THE ENGLISH PATIENT
UK, 1996, 162 minutes, Colour.
Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Naveen Andrews, Colin Firth, Kevin Whately, Julian Wadham, Jurgen Prochnow.
Directed by Anthony Minghella.
The English Patient has been adapted by Anthony Minghella from Michael Ondaatje's Booker Prize winning novel. Minghella has written and directed some of the Inspector Morse telemovies as well as the very popular Truly, Madly, Deeply.
The film is beautiful to look at with African desert locations as well as a monastery in Tuscany. The setting is World War II with a mysterious patient (Ralph Fiennes) who has been burnt beyond recognition in a Sahara crash and is now being cared for a nurse who has suffered losses during the war (Juliette Binoche).
The action moves backwards and forwards from pre-war Africa to 1944 as we gradually begin to understand the fate of the patient. The Americans have obviously taken the film to heart - 9 Oscars, including Best Film and director.
Response in Australia was mixed, many being profoundly moved by the story and the passionate feelings. Others responding in a more detached way, admiring the film rather than becoming engrossed in it. There were many wonderful sequences in the film, especially when the nurse is lifted to see some frescoes in a Tuscan church.
1. The worldwide acclaim? The award nominations? Nine Oscar awards?
2. The adaptation of the Booker Prize novel? The work of the writer-director? Interpreting a mosaic-essay novel and dramatising it? Visual interpretations of the novel? The images as the equivalent of the language of the novel?
3. The structure: the initial crash in the desert and the return to the crash and Katherine's death? The moving in a circle, the memories of the desert and Egypt, the war in the desert, intercut with the war and the end of the war in Italy? The devices for moving the audience from one time to another? The visual and thematic links between one time and the other?
4. The Oscar-winning cinematography: the initial impact of the flight over the desert, the desert sequences, the war action, the contrast in colours and filters for Italy, the road, the monastery, interiors? The background landscapes as settings for characters and their interpretation?
5. The re-creation of the period, the set design and its meticulous detail, decor, costumes? The musical score and its atmosphere? The contemporary songs and their use?
6. The World War II setting: the involvement of the variety of nations, the Axis powers and the allies? Differences in language, borders? The importance of breaking down borders and language? Themes of betrayal, death, espionage? The background to the preparations for World War II in the desert, the flights and photography? The strategies? The English and the Germans in Africa? The Italians and the Canadians in Italy? The film's comment on the nature of war - and its effect on people, thousands being killed by other thousands might have been saved?
7. The picture of love in war - the memories of Hemingway and A Farewell to Arms? Love irrespective of the war yet enclosed by it? The circumstances of war, their effect on people's lives, the destructive forces?
8. Love and death in war: the English patient himself, Katherine and Geoffrey and their deaths, Hanna and the people that she loved, the forces and the injured men, the dying men? Kip and Hardy's death?
9. The title and the introduction to the painting, the painting of the cave of swimmers, the swimmers in the actual caves, the primitive paintings, the contemporary images? The paintings and the photography of the swimmers? The symbolism of the cave of swimmers - Almasy's discovery, Katherine's death?
10. The plane crash, Katherine as passenger, the flak attacks? The English patient and his being burnt? The transition to the end and knowing that Katherine was a dead passenger, Almasy's hazards, his desperation and grief, taking the plane, telling the story to Caravaggio?
11. The patient and the desert rescue, the tenderness of the local people, the lotions for healing him? The transition to Italy?
12. The troop train, the injured and dying men? Hanna and the other nurses? Kissing the patient, the good humour with the patients, the operations and the blood, the sudden news of the death of Hana's friend? The convoy, the nurses and their friendship, Hana lending the money, the sudden explosion and her friend's death? Her grief and her running into the minefield, her having to stop, her being rescued by Kip and Hardy?
13. The vision of the monastery, its being a retreat, Hana retreating with the patient? The beauty of the monastery, abandoned? Hana and her preparation of the room for the patient, getting permission from the Army? The effect on the patient, the agony in his being transferred, carried? His illness, his lungs? His settling into the monastery?
14. Ralph Fiennes' performance as the patient? His burnt appearance and the contrast with his appearance in the flashbacks? His loss of memory or not? His expertise in knowing the songs - and singing them as he walked through the desert? The quality of his life, the need for healing, the healing of memories? The triggers for his reviewing his life, coming to terms with himself and his past, with Katherine and Geoffrey? The need for confessing, atonement, reconciliation? Being ready for death (even though he had said he had died years earlier)?
