Ein Engel an meiner Tafel (1990)
20KEin Engel an meiner Tafel: Directed by Jane Campion. With Kerry Fox, Alexia Keogh, Karen Fergusson, Iris Churn. Janet Frame was a brilliant child who, as a teen, was misdiagnosed with schizophrenia. Explore Janet’s discovery of the world and her life in Europe as her books are published to acclaim.
“What do these people have in common: Lou Reed, Vivien Leigh, Yves Saint Laurent, and Janet Frame? Answer: They were all given electroconvulsive shock therapy for highly questionable reasons, and suffered because of it.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGoing in to this film Iu0026#39;d never read anything by New Zealand author Janet Frame, but nevertheless found the story of her life to be interesting. Sheu0026#39;s a compelling figure because of how awkward she was, clearly intelligent and talented but also riddled with social anxiety. Itu0026#39;s very well cast, with the transitions between three actresses at differing portions of her life from child to adult being seamless, and all giving good performances.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI didnu0026#39;t give the film a higher rating because despite coming in at 238 minutes spread out over three parts, it left me with questions about aspects of her life and somehow lacked detail in places it shouldnu0026#39;t have, and was probably too long in others. Transitions were often on the abrupt side, and there seemed to be a certain softening of things. Maybe thatu0026#39;s how life is when told with a backward glance over decades though, I donu0026#39;t know. Anyway, itu0026#39;s a pretty good film, and one with an uplifting spirit to it.”
