Yes, Tuesday Toon since I missed Music Monday because events occurred that made me think Monday might have been a continuation of Sunday and I don’t participate in Sunday Symphony (does anyone? curious minds). Excuses, excuses, excuses!
Anyway, the other night I watched the newest version of Emma starring Anya Taylor-Joy (whom I’d just recently seen in The Queen’s Gambit, which, if you haven’t watched, you should. It makes chess exciting! (that statement you may disregard if you already find chess exciting 😉 . BTW, I read the novel of The Queen’s Gambit a few weeks ago and the miniseries is very true to the text albeit for a few changes for dramatic purposes and to seemingly make it relevant to current audiences.) (I am one for tangents today!) This version of Emma completely made me forget that I’d ever seen the one with Gwyneth Paltrow (which may be unfair considering the stellar cast so I may have to reinvestigate that one). Anya Taylor-Joy is stunning to me. She manages to convey so much with just a simple expression. And, of course, Emma (2020) has one of my favorite character actors in Bill Nighy, who manages to almost steal every scene he’s in and make you laugh by raising an eyebrow.
Folksinger/actor Johnny Flynn stars as Mr. Knightley. While initially that casting wasn’t completely obvious to me (despite having a crush on him in the movie he did with Anne Hathaway Song One) until I started watching and then I was right there. Oh, yeah, that casting works. (swoon?)
The music in Emma is quite different from what I would have expected but again, it definitely works. As the last credits flow across the screen, we are treated to the song “Queen Bee” written and performed by Johnny Flynn, which I’ll now share with you after a very long-winded (wink) introduction. Enjoy.
Though my heart has long been given to you
Summer’s turn is nigh
Swifts and swallows swoop and yearn for you
With all that’s in the sky
But blow the wind and come the rain and come my love again
Songwriters: Johnny Fynn
I didn’t know anything about the movie, but I do like Johnny Flynn’s music 😊
I played it on pandora after seeing the movie as it’s been years since I’ve heard any of his work. While Mumford and Sons have made it mainstream here in the states, I have never heard Johnny Flynn. He has a unique sound that I quite like.
Johnny is a bit of an acquired taste, but worth getting into. He’s more genuinely a folk artist than the Mumfords – to my mind, they added in a banjo to call themselves ‘folk’ but are more of a mainstream rock band. I quite like them, but always get annoyed when I see music critics calling them a folk band!
Mumford’s first album sounded folkie. When their second (or third?) came out with electric guitar, it sounded far more mainstream. Remember when Dylan went electric? 🙂 Glad to hear Johnny Flynn again. Are there other current British folkies you can recommend?
I liked their first best, after that they began to lose their individuality. I do indeed remember Dylan going electric: it was such a big deal that tv news covered it here, and that was rare back in those days. Current British folkies are plentiful. Particular favourites of mine are Show Of Hands, Kate Rusby, Merry Hell, Bella Hardy and some long-standing ones like Al Stewart, Ralph McTell, Steeleye Span and Fairport Convention. There’s a fairly wide range there!