15. Juliet Binoche and her Oscar-winning performance? Her tenderness as a nurse, her place in the Army, her rapport with the soldiers, the kiss? The grief at the news of the death? Her friend and the explosion, her piece of jewellery, the minefield? Her compassion for the English patient? Taking him to the monastery, getting permission, preparing the place? Cutting her hair? Planting the vegetables and tending them, the plums and giving them to him to eat? Reading to him, preparing his meals? His explanation of Herodotus? His book of memoirs - and her looking through them, reading, learning from them? The effect of working for the patient and tending him?
16. The arrival of Caravaggio, the information from Mary, his seeking Almasy? His arrival, his thanks to her, the background from Canada, his explanation of his being a thief? His presence in Africa during the war, being used by government? His skills? His listening to Almasy telling his story? Taunting him, provoking his memories? Telling his own story and the loss of his thumbs - to Hanna, to Almasy? His working with Maddox and his role in the war? His arrest, his woman friend, being in the line, his trying to leave, taken, interrogated, the torture, the Muslim woman and her slicing his thumbs? The photos - from Almasy - and his being identified? His anger, motivation for revenge? The effect of his being with Hanna, with Almasy and not killing him? Finding some kind of healing? The declaration of peace, the dancing with Hanna, his organising the final rescue? Was he healed?
17. The flashbacks and the portrait of Almasy, his work, the discovery of the cave, the expedition and the various participants? His relationship with Maddox? The Cliftons and their arrival, the telling of the stories with the spinning bottle (Herodotus and the story of the killing of the king and the marriage and its echoes in Katherine and Almasy's affair)? Clifton and his flights, his cover story? The convoy, the accident and Katherine deciding to stay, talking with Almasy in the jeep? Their falling asleep, the sandstorm? The rescue of the people in the truck? Katherine giving the pictures to Almasy and his refusal, his later taking them? The flares and their being saved? Almasy's experience in the desert?
18. The contrast with Cairo, Katherine and her staying at Shepherds? The market, Almasy following her, his growing obsession, the thimble? Katherine's reaction, going to his house, the passion and the affair? The Santa Claus party and her deceiving the organisers, the fainting, with Almasy? The irony of Geoffrey being Santa Claus? The taxi and the celebration of the anniversary, Katherine's not remembering, Geoffrey following her? His vigil, his not saying anything? The contrast with his knowing Katherine from her being a child, their being best of friends? Katherine's view of the marriage and explanation to Almasy? Her passion for Almasy, his for her? The effect on each of them? The tension, the hostility, the love? The horror of Geoffrey crashing and killing himself and injuring Katherine? His death-wish?
19. Maddox and the archaeological team, the international group, their friendships, collaboration in the desert? The coming of the war, the closing of the expedition? Maddox and his memories of Dorset, leaving the plane with the notice about Dorset, his knowing of the affair, his explaining of the name of the hole in the neck for a woman? Caravaggio and the horror of Maddox killing himself because of a sense of betrayal by Almasy?
20. The team, their skills, the work, the member of the expedition and his infatuation with the local man, their playing and the reason for the accident? Their becoming close because of the war?
21. The picture of Cairo, society, the English, Tobruk and the experience of war? The contrast between Shepherds and the dancing with Tobruk and the torture?
22. The impact of the crash and Almasy's watching - and avoiding being hit? Geoffrey's death, Almasy rescuing Katherine from the plane, taking her to the cave, providing her with light, food, leaving his book, her writing in the book - and the pathos of her death? Hanna's reading Katherine's final words? Almasy and his walk, desperation, the obtuse English officers and their suspicions, brutalising him, on the train, his vengeance and his killing the guard, his escape, giving the Germans the map, getting the plane, the rescue of Katherine, taking her on the plane, the finale and his own crash?
23. The character of Kip, Hardy and their detonating the mines? Rescuing Hana? Their warm friendship? Kip and his love for Hana, her giving him food, thinking that he would be her lover, the affair, the condensed milk, Kip and his reading Kipling to Almasy? The fresco sequence and his gift of showing the beauty to Hana? The danger of the detonation of the bomb with the convoy going over the bridge, his wise cutting of the wire? The celebrations, Hardy and the flag, the pathos of his death? His fiancee in the village? Kip's grief, his leaving?
24. Hana and her decision to end the English patient's life? Mercy-killing? The injections, Almasy's request, her reading the book - and the interchange of her own and Katherine's voice?
25. Hana and her going to new life, the children on the truck - hope?
26. Themes of healing, salvation, love, war, betrayal - the people who died, the people who lived?
