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Melodrama Film Glossary

Melodrama: a sensational dramatic piece with exaggerated characters and exciting events intended to appeal to the emotions

Tragedy: a play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially one concerning the downfall of the main character

Rhetoric: language designed to have a persuasive or impressive effect on its audience, but often regarded as lacking in sincerity or meaningful content

Globalization: how trade and technology have made the world into a more connected and interdependent place 

Domesticity: home or family life

Morality: principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior

Reconciliation: the restoration of friendly relations

Pathos: a quality that evokes pity or sadness

Public Sphere: an area in social life where individuals can come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems

Circular Narrative: the story ends in the same place where it began

Linear Narrative: a story that has a defined, chronological path

Fiction: literature in the form of prose that describes imaginary events and people

Nonfiction: prose writing that is based on facts, real events, and real people, such as biography or history

*definitions from google dictionary

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Tacones Lejanos/ High Heels: Singing & Emotions

For the last film, I have decided to incorporate the scene where I felt the most emotion and what I presume to be what melodrama strives to do. Although this wasn't my favorite movie and at times it was kind of hard to follow, this part of the movie made me tear and and did bring out emotion that I was not expecting. As this is a melodrama class, I feel that this scene portrayed it perfectly as it allowed the audience to connect to the emotion and delivery of the performance.

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High Heels/Tacones Lejanos

To close out the class, the last film we watched was Tacones Lejanos and it was honestly not what I was expecting. I felt that there were many different themes and tones that were sometimes hard to follow but overall I think it was a good movie. It also deals with the mother-daughter relationship that we focused a lot on during class and how there are different styles of melodrama between a mother-daughter relationship and that involving a man’s. I also think that this film was visually appealing as it is notable that Almodóvar may have drawn inspiration from the Old Hollywood melodramas. I honestly feel like I can’t say much about the plot of theme film itself because I think there may have been some plot holes or unfinished plots, but I think this is just due to the fact that I may need to do another rewatch to fully notice every detail.  

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Lone Star Scene

I think this scene is able to catch some of the themes of the movie and really capture the audiences attention. For me, I thought this scene was done quite well and was extremely telling with the dynamic of the characters. It was a scene that provoked emotion such as anger and frustration because of how Charlie was treating Otis. He was purposely provoking the waiter to get a reaction out of him through his racism and really wanted to find anything wrong in order to hurt Otis. 

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Lone Star

This week's film was Lone Star and there was A LOT that happens within this film. Instead of giving a summary of the film like I have usually done with my past blog entries, I will be discussing the aspects about this film that I thoroughly enjoyed. I feel as if the twists and turns that happened could have made this film stray away from the typical melodrama but I don't necessarily think it did. I really enjoyed the dynamic between going from the past and the present because it is unique and different from everything else we seen within the class. I think that those flashbacks were specifically what propelled the film forward and skillfully connecting it to the present. The reading, "Imagining Multiculturalism: Race and Sexuality on the Tejas Borderlands," by Rosa Linda Fregoso states, "For John Sayles, Lone Star is a "film about borders" and the border operates as the signifier for the borders of everyday life: "In a personal sense...a border is where you draw a line and say 'This is where I end and someone else begins.' In a metaphorical sense, it can by any of the symbols that we erect between one another ---sex, class, race age (West and West, "Borders and Boundaries: An Interview with John Sayles," 1996:14)." I feel that this specific quote is able to explain how Sayles saw Lone Star and can provide a bit more explanation into what the movies main themes are. All in all, I really enjoys this movie and also thought that is was a pleasant surprise to see a familiar face, Matthew McConaughey, as the other films that we've watched I have not truly been able to recognize any other actor because I had not seen them in anything else except for Dennis Quaid in Far From Heaven. At first, I wasn't too sure how I was feeling when I saw the final reveal but reflecting back I think it did make sense as they had included the historical background during the film that helped this mystery take flight.

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Lucia

Hello everyone, I have inserted a picture from the film just to illuminate the different moments that we had and the side characters who were also so involved in the story of the main characters. I feel as if each character had an important role throughout the film although at times I did wonder what was happening because it seemed to go back and forth a lot. Especially seeing how Lucia’s relationship developed it was kind of toxic in a way which helped emphasize they drama this film was aiming to deliver. 

