Film Review: Stella Dallas

Sophia Sullivan FLM2009-630 The Art of accept M. Brown Melodrama Stella Dallas (1937) Dir. King Vidor. Starring Barbara Stanwyck, John Boles, Anne Shirley, Barbara ONeil, Alan Hale. MGM (DVD) This guide follows our protagonist, Stella (Barbara Stanwyck) d wizard her journey of courtship, marriage to loss. Stella sneaks her way into meeting Stephen Dallas (John Boles) after finding kayoed in a tabloid magazine article about his family event macrocosm loss and him ending his engagement to Helen (Barbara ONeil) the socialite.Stellas execute devotion to her daughter Laurel (Anne Shirley) and her reluctance to change who she is, keeps her from moving to naked as a jaybird York with her newly promoted husband Stephen (John Boles). Living separate lives, not completely confessing to the item that the couple was what would currently be called legally separated due to potential censors. The fills thematic of maternal present and the loneliness, devotion of the film cause this movie to become what is known in the film fabrication as a Weepie.The Mise-en-scene of the film is predominantly domestic and focused on the excesses of interiors and Stellas outlandish fashions. The film cannot be categorized as realistic, even though it seems naturalistic at times. The storytelling of Stellas constant journey to break dance her life and that of Laurels, is purely stylized. Stellas persona sticks out worry a sore thumb against the socialite caboodles, dressing in the eccentric fashions she deems as stylish, speaking too loud, not fitting into the lady- equivalent deportment her husband demanded.This being the mother ship of all maternal melodramas, Stella sets a mold for the umteen to follow. The constant booms of swoony and dramatic music create an emotional musical blanket throughout the film. Setting the moods in the scenes from happy to sad with one wave of the conductors hand. The acting at times seemed unnatural and campy, like a modern day Soap Opera. The lives and differences of the social classes in this film was popular at the time. I derive being that a bombastic percentage of the populace were currently lower to middle class Americans.The mansion was the ultimate form of escapism to the masses. The melodrama was a peephole of sorts into the gorgeous and sorely dramatic lives of the ladened. Stella ends up making the definitive maternal sacrifice at the end of the film. She turns her daughter against her to guarantee her daughter the future she herself wanted one time, forsaking her own happiness. To give up a child so that child could be happy is a dreadfully painful sacrifice to any loving mother.In the final scene of the film, Stella watching with the crowd away the window of Stephens new home, as their daughter weds into a wealthy family. Laurel now is not associated with the brassy Stella and has been accepted into the social circle of the elite. She watches as Laurel weds, with crying rolling down her face, the rain souse her. She then turns away and walks down the street triumphantly with a colossal smile on her face. This feminine sacrifice completes her daughters road to happiness. The melodrama is known for its sudden shift in emotions.One moment Stella is yelling at her daughter for finding the dress she was making her as a force and ten seconds later she is hugging her and telling her how much she loves her. In my aspect this genre juxtaposes moments of utter happiness and bliss with the abrupt change to hysterics and tears far too quickly to not require a psych consult. I know this film is a classic and a classic to the melodrama genre, undecomposed I just dont get it. I guess it was the social norm at the time to look upon women with esteem for self-aggrandizing everything up to guarantee the happiness of child, marriage and home.But then again she could rich person been happy enough with herself to not want to marry someone just to better herself. She would marry someone who lo ved her for who she was and where she came from. She could of raised her child with a strong sense of self that would have her become a occasion model and not an embarrassment. I speculate that was not the case when it came to creating a melodrama. Thank you King Vidor for creating the blueprint for all Lifetime Channel movies. like sands through the hourglass..