good ones) has ever been to me. Perhaps more."

This struck a deep chord inside me and perhaps showcases the message in the movie. Not unlike The Unbearable Lightness of Being, choosing "heaviness" or a life of deep attachment is a scary and awesome choice. I exchanged all of the pronouns with masculine above and this is what I have chosen. I fully believe that "The pain then is part of the happiness now. The pain now is part of the happiness then." Interesting, isn't it, that both of these sentences lead with 'pain'. We feel this connection, this looming pain born of an all-consuming love with our children. To parent requires constant bravery with the potential of great loss moment by moment.

I found myself so relieved for Joy that she had her sweet little son in the care of a gentle man, particularly since the child had not had a stable man modeled for him to this point. Sad to know now it didn't last with his death following so closely. Again, our Jack chose blissful and potentially treacherous-to-the-heart heaviness, raising a son (or two sons as we now know). We see this choice over and over. How lucky that he discovered this new path even at that late date. The parallels are stunning with this full circle and understanding of a small boy(s) without an involved father who had lost his mother. This is so potent it just skirts the edges of coincidence. Jack was probably the spearhead in the direction his life took more than he gives himself credit for.

The Narnia series has always been a magical staple in my family. I believe these were some of the first books my son read. They made him work all the harder at comprehension and reading skills because they were so very enticing. Of course, Harry Potter eclipsed them subsequently. It might be interesting to delve into some of Joy's works.




The background of A Grief Observed is amazing. I suppose there is only so much putting himself out there Mr. Lewis could do. That people recommended his own book to him is so full of irony...I cannot express!

The other interesting aspect of this story was a religious man's anger and then reconciliation with god. I wish we had a bit more of that, I always find that a fascinating subject, but I guess that wasn't the film's focus.

Yes, I found this honest and refreshing to depict. Even within the Christian Bible, Christ asks in Matthew 27:46 “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” If the Christian Son of God can cry out questioning God, it follows that mankind would also question and rail against, especially within the faith. I would imagine his book reveals a lot of what he experienced during that time. It is also quite fascinating the expectation placed on people who do become spiritual guides of sorts and are placed solidly on a pedestal. One would knock him down just as another would lift him too far up. It leaves the subject on the pedestal teetering a bit, swaddled in their own human imperfection (as must be the lot of all humans), but not allowed it.

I am with you all that the scene where boy and man break down together had me fighting tears and not succeeding very well. Of course, my husband leans forward to examine my face right after. Promptly stuck me tongue out did I (spoken like Eliza Doolittle). I find tongues are generally good for diffusing nearly any emotional situation...

Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger did wonderful work within this film. I did occasionally see "the stage" throughout and found myself noticing 'acting', though done very well. Debra played a similar watered down role in Terms of Endearment. (No let's NOT watch that one. As Sheryl Crow pined once in a song "I can't cry anymore"...) The English countryside is indeed a thing of peaceful beauty. The birdsong particularly grabbed me in that setting. As the film opened, those high pure voices of the boy chorus washed over me as they flew above the mature voices with a clarity lost with aging. So much humanity in those angelic little pipes. I was sold on the film at that very moment, turning the volume up and closing my eyes. Thank you, DF. Thanks also, Dee, for the research. Caring for the family of an army friend shows again this man's character and capability for a living love. P.S. NR this font color is deep rose - not pink... xoxo