When I was studying English Literature as an undergraduate, I read a play called The Octoroon by one Dion Boucicault (spelling?), an Irishman (no kidding) with a panache for melodrama. Well, The Octoroon was, perhaps, the most reviling and offensive piece of literature I had ever read (until I picked up Tropic of Cancer anyway). Nevertheless, I absolutely loved the lurid story and the classic closing tableau of a silhouetted American Indian frozen, hatchet-bearing arm raised above the cowering "bad-guy." It was brilliant trash, really, eliciting from me the reaction opposite my professor's expectations. I believe he said something about needing to be able to recognize worthless literature as well as wonderful. Well, I thought the Octoroon, in its own way, was wonderful, even if I thought it was racist, sexist, ist ist ist ad infinitum. I read another Boucicault play while in Ireland (apparently, he's considered one of their greatest dramatists over there) and, though not quite as good, it was still rather wonderful melodrama. Boucicault's plays, to be told, are melodrama perfected and, if you like your stories over the top and busting at the seams, they're very enjoyable.
Now, that brings us to Douglas Sirk: perfecter of the American melodrama in the 1950s. Unlike Boucicault, I would never doubt Sirk's talent, as his films reveal him as a true, visionary artist who was able to transform soap operatic stories into sublime motion pictures.
His best, I believe, is Written on the Wind. Not to diminish the quality of All that Heaven Allows or Magnificent Obsession, but the story, mise en scene, and technicolor cinematography all come together so perfectly in Written that it's hard to argue against this film's placement at the top of Sirk's oeuvre.
Written tells the tell of a thoroughly dysfunctional family of rich oil barons. Impotent sons, un-loving fathers, and nymphomaniac daughters all make an appearance. People die, go mad with un-requited love, wind up in court, smash cars, lie, drink heavily, fight, and on and on. The characters in this film do just about everything.
As immensely entertaining as this story is, the reason people remember it (besides Robert Stack's wonderful performance as a raging drunk) is Sirk's masterful direction. The scenes make perfect use of the wide-screen format with painterly mise en scene. The colors are vibrant and lush. The cinematography - of both interiors and the flat landscape outdoors - is beautiful. Written on the Wind is simply gorgeous to look at. You could watch it without sound and still find it entertaining.
Furthermore, though it definitely contains typically 50s sensibilities, it is a timeless story of unrequited love and jealousy that anyone can find, at the very least, entertaining if not brilliant.
Watch this film; you will not be bored.
Now, that brings us to Douglas Sirk: perfecter of the American melodrama in the 1950s. Unlike Boucicault, I would never doubt Sirk's talent, as his films reveal him as a true, visionary artist who was able to transform soap operatic stories into sublime motion pictures.
His best, I believe, is Written on the Wind. Not to diminish the quality of All that Heaven Allows or Magnificent Obsession, but the story, mise en scene, and technicolor cinematography all come together so perfectly in Written that it's hard to argue against this film's placement at the top of Sirk's oeuvre.
Written tells the tell of a thoroughly dysfunctional family of rich oil barons. Impotent sons, un-loving fathers, and nymphomaniac daughters all make an appearance. People die, go mad with un-requited love, wind up in court, smash cars, lie, drink heavily, fight, and on and on. The characters in this film do just about everything.
As immensely entertaining as this story is, the reason people remember it (besides Robert Stack's wonderful performance as a raging drunk) is Sirk's masterful direction. The scenes make perfect use of the wide-screen format with painterly mise en scene. The colors are vibrant and lush. The cinematography - of both interiors and the flat landscape outdoors - is beautiful. Written on the Wind is simply gorgeous to look at. You could watch it without sound and still find it entertaining.
Furthermore, though it definitely contains typically 50s sensibilities, it is a timeless story of unrequited love and jealousy that anyone can find, at the very least, entertaining if not brilliant.
Watch this film; you will not be bored.