Another coming-of-age story from director Andrea Arnold soars to new heights as the filmmaker effortlessly blends social-realism and surrealism into a stunning depiction of metamorphosis through parenthood from the parent and child's perspectives. This is both familiar and new territory for Arnold and it's exciting.
I liked it.
The film succeeds in presenting sympathy for its characters by placing you in the center of their jealousy and a discriminatory industry. However, the contentious and vapid nature of their interactions, though powerfully acted and directed, is undermined by some questionable editing, preventing the film from fully realizing its poignant themes.
I didn't like it.
Immersing you in the emotional turmoil of adolescent sexual awakenings, you can almost reach through the screen and touch the characters' isolation from the world at large. Their struggle for self-identity, marked by often disappointing initial conclusions, imparts a melancholic empathy that permeates the film, yet leaves you with a quick glimpse of hope.
I liked it.
In the waning days of the pre-code era, Stanwyck delivers a powerhouse performance encapsulating the dark side of the American Dream. And the film does a fairly good job of exploring the Nietzschean concepts by pairing them with an eroding morality and the exploitative power dynamics of a patriarchal society.
I liked it.
It's difficult to appreciate fully the level of contribution Garland achieved to the musical genre until you see her in this. She's dazzling, funny, entertaining, and as timeless as the music as she glides across the screen and cements herself a staple in not just musicals, but American cinema in general.
There's a sense of wonder and hope captured here unlike many musicals before or since. A feeling of something spectacular and amazing coming that reverberates through the cast, echoing…
