Ubar

[dan2100]

Avoid the ashes and bricks,

don't linger near merchants stalls

or smell that odor you should

not breathe or name aloud

and look away when the scene

conjures too clearly the past –

yesterday when high walls hid

a palace and tented bazaar

from sand, sun, and armies;

when pilgrims would pray loudly

then sip tea or sleep next to

nomads dreaming of the doom

you always believed would be

tomorrow not yesterday.

[Rich Engle]

Purty. I like it!

It kind of reminds me of the Police song "Tea in the Sahara."

rde

Edited May 12, 2010 by Rich Engle

[dan2100]

Purty. I like it!

Thanks. I think it still needs some work, but I wanted to see if I'd get a positive response anyhow.

It kind of reminds me of the Police song "Tea in the Sahara."

rde

I'm not familiar, but is that a reference to the Paul Bowles novel? I read that a few years ago and saw a (or the?) movie based on it. I recall the novel having a section called "Tea in the Sahara."

[Rich Engle]

Yeah, that's it, Dan. Pretty fine flick, too. Sting wrote a lyric/song. He uses a lot of literary references, what with being a rock star that can read, for whatever reason. The content is different, but the feel/imagery stuff kind of came to mind. It's on the "Synchronicity" album, which is pretty deep, artistically speaking. He has done a great many versions of it over the years. Also, if you read this one you will see another Bowles reference built into it: "Beneath the Sheltering Sky."

"Tea In The Sahara"

My sisters and I

Have this wish before we die

And it may sound strange

As if our minds are deranged

Please don't ask us why

Beneath the sheltering sky

We have this strange obsession

You have the means in your possession

We want our tea in the Sahara with you

We want our tea in the Sahara with you

The young man agreed

He would satisfy their need

So they danced for his pleasure

With a joy you could not measure

They would wait for him here

The same place every year

Beneath the sheltering sky

Across the desert he would fly

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

The sky turned to black

Would he ever come back?

They would climb a high dune

They would pray to the moon

But he'd never return

So the sisters would burn

As their eyes searched the land

With their cups full of sand

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Edited May 12, 2010 by Rich Engle

[dan2100]

Yeah, that's it, Dan. Pretty fine flick, too.

I actually didn't like the movie. The novel I found okay. I wasn't blown away by it... While watching the film, I had the suspicion that this was not the best novel to adapt for the film.

Or maybe it's just Bertolucci. I've seen a few of his films and none of them really hit me. This isn't to say there weren't fine moments in any of these films. In "The Sheltering Sky," I really liked the scene at the port -- with the gigantic crane.

Oh, well, chalk it up to tastes.

Sting wrote a lyric/song. He uses a lot of literary references, what with being a rock star that can read, for whatever reason. The content is different, but the feel/imagery stuff kind of came to mind. It's on the "Synchronicity" album, which is pretty deep, artistically speaking. He has done a great many versions of it over the years. Also, if you read this one you will see another Bowles reference built into it: "Beneath the Sheltering Sky."

"Tea In The Sahara"

My sisters and I

Have this wish before we die

And it may sound strange

As if our minds are deranged

Please don't ask us why

Beneath the sheltering sky

We have this strange obsession

You have the means in your possession

We want our tea in the Sahara with you

We want our tea in the Sahara with you

The young man agreed

He would satisfy their need

So they danced for his pleasure

With a joy you could not measure

They would wait for him here

The same place every year

Beneath the sheltering sky

Across the desert he would fly

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

The sky turned to black

Would he ever come back?

They would climb a high dune

They would pray to the moon

But he'd never return

So the sisters would burn

As their eyes searched the land

With their cups full of sand

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Tea in the Sahara with you

Yeah, I see the reference. Doesn't seem to have as much as I thought to do, though, with the novel. Not that it has to!

Edited May 12, 2010 by Dan Ust

[Rich Engle]

I agree with you, generally, about the film. And I paid to see that thing in a theater. But I will say that I thought it had moments that were (visually) very powerful. It was uneven, which is typical of Bertolucci--you get that a lot, but the thing is you just want to see what he's going to do next; how he will handle something. The camera shots tend to prevail nicely, though.

rde

Edited May 12, 2010 by Rich Engle

[dan2100]

I agree with you, generally, about the film. And I paid to see that thing in a theater. But I will say that I thought it had moments that were (visually) very powerful. It was uneven, which is typical of Bertolucci--you get that a lot, but the thing is you just want to see what he's going to do next; how he will handle something. The camera shots tend to prevail nicely, though.

rde

Yeah, I think that's how I feel about his films too. I think I've seen four or five of them. They have some really powerful moments, but the rest of them are blah. This is, for me, unlike, say, many films by Ingmar Bergman or some films by Michelangelo Antonioni, where there's more consistency overall. It's kind of like the difference between reading a so so novel that has a few scattered passages of great prose versus reading a novel that's well written and enticing throughout.

[Rich Engle]

Right. I get the distinct feeling that he started phoning them in after he got a bit of fame. It's either that or he just knows that people get impressed when they see an Italian filmmaker name. He's no Federico Fellini, that's for sure. But, a dynasty nonetheless.

rde

[dan2100]

Right. I get the distinct feeling that he started phoning them in after he got a bit of fame. It's either that or he just knows that people get impressed when they see an Italian filmmaker name. He's no Federico Fellini, that's for sure. But, a dynasty nonetheless.

rde

I don't know. I'd have to see more of his films, and probably revisit the ones I have seen, to see if there's a pattern. I actually didn't mind his 2003 film "The Dreamers." I saw it a few months ago and thought it was okay. So I'm not sure I'd say he started out strong and then decided to rest on his laurels.

Like you, too, I rate Fellini higher than him -- though I'm not sure one must compare either to the other. In many ways -- not just quality or my overall feeling about their work -- I find them very different directors -- even if they're both Italian.