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Lucia: The Film

Hi everyone, so for this week I thought I would insert a portion of the third part of the film for this week. I found that this film was very different within the pacing and just the overall story. There were also extremely raw moments that we saw between the characters that felt as if the audience was not supposed to be seeing. The reading, "Migrant melodrama and the political economy of suffering," by Ana Elena Puga states, "Sympathetic advocates may create migrant melodramas in an attempt to humanize migrants and create a sense that they have suffered enough to "earn" inclusion in a community or a nation-state." Although it is a harsh reality, melodramas for migrants have been a way to advocate for themselves and get the basic human rights that they need. The text also states, "With or without assistance from advocates, migrants themselves sometimes structure their own melodramas as part of an appeal to authorities or institutions that have the power to grants basic residency, citizenship, or human rights. I feel that Lucia is a film that depicts this community in a way that does allow the audience to sympathize with the main characters during each part of this feel and create and environment where the feeling of empathy or sympathy for this group of people may be able to grant them the things they needed.

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Far From Heaven: Realizations and Confessions

I have included this clip to illuminate the details that have been put into this scene within the lighting, costuming, set, and dialogue that illuminates all of the emotion within this scene. Another important detail I noticed was how intense and deafening the silence was throughout this conversation, along with the soft tone of Cathy and broken tone of Frank.

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Far From Heaven: Problems Arise in Suburbia

Hello everyone, this week’s film was one that had a very interesting concept as it is the first melodrama I’ve scene that includes the concept of sexual identity/desires. The movie follows Cathy and Frank who are husband and with along with their family, who live in a small suburban town where everyone knows everyone. This is a very traditional family from an outside perspective who try to keep up with work, gossip, and with what everyone seems to be doin however, there is a secret within this family that looms over their heads while trying to keep the facade of the perfect family in tact. Very early on on the film, the audience sees that Cathy and Frank’s relationship develops some passive aggressiveness, secretive attitudes, etc., which cause suspicion and rifts in their relationship. Frank starts to stay out at work very late and very often making Cathy worry about him and one night decides to take him some food while he works but once she arrives at his workplace finds him in his office kissing another man. Once she finds out that he has been cheating on her with another man she pleads with him to go to the hospital to get treatment and he complies. 

While Frank is getting treatment, Cathy confides in her gardener Raymond who develop a close friendship which has undertones of romantic angst. Mona, the town gossip gets ahold of this and starts to spill rumors that put Cathy and her family in a bad position because Raymond is black. Cathy tells Raymond that they can’t see each other anymore and they discuss the dream life they could’ve had together. Frank on the other hand lets Cathy know that no matter how hard he tries he cannot shake how he feels and has fallen in love with another man. The movie ends with Frank and Cathy getting a divorce and Cathy saying her finally goodbye to Raymond at the train station. This melodrama consisted of racism, discrimination, identity and sexual relations which differs slightly from the previous films we have watched. I feel that this specific film has more intensity within not only the dialogue but the specific shots they use within the cinematography. It consisted of lots of shading, soft light, vibrant colors, etc., that help push the story forward. 

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Fassbinder & Ali Fear Eats the Soul

I have included this video for Ali Fear Eats the Soul, in order to gain more insight on how Fassbinder worked and why this film is so prominent and moving. I think it is important to understand the process of how filmmakers worked, their inspirations, and thought process to help your own creative mind and imagination spark something new that has yet to be done. I also believe that this video helps the audience to learn who Fassbinder was and how his personality was able to shine through in the films of his.

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Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

In this film we follows Emma Kurowski who is a cleaning lady left all alone after her husband passed away. She is very lonesome as her children do not really care for her either. One day she goes to this bar where she becomes friends with a mechanic named Ali and they end up falling in love with each other. The film illuminates the struggles they face as everyone around them criticizes their relationship and is against them bringing to light important conversations Emma and Ali must talk about with their future and what lies ahead. However, during their relationship a power dynamic seems to appear as Emma starts to tell Ali what to do and be the boss of him, once again reinforcing status and racial power over the other as racism does linger throughout the film. The people who had turned their backs on Emma soon realize that she was a crucial individual in their lives and try to get back in her good graces by completely ignoring the fact that they treated her so poorly yet the problems she faces with Ali are taking a toll on their relationship. The text, “Ali: Fear Eats the Soul: One Love, Two Oppressions,” by Chris Fujiwara states, “There’s a sense throughout the film that the world has become still --- a feeling of timelessness, conveyed not just through the long, strange moments of silence and immobility, but also through the way the characters of Fear Eats the Soul constantly generalize about life.” I think that these elements within melodrama bring more to emotion more than words can at times. 

