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ronnoco28 (11)
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I think Brad added to the suspense of the movie. He was pretty creepy (peeing in front of them, insinuating that Alex was a loser because he was a landscaper, coming on to Jen and handling her underwear, and interrogating Alex about his 'misunderstanding' remark). There was something strange and ominous about him. For the next few days, it seemed like he may have been stalking them. We didn't know it was a bear until later.
Although at the end, maybe he and Jenn got together, now that Alex was disposed of. He clearly was attracted to her, and for some weird reason, she seemed to be attracted to him, too.
wasn't aware of how deeply emotionally attached to the land Bull was. The priest ought to have stepped forward and acted as a mediator between the Yank, the Widow, and Bull, and tried to arrange some sort of compromise. But that would have been extremely difficult to do, as all three were unwilling to come to any sort of accomodation. And therein was the tragedy. The Yank lost his life, Bull lost his son and all hope for the future, and probably his mind as well. The Widow will have to look elsewhere for a buyer for her field, and surely it will go for a lower price than she wanted. That's what happens when people are so obsessed with getting their own way, and are unwilling to compromise.
Bull is a flawed hero, or possibly a tragic hero. He feels his elder son (Seamie, who hanged himself 18 years ago) and his mother were sacrificed for the field. He has guilt over this, and he's obsessed with the field, and cannot bear the thought of losing it. It's sacred ground to him. And so he (unintentionally) murders the Yank, and alienates his remaining son, Tadgh, who is his pride and joy. But he ends up knowing that he's defiled his sacred field by committing murder over it. He's overwhelmed with guilt. Bull ends up losing everything, and I think at the end he's lost his mind.
The Yank was somewhat of a jerk. He looked down upon the villagers, and felt that he was doing the community a favor by paving over the field, building a hydroelectric plant, and mining limestone. He felt he was doing the community a favor, providing jobs, and raising them out of poverty, and if a few farming villagers (including Bull and his family) lost their livelihood, it was a small price to pay for the good of the community.
The priest was clearly a respected force in the village, and ought to have played a more forceful role as a mediator between the Yank, the Widow, and Bull McCabe. He did make a half-hearted effort to dissuade the Yank from buying the field and advised him to look elsewhere for a location for his construction projects. But the Yank was too stubborn and arrogant to consider this. The priest also suggested to Bull that he buy a different field, but Bull became furious at this, after all the sacrifices his family had made for generations in maintaining the field, and wouldn't consider it.
The priest had also become aware that the Widow, who lived alone, had been harassed for over 10 years over her ownership of the field. It was Tadgh (Bull's son) and Bird who'd been carrying out that harassment. Bull wasn't even aware of it until the priest told him about it. But the priest didn't care for Bull, considered him a bully, and didn't realize that Bull was unaware of the harassment. And until the confrontation in the church rectory, probably
I've seen Joe in 3 movies (Operation Finale, Boy Erased, and Mary Queen of Scots) but he doesn't really stand out in any of them. He plays supporting roles, and it's the other actors/actresses who are more memorable. But there's nothing wrong with being in a supporting role, and he did a decent job in all three.
I use Moviechat, Filmboards, and The Movie DB quite a bit more than IMDB these days. I still use IMDB once in awhile to get a summary of a movie, or to read a movie review, or to see the profile of an actor/actress, but if I want to discuss a movie, TV show, or actor/actress, I now come to one of these 3 websites.
I used to like turnips when I was growing up. We had them sometimes at family dinners at home. I haven't had them in years. With my parents passed away many years ago, my kids' families no longer serve them, nor do I ever come across them in restaurants or supermarket delicatessans.
Mr. Hundert actually cared deeply about his students, but he was an extremely formal and conventional teacher, and it wasn't in his nature, or his style, to take them aside and discuss personal feelings with them. He was quite repressed about his own emotional feelings, and not comfortable discussing them.
He did get to know his students very well, though. He observed their interests, actions, and activities closely, and he clearly was interested in them. In a restrained way, he got to know them, and they got to know him. He admired Sedgewick and favoured him over the others.He made a mistake in his interpretation of Sedgewick's character, and ever after regretted it. However, he also got to know Deepak, who was avidly interested in classical history for it's own sake, did extra reading outside of class, and Hundert was able to use this insight into Deepak's character to enable Deepak to win the "Mr. Julius Caesar" contest, when it became obvious that Sedgewick was cheating. (Hundert asked an impromptu question about a historical figure who hadn't been mentioned in his classroom, but whom he knew Deepak would likely be familiar with.
He also felt very guilty all his life about bypassing Blythe in favor of Sedgewick, even when as an adult Blythe told him it didn't matter, that he'd more than made up for it. Hundert clearly had a strong influence on all of his students (even Sedgewick) for the rest of their lives.
Hundert was indeed a little bit afraid of interacting with the outside world, which isn't unusual. He was an old-fashioned individual, more academic than administrative. (The school's board of trustees recognized that, which was why they bypassed him for the Headmaster's position, and which clearly came as a shock to him). He also was clearly intimidated during the interview with Sedgewick's father. (But though intimidated, he clearly understood how Sedgewick also was intimidated, and increased his empathy for Sedgewick).
Sedgewick did gain, probably from his father, a realistic view of how the world works. That's why he was so successful as a CEO and politician. He's cynical about truth and integrity. But deep down, he's insecure. He follows the example set for him by his father, but at his father's deathbed, he realizes that he never really knew him.
And it's clear that Hundert was a positive influence on his other students, and succeeded in imparting to them a respect for learning and integrity.
Yes, it's a poor imitation of J.A.G. It isn't really recreating the military atmosphere of the Marine Corps very well. Luke Mitchell is cute and likable, and so are the actresses. They'd be great on a soap-opera, or in a Hallmark movie. But they aren't marines.
Sedgewick was narcissistic and had some emotional problems, but I don't think that he was a complete sociopath. He cared about his sons, enjoyed playing with them and spending time with them, and their respect was important to him. He was very flawed, but not a sociopath.
I agree that Mr. Hundert probably had a repressed sexual attraction to Sedgewick, which accounted for his unintentional loss of professional objectivity when dealing with him. He unintentionally gave some special favorable academic attention to Sedgewick and then invented reasons, in his own mind, to justify this. He tried to impress him, and was especially disappointed when Sedgewick failed to live up to his expectations. Hundert was very emotionally invested in Sedgewick, which probably stemmed from his sublimated physical attraction.
However, I think it was also appropriate to show a bit about Hundert's relationship to his married female co-worker, whom he liked and respected, and whom he eventually married. He was a complicated and deeply closeted individual, and it was very much in keeping with his character that he'd seek out a relationship with a woman to whom he probably wasn't especially physically attracted to, but whom he emotionally deeply loved and respected.
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