The Children's Hour (1961)

so I think this won't be so random anymore, it's actually harder to be random than focused on something. I'm thinking the big m's: movies and music (and books). Now then, I saw The Children's Hour this morning on TMC - the star for today is Audrey Hepburn, I could've well spent the whole day in bed without turning the channel if I was so inclined (well, except for My Fair Lady, I just cant do it).

The Children's Hour is from 1961, starring Hepburn, and Shirley MacLaine (Warren Beatty's sis right?), a pretty cute young James Garner, and the other person of note Fay Bainter. I caught the very end of this one morning and was reminded 'thats that movie they had on vh1 talking about portrayals of lesbians.' It's the story of how this evil lil girl starts a rumor that her two teachers at boarding school are "unnatural" in their feelings for each other and ends up ruining, or ending, their lives.

It was a great movie, especially watching it in our time now, it becomes one of those films that is ironically not outdated. It's from a play in the 1930s? so you'd think people would've come along a bit further in the way we treat one another and such, but no, I think that could still happen in a lot of parts in the world today. And the lady that played the granny! Fay Bainter - I said to myself while I was watching it, jeez did she win for best supporting actress? Turns out she was nominated, but she was nominated during the year of West Side Story, HA! Needless to say, Rita Moreno won, and rightly so, you can't take away Anita's oscar. Man, that must've been a toss up tho. Anyhoo - granny's performance was great. She was so good at getting across the feelings of confusion of her grandchild describing the rampant lesbianism that was supposedly going on, and anger that two lesbians were loving with and having daily contact with hers and other little impressionable girls. She's actually the initiating factor in the movie that made me think about the audience, and other characters perception of the two women. Her face just illustrated all those conflicting emotions and denial and acceptance all in the space of time of about 2 minutes on screen when the evil girl was making up her story.

The other neat thing I noticed - how the director used the screen door of the school house. As the movie went on it became more and more of a barrier between the lives of Hepburn and McClaine and the outside world. First, James Garner only hesitates for a second before he swings it open like he would normally do and starts to munch on food around. Then the screen gains its weight right at the point when on of the parents is standing outside, talking to Hepburn, but we are inside looking out with MacLaine through the door, and just so you know how much sh*t has gone down and how bad things are gonna get - we and MacLaine can't even hear anything, even tho the other two are about 10 feet away, and its a simple see-through screen door! wowsers! Then, the door has its greatest weight when granny finally knows that her child lied and she comes to apologize. The camera just sits on her face through the door again before she asks can she come into the house. But, finally the weight is lifted from the door when the 'problem' is gone - the lesbian kills herself, and Hepburn can free swing the door open again, go fig.