By the Sword

[D'Artagnan1673]

Has anyone else besides me seen this movie?

Can there possibly be a club that is run like that one? Arrogant, violent coach. Stuck up fencers who think they are little gods? Please tell me that is the most far-fetched, hollywoodized club in existance.

You know, crap like that hurts fencing more than it helps. Who would want to fence at such a club?

[It]

And some people wonder why the sport isn't popular...But there was a club that was once like the club in the movie. Now it's change a great deal. Some of the coaches who taught there were arrogant not violent by the way. Some of the students were reeeeally stuck-up, not that some still are. Some of students thought they were demi-gods a couple look like goddesses (Hot ones). And the place was near Hollywood, well closer to Beverly Hills actually, Culver city to be exact. It also has a small loft area. It's the <a href="http://www.westsidefencing.com" target="_blank">Westside Fencing Center</a> In the past the place has become more friendly. The people are alot better now. Most of the coaches are great to be around. Atmosphere is comfortable. But yeah this place was once like the movie. Almost exactly the same. But that was years ago.

[ 04-26-2002: Message edited by: It ]

[ 04-26-2002: Message edited by: It ]</p>

[135711]

you're over competitive, when your fencing sucks then the only thing you can turn to is arrogence, believe it or not, i have fenced with people with gigantic chipola's on their shoulders. Speaking of shoulders, will we ever go to padding, all those flicks!

[D'Artagnan1673]

Wow! They've got a nice website.

[D'Artagnan1673]

I may have to incorporate some of my old world stuff like they do. All I have is a 100 year old painting of a very attractive woman in fencing atire. Once I get off of technical support trying to figure out why I can't FTP, I'll post the picture for everyone to see.

[D'Artagnan1673]

here she is

<a href="http://www.spindletopcavaliers.org/Pages/painting.htm" target="_blank">http://www.spindletopcavaliers.org/Pages/painting.htm</a>

[ 04-26-2002: Message edited by: D'Artagnan1673 ]</p>

[Event Horizon]

It's been awhile since I've seen the movie. I remember that I didn't like it. What I did like was the place they trained at. Every Fencing Salle should like like that I think. I always wondered what they (the students in the movie) did for a living? Didn't anybody have a job?

[D'Artagnan1673]

I've wondered those same things myself. I'd love to fence there, but not with the same people. I too wondered what these people did after work. Work!!??? Duh!!! Fencers are all aristocrats. They went back to their mansions and drank cherry and had evening balls!

[foxwhelp]

[quote]Originally posted by D'Artagnan1673:
<strong> Work!!??? Duh!!! Fencers are all aristocrats. They went back to their mansions and drank cherry</strong><hr></blockquote>

Your aristocrat lessons begin now. <img src="graemlins/jester.gif" border="0" alt="[Jester]" />

It's *not* 'cherry', it's sherry. Of course, when you get right down to it, 'sherry' is wrong as well --it's a corruption of Jerez, the city it comes from. Still, 'sherry' is a corruption sanctioned by tradition. 'Cherry' certainly is not. <img src="graemlins/jester.gif" border="0" alt="[Jester]" />

[Event Horizon]

Oh, don't forget the polo tourney on the weekends. <img src="graemlins/freak4.gif" border="0" alt="[Freak2]" />

[D'Artagnan1673]

Opps! Oh well

I'm not as refined as I like to think.

[Sabress]

Hey I would kill to have a sala like that one in By The Sword!
Yes, I couldn't say much for the storyline but I do believe it's rather hard to find a modern day fencing plotline.
Have you read "The Fencing Master"? It's really well done and the movie, even though it's in spanish, is really good too.

[Sildar]

I find that movie funnier every time I watch it. The coach is my personal hero; I plan to replace all constructive criticism with phrases such as "You are pathetic!" and "Your problem is that you waste time on compassion." And next time a student of mine is injured, I'll turn to the guy to who caused it and tell him that's exactly how they fence at Nationals. Whatta guy.

Honestly, I spend most of that movie drooling over the salle too.

Dart-
I'm sorry to say that I have met a couple of coaches who are in fact nearly that bad, and a few fencers who are as arrogant as those depicted. But fencers, like anyone else, are human, so there's always going to be a few bad ones.

