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They don't make movies like this any more, and it's probably just as
well. We're far too sophisticated for such a drippy and romantic (to
say nothing of neanderthal) depiction of Irish culture. Was it ever
like this, or only in John Ford's feverish imagination? But whatever
the truth, even we sophisticates can enjoy being strangers in a
strange land.
And a big part of the magic of this particular fantasy is the music,
here performed by full orchestra some forty years after The Quiet
Man. It's movie music of a particularly compelling style, which
works rather well without the movie. That's not always the case, as I
discovered a few years back at a very special concert by (I think) the
now shuttered San Jose Symphony. They chose selections from films,
playing scenes on a screen behind the orchestra and then performing
the accompanying music. It was kind of awkward, I thought. Maybe
it's better this way.
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