Posted on 12/09/2021 3:08:18 AM PST by CheshireTheCat
On an unspecified date in December 1793 is set one of literature’s immortal execution scenes, when ne’er-do-well Sydney Carton heroically goes to the guillotine in the place of his aristocratic doppleganger Charles Darnay at the climax of A Tale of Two Cities.
In Charles Dickens‘ classic 1859 novel of the French Revolution, Darnay, the good-hearted scion of the cruel Evremonde line, falls prey to the Revolutionary Terror.
The dissolute, tormented Carton is the respectable Darnay’s literary dark twin, whose appearance he also happens to strikingly resemble. Driven by an unrequited love for Darnay’s wife, who stands in danger not only of losing her husband but of following him to the scaffold, Carton contrives to switch places with the doomed noble.
While those saved by his sacrifice flee for England, Carton goes to the guillotine in a batch of 52 condemned prisoners,* one of them a sweet and frightened girl he comforts tenderly.
His prophetic thoughts as he awaits the blade form the conclusion of the novel, and the last sentence ranks among literature’s most recognizable lines....
(Excerpt) Read more at executedtoday.com ...
It seems to me that Dickens highlighted Carton’s conversion and faith in the resurrection as that which gave him the fortitude to die in another man’s place:
“Long ago, when he had been famous among his earliest competitors as a youth of great promise, he had followed his father to the grave. His mother had died, years before. These solemn words, which had been read at his father’s grave, arose in his mind as he went down the dark streets, among the heavy shadows, with the moon and the clouds sailing on high above him. “I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die.” “ (John 11:25)
Indeed, it appears that Dickens' famous 1st line of the novel sets the tone of our times as well; “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” There is a group, sustained by the hashtag '#DisruptTexts', that seeks to suppress / 'modify' the teaching of these icons (Dickens, Shakespeare etc.) for lack of modern morality [subjective].
Thus, we lose our culture to be replaced with something so contemporary as to have yet to show the resilience of these past masters. Imagine their students, graduating but never encountering the above sentence nor this, equally famous and poignant one; “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.” Tiny minds, slaying perceived dragons, powered by the zeitgeist of our 'cultural revolution', yet destroying their own future, for a society that can ban writers can also 'correct' teachers!
Man, Dickens is such a genius - too bad his life was a mess (but whose isn't, really).
Ronald Colman's performance is worth watching, if for no other reason. Real actors of that era would immerse you into the story via "suspension of disbelief".
The vast majority of so-called actors today are merely hollow vessels full of straw and poop.
It is one of my favorites. Colman was never better than he was in this. The wikipedia article says they originally wanted Colman to play both Carton & Darnay:
According to TCM, Selznick wanted Colman to play both roles, but Colman refused because of his experience with The Masquerader (1933). Selznick later commented, "I am glad now that he held out for that, because I think a great deal of the illusion of the picture might have been lost had Colman rescued Colman and had Colman gone to the guillotine so that Colman could go away with Lucie." In 1937, Colman did play a dual role for Selznick in The Prisoner of Zenda.
Besides Colman, there are many great performances in the film including Blanche Yurka as Madame Defarge, Reginald Owen as Stryver, Edna Mae Oliver as Miss Pross, Basil Rathbone as the inhumane Marquis and the beautiful Elizabeth Allan as Lucie. the shot where she lights the candle for Sidney in the church while he watched her adoringly is one of the most beautiful scenes I have seen. We basically see her as Sidney sees her. Elizabeth Allan should have had a longer career in Hollywood than she did.
I think my wife and I may watch the Blu-ray this month. The Christmas sequence in the film is very good (it includes the church candle scene) and even the fake snow does not diminish it.
Thank you.
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