William Gibson (2) (1914–2008)

Gibson's elegy for his parents is a rare book that aims to weight itself down with emotion and language, yet achieves through the sheer force of storytelling delivers a book to cherish. In the telling the story of his Depression-era childhood and his optimistic hard luck parents, the author does more than simply paint a vivid picture of a lost world. Gibson is positing a religion of the family. The family, Gibson believes, with its pain, joy, constraints, challenges and triumphs, is the show more most, if not only, humanizing force in the universe.

Gibson's method of storytelling is unconventional but effective. Despite being a playwright by trade, he does not set elaborate scenes. There is scant dialogue. He favors anecdotes and tells a tale the way you would to someone at a funeral or on a barstool. He never goes for a cheap effect, never dresses up his story or character to make them funnier or more interesting or more philosophical. The result is a tale that is devastatingly authentic. show less

A black-and-white film based on the true story of Helen Keller, who was both deaf and blind due to a serious illness in babyhood. She had become totally wild, prone to horrendous tantrums and increasingly dangerous to herself and others. So a young teacher was employed to try and bring some control to her life, and see if she could help Helen to communicate via felt hand signs.

Excellent acting, particularly by Patty Duke who played Helen. I was sorry it ended so abruptly, however - I'd like show more to have seen more of the story, as I know Helen Keller went on to do amazing things with her life.

We were also disappointed in the sound quality; we had to use switch on subtitles as we found we were missing so much of the conversation. But possibly that was a problem with our DVD, which came as a freebie with a relative's newspaper. show less

An interesting glimpse of the challenges, frustrations, and ultimate triumps of Annie Sullivan and the Keller family to educate Helen, who at a young age, became both deaf and blind. Gibson makes the characters of Helen and Annie complex and vivid. In addition, he shows the pain and conflicts of Helen's parents as they make decisions about raising their child in a time well before there were adequate facilities or rights for people with disabilities. A thought provoking drama about how some show more individuals face adversity with bravery and determination. show less

Phenomenal! So many interlocking themes. Water flowing underground, drawn out by a pump -- redemption as repayment from her brother -- "you can see 5000 years back with words" -- imitation versus meaning. Simply amazing. Brought me to tears. Heart-wrenching and exultant.