Anne Frank

[Gazza]

I've just been looking at the BBC Points of View board where there are a couple of threads on the current Anne Frank series.



On one thread there is a vigorous argument going on because one poster mentioned the outcome and someone is ranting at her because she gave away the ending, thus spoiling the enjoyment of the programme.



My response to this is curiously mixed and it raises some intriguing questions in my mind. Perhaps it's a generational thing that I assume everyone knows the outcome of the Frank story but can we safely assume these things as we move further away in time from the events?



Can we charge people with being ignorant if they've never been introduced to a historical event? As a youngster my first learning of Violette Szabo was because I watched Carve Her Name With Pride with my mum. Supposing I watch that film for the first time now with no previous knowledge - could I be accused of being ignorant for not knowing the ending?



And what does it say about how television - and to a certain extent film - creates an expectation of unfolding drama with unknown outcomes and the possibility of posting a 'spoiler' on an internet forum?



Can talking about the outcome of historical events in television/film treatments be deemed a spoiler?



Just random musings on a Wednesday morning.

[rbrooks2008]

Strangely enough I've only just returned from her memorial tree site.



Anne Frank Tree. A community

[MB]

No, I don't think it could be considered 'a spoiler'. I think it would be fair enough to expect most people to know the outcome of a historical situation as well known as this and I would hope that they were doing some background research if they were really interested - not just watching the series and taking everything as fact.

[Steve Crook]

And don't forget the stage version where the actress playing Anne was so bad that when the Germans arrived the audience all called out "She's in the attic!"



Steve

[CaptainWaggett]

name='Steve Crook']And don't forget the stage version where the actress playing Anne was so bad that when the Germans arrived the audience all called out "She's in the attic!"



Steve

If only it were true!



I'm enjoying the series (though probably Friday's won't be quite as entertaining...) though I wish they were using the characters' real names rather than the pseudonyms Anne gave to protect them should the diary be found. But I think they're doing a good job of showing the adults as real people who aren't quite as unsympathetic as she portrayed them (especially Nicholas Farrell's Dussell, the only Orthodox Jew in the household)

[Dame Starry]

name='Steve Crook']And don't forget the stage version where the actress playing Anne was so bad that when the Germans arrived the audience all called out "She's in the attic!"



Steve

Und, in Deutsch?



Das ist sehr gut, Mein Herr!



DS x.

[orpheum]

If people dont know what happened to Anne Frank at the end maybe they dont know what happened in the July 1944 bomb plot.so they will be most upset to read reviews of "Valkeryie" referring to the failed bomb plot.

By the way i have seen the trailer and Tiny Tom looks absurd as the Count.

[Fellwanderer]

name='orpheum']If people dont know what happened to Anne Frank at the end maybe they dont know what happened in the July 1944 bomb plot.so they will be most upset to read reviews of "Valkeryie" referring to the failed bomb plot.

By the way i have seen the trailer and Tiny Tom looks absurd as the Count.

What! You mean the bomb didn't kill Hitler? I'm shocked.

[jaycad]

i think the viewer concerned is being a bit silly,(unless they were confused with 'bridgette jones diary'!)i don't believe anyone who would find this type of drama entertaining would not have some prior knowledge,however vague,of this very famous story.

[Marky B]

We all know President De Gaulle died a natural death,yet The Day Of The Jackal was still a gripping book and film. We all know the astronauts on Apollo 13 survived their disaster in space,but it still provided good fodder for an excellent film.

I saw a bit of the Anne Frank story last night - it looks good.

BTW,the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam is well worth a visit if anyone is in the vicinity. Shelley Winters donated her Oscar to the museum.

Ta Ta

Marky B

[CaptainWaggett]

name='Marky B'] We all know the astronauts on Apollo 13 survived their disaster in space,but it still provided good fodder for an excellent film.

I saw a bit of the Anne Frank story last night - it looks good.

BTW,the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam is well worth a visit if anyone is in the vicinity. Shelley Winters donated her Oscar to the museum.

Ta Ta

Marky B

Actually a friend of mine had no idea Apollo 13 was a true story when she saw the film



On a fictional note, I've just read a story on a theatre messageboard about an English literature undergraduate who was annoyed because her chum spoiled Hamlet for her by mentioning what was going to happen to Ophelia



The Anne Frank museum is indeed very good - you can still see things like Anne's film star pictures on the walls.

[vanmunchen]

This surely falls into the Titanic category. If people don't know about such historical events there is something seriously lacking in their education. There does seem however. to be an obsession from people on the internet who always complain about "spoilers" when films are discussed. Let's face it, it is difficult to write about films in any substantial way, without discussing plot points. When I used to go to the cinema in the '50s it was extremely common for audiences to walk in half way through the film and when the beginning came round it never seemed to bother me that I already knew the ending. In fact it was akin to a jgsaw - working out why events were going to lead to the ending which I'd already seen!

[Marky B]

name='CaptainWaggett']Actually a friend of mine had no idea Apollo 13 was a true story when she saw the film

I don't think you could have made that story up. The fictional Marooned lacked the suspense of Ron Howard's film.

Ta Ta

Marky B

[Brief Encounter]

There are some historical events so well-known that everyone will know the 'ending' before watching. I knew Titanic sunk, but I still enjoyed the film immensely.



My mum always asks me why I watch soaps when I've read the spoilers - I like seeing how the events unfold. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy a twist every now and then, though!

[batman]

name='orpheum']

By the way i have seen the trailer and Tiny Tom looks absurd as the Count.

[wellpip]

name='Steve Crook']And don't forget the stage version where the actress playing Anne was so bad that when the Germans arrived the audience all called out "She's in the attic!"



Steve

LOL, that's a cracker

[wellpip]

Sorry I hit the button twice. can you delete this one. Thanks..

[Steve Crook]

name='wellpip;252525]

And don't forget the stage version where the actress playing Anne was so bad that when the Germans arrived the audience all called out "She's in the attic!"



Steve

LOL, that's a cracker

It's a good story. Shame it isn't true. As the Captain pointed out above, the Nazis don't actually come on stage looking for her in the play



Steve

[LukeAFB]

On the series. One of the problems with this version, is that there is not one single character (especially Ann) who you can look on sympathetically. Yes, the claustrophobia of the environment is very much in evidence, partly because of the excellent cinematography, but it is very difficult to feel any connection with the characters. But that's not to take anything away from the real situation which the families faced.

[cully]

name='Marky B']We all know President De Gaulle died a natural death,yet The Day Of The Jackal was still a gripping book and film.

Marky B

A friend of mine described Day of the Jackal as a great film with a sad ending...