THE ARTIST : FEELING YOUNG - THEN BACK TO REALITY : HAPPILY

Brilliant Success

With another couple of the same age group, my wife and I went to see "THE ARTIST"this afternoon. If you have been living "under a rock, under a stone"you may not know that this is essentially a silent movie about the fate of a male silent movie Star at the advent of the talkies,


It is brilliant, in acting, story, cinematography in the period manner, settings and props - in every way , ideal. What a gem! Dialogue is superfluous for this superbly acted and presented movie, and it never drags - not for a moment.


At the end of it, I was very happy, able to look back with satisfaction on the movie itself, but also on the era it presented ,which preceded my birth by about 11 years- so I had the satisfaction of looking on the re-presentation of something older than me!! Nice, I feel younger!.


We leave the Theatre and before going to the Car look for a coffee. Our friends propose James Cafe on the Pacific Highway at Roseville. As we arrive they are closing up for the late afternoon, but beckon us in because our dear friends are regulars! After a super and relaxed coffee, we are settling the bill, when somehow it comes up that the son of the owners - present on his return from College for the day, is a student at Marist Brothers North Sydney. I offer the comment that one of my teachers 56 years ago was Brother Peter Salta ( then Brother Albanus) . The young fellow looks at me respectfully, but somehow conveying the impression that he is in the presence of a dinosaur. His mother tells me that the lad is in SALTA HOUSE at College, which is named after my former teacher who is still alive and now retired at the Brothers'House at Randwick. It is pleasing to find that such a brilliant, devoted and faithful Religious is so revered still. But my feeling of being able to look patronisingly on the silent movie era, is overtaken by the knowledge that this solid young man is looking on me in just such a way.  Suddenly feeling my age !But HAPPILY!


But, A GREAT MOVIE - don't miss it! And say a prayer for Brother Albanus/ Peter Salta and all those marvellous Religious who made Catholic Education in Australia the source of greatness it has been !