Films/DVD Asylum

Hey Victor, a question about Eisenstein's "Alexander Nevsky".

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TAFKA Steve

I saw "Alexander Nevsky" about six years ago with a live orchestra and chorus providing the musical score. One part that bothered me was reading the English subtitles during a humorous moment in which a man described catching a woman "in between the birches". Was this a britches/birches sexual innuendo joke or did I miss a finer point of humor?

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That was a hare.. Victor Khomenko 16:19:26 8/04/99 (4)
My memory would have to go back at least 30 years or so, but I always must have seen it ten or mote times. The joke the old man tells Alexander is about a fox and a hare. The hare managed to catch the fox in the fork of a tree and then proceeded to molest her (you should know that in Russian by default the fox is most definitely feminine and the hare masculine). We only hear the last part of the joke.
That gives Alexander the idea on how to catch the Germans in pincers and then destroy them from, you guessed it, behind.
In the Soviet movies any story like that one had to be told VERY carefully - no three, four letter or longer bad words (bad words in Russian come in different sizes) were even considered and any hint at sexuality was severely frowned upon. The joke was not cut probably because it had direct relation to the action later in the movie.
A good movie.
Victor.
- Thanks for the explanation, and the cultural insight! TAFKA Steve 19:49:16 8/04/99 (3)
  Interestingly, foxes also represent women in Japanese folklore (as seen in "Ran" and "Akira Kurosawa's Dreams." And to answer your other post, I watch movies on a Sony 36" XBR-WEGA direct view set at a distance of 6-7 feet (the home theater is crammed into an 11 x 12 ft bedroom. But frankly, I think its picture quality is overrated and next time I think I'll go for a small 16:9 rear projector like the Toshiba TW40F80. DVDs actually look better on my cheap 17" computer monitor than on the WEGA. I do own five CDs...all Eileen Farrell (just kidding). As Bill Gates may have said: "You may have the hardware, but without the software, you're nowhere."
  - How many students can fit in one WEGA? Victor Khomenko 10:15:57 8/05/99 (2)
    ***And to answer your other post, I watch movies on a Sony 36" XBR-WEGA direct view set at a distance of 6-7 feet (the home theater is crammed into an 11 x 12 ft bedroom.
    With bulky WEGA dominating the room, where do you keep all those 1600 LD's plus tapes and DVD's?
    ***But frankly, I think its picture quality is overrated and next time I think I'll go for a small 16:9 rear projector like the Toshiba TW40F80.
    That is a nice set, although it is getting a bit old. It can't take 480p, I believe, and lacks some image processing modes. I would also consider the new Samsung 40" rear projector - very compact for moderate room situations. I am trying to get one.
    But really, with all your old movies, why bother with the 16:9? I find that about 98% of what I watch is in 3:4. And I hate to throw away the pixels that are in limited supply. The Toshiba has gray side bars in such case that I don't care for. The Samsung has a panoramic mode that is supposed to work well on most 3:4 material - much better that the simple stretch mode.
    
    ***DVDs actually look better on my cheap 17" computer monitor than on the WEGA.
    Yes, I can easily believe that. But it should not match its brightness.
    
    Victor.
    - Re: How many students can fit in one WEGA? TAFKA Steve 16:29:10 8/05/99 (1)
      I hadn't heard of the Samsung, so I may have to check it out. The bulky Sony (Boy, this is one ugly design! It almost killed my friend and I lifting it up onto a 36" high shelf.) sits on a homemade rack that also holds the rest of the A/V electronics. I've also got a pair of Vandersteen 2Ci's and Rat Shack LS-4's in the room, along with a lowly Denon DP-3000/SMEIII/Stanton881S turntable. What saves this room is its ample closet space. The laserdiscs are stored on 2 five-shelf racks that are a bit over three feet wide. Each rack weighs about half a ton, loaded. And I think their gravitational fields are warping space-time in my bedroom. The DVDs are in a smaller wooden rack. But the videotapes are in the living (listening) room shelves, along with the CDs; and the LP boxes are near the floor.
      To quote Alice Cooper: "Welcome to my nightmare!"
      - Not too many in Samsung Victor Khomenko 07:57:11 8/06/99 (0)
        
        In Reply to: Re: How many students can fit in one WEGA? posted by TAFKA Steve on August 05, 1999 at 16:29:10:
        
        It is quite compact - it is only 14" deep and adds about 2" all around its 40" 16:9 screen. Also comes with a nice stand that they throw in at I believe just $75. The older analog model is fine, but the new progressive scan digital is better, but of course, more expensive: I think it lists for $3500.

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