[schlager7]

Interesting trivia...while doing some recent history research...
I learned that the actor who played the "other" coach in "By the Sword" (the nice guy with a wife, kids, who helps the janitor get back in form) was a competitive fencer in college (and, of course, a theatre major).

I'm still trying tofind out how well he did in those days, but I don't have any American Fencing issues from the late 1970s.

BTW...another fencing student at the same college and time period is the actress who played the mother in "Ferris Buehler's Day Off."

[D'Artagnan1673]

The "other" coach is one of the few redeeming qualities in the movie. Its shows a more human side to fencers. Eric Roberts is plain horrible. I hate his tear everybody up attitude that he uses with his students.

I wouldn't mind fencing in his salle' provided he wasn't there

[Gav]

Interestingly the story used in 'By the Sword'(BtS) is an old french one. A mysreious stranger turns up at a salle asks for lessons (or in this case to teach) and is offered a janitorial position and given lessons in the evenings. Usually the 'stranger' has some connection with the salle's past and there is usually some kind of revenge motif. I remember reading about this in a couple of 'history of fencing' books.

And I'd love to train in the place they've got in BtS. Anyone know if it's a real place?

[schlager7]

I thought I read that they used the West Side Fencing facility for the interior salle shots...but don't hold me to that. I know that the bust depicted in the film, which is supposed to represent the deceased/murdered fencing master, is of Ralph Faulkner.

[135711]

D'Artagnan1673 Has anyone else besides me seen this movie? answer: No
Can there possibly be a club that is run like that one? Arrogant, violent coach. Stuck up fencers who think they are little gods? Please tell me that is the most far-fetched, hollywoodized club in existance.
Answer: it could very well be, however d'artagan [by the way, i swore if i ever hear the expression reason d'art with reference to a certain person i'd scream, but your not that person so i won't scream]....do you remember the line: "I am a NATIONAL CHAMPION...[tosses head] how DARE you" in recent fencing movie.

You know, crap like that hurts fencing more than it helps. Who would want to fence at such a club?
It depends, can they fence or is it all <img src="graemlins/crap.gif" border="0" alt="[Crap]" /> [i'll rub your nose in it, is what tony actually said to me during a class] i actually felt pity for the man, my nose is short, i have no affinity for his stuff. oh well

[ 05-13-2002: Message edited by: 135711 ]</p>

[achilleus]

[quote]Originally posted by Gav:
<strong>Interestingly the story used in 'By the Sword'(BtS) is an old french one. A mysreious stranger turns up at a salle asks for lessons (or in this case to teach) and is offered a janitorial position and given lessons in the evenings. Usually the 'stranger' has some connection with the salle's past and there is usually some kind of revenge motif. I remember reading about this in a couple of 'history of fencing' books.

And I'd love to train in the place they've got in BtS. Anyone know if it's a real place?</strong><hr></blockquote>


They club in the movie is based on Westside Fencing Center. While the floor plan is the exact same, as well as some of the posters, and even some of the older fencers, the actualy club is a tad more modern. It doesn't have the wood panelling and large windows.

Actually, you can see the club on the website...

[Chris Aher]

John MacDonald, the fellow that wrote the screenplay is an old friend and co-worker (at Lincoln Center) of mine who is NOT a fencer! He was, however, a go-dan (5th degree black belt) in Ishin-ryu, an Okinawan form of Karate. He was also the co-author and star of the off-broadway show "Split Second" that ran for about a year 20 years ago. These days (last I heard) he is Director of Operations at Carnegie Hall in NYC. I left the business a few years before BtS was written.

He didn't know much about fencing when he wrote the screenplay. The story line is much more like the scene at some old time dojos than a modern sport salle. It is interesting that the basic story line resembles the old French one. On the surface it is a coincidence but probably reflects some common martial arts psychology.

[quote]Originally posted by Gav:
<strong>Interestingly the story used in 'By the Sword'(BtS) is an old french one. A mysreious stranger turns up at a salle asks for lessons (or in this case to teach) and is offered a janitorial position and given lessons in the evenings. Usually the 'stranger' has some connection with the salle's past and there is usually some kind of revenge motif. I remember reading about this in a couple of 'history of fencing' books.
</strong><hr></blockquote>