Dersu Uzala (1975)
With less than twelve hours to go before I leave on the big Outback NSW trip, I thought I’d squeeze one last Kurosawa movie in. It’s 170-minutes long and tells the story of a Russian’ explorers experience with the nomadic hunter, Dersu Uzala, in the wilderness of Eastern Russia. I planned to watch disc one and watch disc two while travelling. In the end, as always, I decided to watch it all in the one sitting.
I read an English-translation of the book when I was thirteen and found the movie fascinating, then and now. A great study of a man’s affinity with the land.
‘The Outback Experience’
Feeling like crap, but have to pack the car. It’s a lot of work. A lot of carrying when you’re already carrying a belly that feels like its got a bowling ball inside. The exertion causes real pain which means I have to stop and lie down on the carpet in the piano room and wait until it subsides enough to start the next effort of packing.
[p.s. Finally, at 1130 I was packed and head off to pick up the girls from their overnight stays.]
With twelve days on the road doing my Outback experience I don’t know how many films I’m going to get to see.
Heading for O’Connell, NSW.
