Feature Post 4
One of things I actually enjoyed about the movie
choices used for week eleven, The Children's Hour and Carol, was just
how much they compare and contrast to one another.
choices used for week eleven, The Children's Hour and Carol, was just
how much they compare and contrast to one another.
To get the most obvious comparison out of the way, both of these films deal with the idea, talk, and/or presence of a lesbian or homosexual relationship. However, the topic of homosexuality and how it is relevant to the characters in their respective films are different. In The Children's Hour, long-time friends Karen and Martha have an all girls boarding school that is just starting to show a stable future for the two; however, that changes once a bratty, disrespectful student named Mary accuses them of “sinful, sexual knowledge of each other", or otherwise having a homosexual relationship with one another, which was not true. In the movie Carol, the audience becomes aware quite early in the film that there is an actual romantic, intimate attraction between the main characters- Carol and Therese. Unbeknownst to them, they would become "unprepared for the passion they soon feel for each other."
Another thing I would like to bring up the films do a great job of doing is the forms of camera shots/angles used when involving proximity.
When taking a look at The Children's Hour, we see how much the film's uncovering storyline correlates to how close the characters are physically and personally. For instance, when Karen is around her fiancé, Joe, most of the shots taken are of close-ups and they are using very close to one another, such as when they are kissing outside the boarding school, or when Karen goes with Joe for the night to enjoy each other's company. While there are instances where Karen is close to Martha, the audience is aware that it is in a friendly way as they have known each other for a while. Yet, as the scene unfolds where Martha reveals her true feelings towards Karen, the shots taken are much less close-ups, and more of medium to long shots. Also, the audience just gets to see how far apart they are from one another at this point, as if it is representing the differences of endearment they have- Karen only seeing Martha as a friend and Martha seeing Karen in a romantic way.
When taking a look at The Children's Hour, we see how much the film's uncovering storyline correlates to how close the characters are physically and personally. For instance, when Karen is around her fiancé, Joe, most of the shots taken are of close-ups and they are using very close to one another, such as when they are kissing outside the boarding school, or when Karen goes with Joe for the night to enjoy each other's company. While there are instances where Karen is close to Martha, the audience is aware that it is in a friendly way as they have known each other for a while. Yet, as the scene unfolds where Martha reveals her true feelings towards Karen, the shots taken are much less close-ups, and more of medium to long shots. Also, the audience just gets to see how far apart they are from one another at this point, as if it is representing the differences of endearment they have- Karen only seeing Martha as a friend and Martha seeing Karen in a romantic way.
When it comes to discussing the proximity amongst Carol and Therese in Carol, there is no beating around the bush between these two. In the beginning, Therese was "falling in love and trying to figure out if her feelings are reciprocated through every subtle hint she gets (from Carol)." As the movie progresses, we see that Carol does indeed share the same feeling for Therese. While they can't physically show their attraction to one another in public, their eyes say so much. When they are by themselves, they become gravitated towards one another, like magnets.
While this video is a fan edit/video, it still does a great job showing all
of the instances, from their first encounter to last one in the film, just how
much they are drawn to being close to one another (physically and emotionally).
of the instances, from their first encounter to last one in the film, just how
much they are drawn to being close to one another (physically and emotionally).
One of the things I would really like to dive into is the dialogue/script used in The Children's Hour. There were a few instances where I had to rewind the film so I could write down what was said because of how much the sentence said had more meaning. In "Film and Prose Fiction" (within Adaptations Now), Martin Montgomery talks about how important dialogue is to a film. Not only are words are important, but the way the dialogue is shown on screen is just as important. As he puts it "filming dialogue in profile is part of a larger set of conventions built up around an important organizing principle: the line of action." Below are a few lines I was able to gather:
1. "the wicked very young, wicked very old" - Karen says this aloud, a comment made towards Amelia Tilford after she admitted that she told the parents of all the school girls the lie Mary told her. In this scene you could clearly see the anger, disbelief, and disappointment in Karen's eyes as she says this. Even her posture shows her in distress and being angered since now the boarding school has no business what so ever, from Amelia, who is every so convincing, gets the other parents to take their girls out of the school.
2. "I said that perhaps a whole culture is changing. It's possible you know." - Aunt Lily. She says this once returning from being on tour for theatre, months after she opted to choose theatre over her niece, Martha, and Karen to testify on their behalf that they have never been "unnatural" with one another. The reason why this line stook out to me was that Aunt Lily says that about the essence of theatre, but I idmediallty that how that could have another meaning. This meaning being that culture is changing of being more approving of homosexuality and homosexual realationships in film. When this film was made, director Wyler had another shot of adapting the play of the same name, since the "Production Code had relaxed some."
3. "She found the lie with the ounce of truth" - Martha, after admitting to being in love, romantically, with Karen and pondering how Mary was able to see it and not her (sexuality). This line alone was so vulnerable and powerful coming out of Martha's mouth as she learns of how real Mary's accusatioin really was, regardless if the lie was indeed not true.
1. "the wicked very young, wicked very old" - Karen says this aloud, a comment made towards Amelia Tilford after she admitted that she told the parents of all the school girls the lie Mary told her. In this scene you could clearly see the anger, disbelief, and disappointment in Karen's eyes as she says this. Even her posture shows her in distress and being angered since now the boarding school has no business what so ever, from Amelia, who is every so convincing, gets the other parents to take their girls out of the school.
2. "I said that perhaps a whole culture is changing. It's possible you know." - Aunt Lily. She says this once returning from being on tour for theatre, months after she opted to choose theatre over her niece, Martha, and Karen to testify on their behalf that they have never been "unnatural" with one another. The reason why this line stook out to me was that Aunt Lily says that about the essence of theatre, but I idmediallty that how that could have another meaning. This meaning being that culture is changing of being more approving of homosexuality and homosexual realationships in film. When this film was made, director Wyler had another shot of adapting the play of the same name, since the "Production Code had relaxed some."
3. "She found the lie with the ounce of truth" - Martha, after admitting to being in love, romantically, with Karen and pondering how Mary was able to see it and not her (sexuality). This line alone was so vulnerable and powerful coming out of Martha's mouth as she learns of how real Mary's accusatioin really was, regardless if the lie was indeed not true.
This concludes my last Feature Post! Have a nice summer!