'All That Heaven Allows' is the first Douglas Sirk film that I have ever seen and it only took me one viewing of this film to see how much of a master technician Sirk was. This film is a social commentary on the fickle nature and the hypocrisy of life in the suburban small towns of post war 1950s America. But Sirk critiques this society not just with the story, but also with his visuals.
The film starts with the camera suspended in the air close to the tower clock of the town. Slowly the camera pans sideways to show us this supposedly idealistic version of the perfect American suburban locality. Similar to Joseph L. Mankiewicz's 'A Letter to Three Wives', 'All That Heaven Allows' explores the grim reality of the 'happy' life in post WW2 suburban America. This society is enveloped by a suffocating law of conformity. One is supposed to know his/her role and carry it out accordingly. This film shows the rigid hypocrisy that lied underneath the ideal exterior of this society which made life hell for some people and especially women. Cary, our protagonist is a widow. So she has to accept the fact that she can't have fun anymore and will have to restrict her life to what's on television and somewhat wither away. If she tries to defy these conventions and give love another chance by falling in love with a younger man, she will be on the receiving end of judgement. The way Cary's kids Ned and Kay behave actually adds a layer of complexity to the story. They are also trapped in this rigid, non-liberal society(although Kay thinks otherwise), however they don't feel the need to change. They will approve of it if their mother remarries and the new husband is nothing but a duplicate of their father and stands for everything that he stood for, but they will not accept it if Cary's lover turns out to be a younger, more liberal individual who is different to their father. The character of Ron represents the change that was on the verge of taking place in American society. He is the type of person who would have been called a hippie only about a decade later.
What makes this film a masterpiece is the direction of the film and style of storytelling, more than the story. Sirk utilises technicolor in the most artistic way. The film looks vibrant. There are shots that are so beautiful to look at that they can be easily framed and hung on the wall. Sirk uses a harsh blue artificial light in the film to signify the ominous and constant presence of societal judgements and oppression. The blue light keeps appearing in the film to riddle Cary with doubts and hesitations. Red is used as the colour that signifies a sense of happiness and freedom. Sirk plays around with these and other colours quite immensely. This incessant use of vibrant colours can be easily seen as an influence on Rainer Werner Fassbinder's films. His 'Ali:Fear Eats the Soul' is a bit of a tangential remake of 'All That Heaven Allows'. There are also a number of different techniques used in 'All That Heaven Allows' to visually give the impression of characters trapped in a particular frame. Sirk uses the reflective nature of mirrors or the reflection of a character on the limited space of a television screen or in other cases window bars and grills to show characters trapped in a thematic sense in this uptight suffocating societal prison. The precise and meticulous blocking of actors is also used extensively to visually express certain changes in themes or tones.
Jane Wyman gives a performance which is layered and complex. She uses her facial expressions a lot to signify a change in her mood. It is not possible for the viewer to not care for her and her plight. Rock Hudson exudes masculine charm and appeal. He is handsome, charismatic and has a commanding gentlemanly presence which makes it quite believable that Cary will be smitten by Hudson's character Ron and want to be with him.
Yes an argument can be made that certain convenient adjustments are made in the screenplay to arrive at an ending which would have been acceptable for the audience of the time, but personally I didn't have a problem with these adjustments because of the way Sirk kept using artistic visual flair to execute them. This is genuinely a masterpiece rich with feelings, emotions, social commentary and visual artistry. An absolute must-watch.
The film starts with the camera suspended in the air close to the tower clock of the town. Slowly the camera pans sideways to show us this supposedly idealistic version of the perfect American suburban locality. Similar to Joseph L. Mankiewicz's 'A Letter to Three Wives', 'All That Heaven Allows' explores the grim reality of the 'happy' life in post WW2 suburban America. This society is enveloped by a suffocating law of conformity. One is supposed to know his/her role and carry it out accordingly. This film shows the rigid hypocrisy that lied underneath the ideal exterior of this society which made life hell for some people and especially women. Cary, our protagonist is a widow. So she has to accept the fact that she can't have fun anymore and will have to restrict her life to what's on television and somewhat wither away. If she tries to defy these conventions and give love another chance by falling in love with a younger man, she will be on the receiving end of judgement. The way Cary's kids Ned and Kay behave actually adds a layer of complexity to the story. They are also trapped in this rigid, non-liberal society(although Kay thinks otherwise), however they don't feel the need to change. They will approve of it if their mother remarries and the new husband is nothing but a duplicate of their father and stands for everything that he stood for, but they will not accept it if Cary's lover turns out to be a younger, more liberal individual who is different to their father. The character of Ron represents the change that was on the verge of taking place in American society. He is the type of person who would have been called a hippie only about a decade later.
What makes this film a masterpiece is the direction of the film and style of storytelling, more than the story. Sirk utilises technicolor in the most artistic way. The film looks vibrant. There are shots that are so beautiful to look at that they can be easily framed and hung on the wall. Sirk uses a harsh blue artificial light in the film to signify the ominous and constant presence of societal judgements and oppression. The blue light keeps appearing in the film to riddle Cary with doubts and hesitations. Red is used as the colour that signifies a sense of happiness and freedom. Sirk plays around with these and other colours quite immensely. This incessant use of vibrant colours can be easily seen as an influence on Rainer Werner Fassbinder's films. His 'Ali:Fear Eats the Soul' is a bit of a tangential remake of 'All That Heaven Allows'. There are also a number of different techniques used in 'All That Heaven Allows' to visually give the impression of characters trapped in a particular frame. Sirk uses the reflective nature of mirrors or the reflection of a character on the limited space of a television screen or in other cases window bars and grills to show characters trapped in a thematic sense in this uptight suffocating societal prison. The precise and meticulous blocking of actors is also used extensively to visually express certain changes in themes or tones.
Jane Wyman gives a performance which is layered and complex. She uses her facial expressions a lot to signify a change in her mood. It is not possible for the viewer to not care for her and her plight. Rock Hudson exudes masculine charm and appeal. He is handsome, charismatic and has a commanding gentlemanly presence which makes it quite believable that Cary will be smitten by Hudson's character Ron and want to be with him.
Yes an argument can be made that certain convenient adjustments are made in the screenplay to arrive at an ending which would have been acceptable for the audience of the time, but personally I didn't have a problem with these adjustments because of the way Sirk kept using artistic visual flair to execute them. This is genuinely a masterpiece rich with feelings, emotions, social commentary and visual artistry. An absolute must-watch.