The ability to find that emotion within the silence and thoughts about life seem to be almost existential and of another world. The text also states, “The stillness of the film is deeply sad. But in the middle of all this sadness lies the possibility Emma and Ali create when they fine each other. The film draws its immense forces from its concentration on two simple facts: the world’s indifference and the couple’s love.” At the end of the movie, Emma does everything in her power to win Ali back since they have broken up and invites him back to the bar where they first met and share a dance, leading to the forgiveness of one another. However, Ali falls to the ground and it immediately taken to the hospital where the doctor tells Emma the bad news of him having a stomach ulcer and Emma states that she will do everything she can to keep him from be readmitted into the hospital and the movie ends there. To me, the ending seems almost ambiguous because we do not know of Ali ever gets better and the nature of his relationship with Emmi but I do think it was intentionally done to allow the audience to create a sense of closure for themselves and what they think happened between Ali and Emmi. 

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Melodrama & Sirk

Hello, I have left a video which elaborates on Sirk’s melodramas and the elements that he incorporated into them to create unique films which illuminates stories of these characters lives. It is also a quick and short video highlighting some of the other films of Sirk and providing insight to what he wanted the audience to take away from his films.

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All That Heaven Allows: Ron, Cary & Cinematic Elements

Hello everyone, I will be discussing the film for this week titled, All That Heaven Allows, where we follow widow and mother, Cary Scott, who has not truly enjoyed life since her husband passed away. Her friends beg her to go out and have some fun in her life because she has put all of that off. The audience is introduced to Ron Kirby who is Cary’s landscaper who has quite a bit of knowledge of trees as he is very passionate about them. Ron and Cary don’t seem to have much of a connection at first glance however, as Ron goes to landscape her yard every so often, they start to build a bond and friendship with each other. In one scene of the film, Ron asks Cary if she’d like to go away with him for the day and during this time is when the audience sees the first kiss between them. From there, things start to shift not only within their relationship but among Cary’s family and friends. Their relationship moves extremely fast and Ron suggests that Cary and him should get married and live together win his home. Hover, Cary does not want things to change within their almost secret relationship as she thinks about what her kids would say as well as her friends; telling Ron that marriage is out of the question but still ultimately accepts. She then confides in Sarah and explains that Ron has asked for her hand and she accepted; Sarah then going on to state that maybe the reason why Ron was in such a hurry to marry Cary was because of her money and status. The town gossips about their relationship which affects her children very strongly and the environment of this tension is very well portrayed within the cinematic style and elements that are incorporated to elevate the subject of melodrama.The text, “All That Heaven Allows,” by Laura Mulvey states, “All That Heaven Allows contains all the elements of characteristically Sirkian composition: light, shade, color, and camera angles combined with his trademark use of mirrors to break up the surface of the screen.” All of these elements created the moody and anticipatory feeling audiences get from a melodrama, as if this story was not actually fictional. Making me think at times that these are not actual people and the story we are following is not real but does happen in real life. As we move into the end of the story, Ron and Cary are separated but are suffering without on another and people urge them to marry each other to stop their misery. Cary decides it's time to make a choice and goes to Ron’s home but doesn’t find him there and goes back into her car while Ron sees her while walking down the mountain. He missteps and rolls of the cliff of the hill and when Cary gets the news rushes to his side and doesn’t leave. The film ends with Ron’s eyes opening states that, “she’s come home,” and Cary responding, “yes darling, I’ve come home.” 

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Thoughts Behind A Woman Under the Influence

This week I thought it would be great to include this conversation between the actors, Gena Rowland and Peter Falk, to hear their thoughts about not only making this film but how it has created a shift within cinema. I think it is a good dive into what the actors perceived their characters to be, their relationships and struggles as well as shed light on the importance of directorial choices. 

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A Woman Under the Influence

Hello everyone, this week’s film was, A Woman Under the Influence, and it was one that was really hard for me to watch. This movie follows a woman named Mable who has a husband and children but also suffers from mental health issues. When the audience is introduced to her, we already have a sense that something is not quite right with either the setting or with her as a character. Throughout the first half of the movie, her husband Nick makes references to her being a wacko and then see Mabel having small little episodes or ticks that rise to the surface which seem uncontrollable. There are also moments where Nick slaps Mabel that were extremely hard to watch and made me have to pause at times because of how horrible it was as the kids were there too. Nick goes on to say that Mabel needs to be admitted into a hospital to get help and states, “I don't know who you are,” and she expresses that she still has lingering anxiety. The audience is also seeing the dynamic between Nick, Mabel and Margaret who is Nick’s mother and how the tension within the household is also increased and on edge as Margaret goes off on Mabel stating that, “she’s crazy,” and revealing Mabel’s secret of a man being over some nights before. 

In the reading, “A Woman Under the Influence: The War at Home,” by Kent Jones states, “When you look at a close-up in a film by almost anyone else, you’re looking at a representation of the idea of an emotion, no matter how detailed the acting. In Cassavetes, every blink, every shrug, every hesitation counts and drives the story forward.” This reading very much opened my eyes to just how important every movement, action, and choice each character took was and how pivotal it was to moving the story forward. The scene that stood out the most to me was Mabel refusing to get the sedative and refusing to go to the hospital for treatment. The movements, twitches, stutters and tense random dialogue from Mabel and pleading from everyone else affected me heavily because it is something I have seen in my life; maybe not to this extreme but definitely relatable. After taking some time to reflect and look back on the film, it was one that did rely heavily on movement and the choices each character made extremely closely as if they were under a magnifying glass. The best way I can describe this film is like walking on eggshells as the audience waits in anticipation for what will happen next because of its unexpectedness; especially when Mabel comes back from treatment and she is still the same. It also holds up its melodramatic tone as the themes of hope, tragedy, and ambiguity. 

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The Sacrifice of Family

Hello everyone, I thought that this clip could provide some insight to my previous post and help gain full understanding of Stella and the shame she felt for not only herself but how much her daughter had felt as well. Her and Laurel obviously have a very strong relationship/bond which made this scene jaw dropping in a sense because it is something that hurt to watch. 

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Stella Dallas and Her Journey

In this film, we follow Stella Martin who is from a middle class background who is not among the wealthy. She winds up running into Stephen Dallas who is quite taken with her from the moment he lys eyes on her and vice versa. The audience is able to see their relationship grow and develop as they go out on dates such as going to the theater and become the talk of the town. Stella expresses to Stephen that she wants to be just as smart and educated as him, however, he explains that he loves Stella just the way she is. In one scene of the film, Stella never returns home as they see her bed is empty that morning and her father is filled with anger stating that she needs to pack her things and go but Stella comes back up just in time to give her parents and brother the news that she has gotten married. For me, Stella felt very sincere at times with Stephen and then in other moments felt very childish early on into the relationship when they bring their baby home from the hospital. The reading, “Tales of Sound and Fury: Observations on the Family Melodrama,” by Thomas Elsaesser states, “For example, when in ordinary language we call something melodramatic, what we often mean is an exaggerated rise-and-fall pattern in human actions and emotional responses, a from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous movement, a foreshortening of lived time in famous of intensity...” I feel that this perfectly encapsulates the character of Stella Dallas and how she swings through each phase of her life. Her character is one that is unique and unlike any other character I have seen in film. As we go deeper into the film, the audience can see the slow, taxing and negative loss in communication between Stella and Stephen especially with all of their time apart and the little arguments they have been having more frequently. One of the main themes of the film if not the most important theme is that of social class and status. Stella has always wanted to be amongst the higher class and did as much as she could to connect with higher ups even if that meant hurting her relationship with Stephen. 

I believe that the main thing that truly makes this movie a melodrama is the everyday conflicts and struggles every character is going through. The familial hardships that are a frequent occurrence never truly leaves a moment for lasting  happiness as there always seems to be a dark cloud just around the corner. While Stella thinks that buying and looking expensive will get her the status and respect she wants, she is unable to fully grasp onto is as individuals make fun of her, embarrassing her daughter Laurel in the process. Laurel then feels ashamed that she is embarrassed but is also hurt that people are treating her mother that way. Once Stella realizes she has created a sort of embarrassment to linger over her daughter, she decides to let her go live with Stephen and does everything she can to convince Laurel that she does nit want her around. Another thing that makes this film truly melodramatic, is the emotional ending that is not quite happy yet not quite sad. Stella watches her daughter get married through the window as she stands on the sidewalk with tears in her eyes, making this moment tug at the audiences heartstrings, wishing that things could turn out differently for this mother daughter relationship.