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| Plot Summary: In 1947 at Coney Island, down-on-her-luck actress Lora Meredith and her young daughter Susie meet coloured Annie Johnson and her daughter Sarah Jane. Annie is desperate for a place to live and offers to work as Lora's maid for food and lodging. Lora's luck begins to change as a result of their meeting and their two stories unfold across the years. However, Annie's problems start when Sarah Jane tries to pass as white. (Summary from www.imdb.com) My view on the movie: Apparently, this Sirk guy is famous or something. At least, that was what I was thinking when I sat down to watch Imitation of Life. Once again, I had already seen the film. This one though, I remembered. I had wanted to see it, because at |
| the time, I was going through a Sandra Dee phase (one of the many actresses in this movie.) This probably wasn't the best Sandra Dee film for me to view because her acting wasn't the greatest. Her character was boring and predictable. Fortunately though, the rest of the movie couldn't be decribed as such. It's undeniable that Imitation of Life is over the top, but it's stylized soap-opera nature only adds to the ridiculousness of the culture that Sirk seems to hint at throughout the movie. Sirk's overuse of fashion, music, and drama may be condemned by some viewers this film, but I believe they only add to the fake facade of the world the characters live in. After all, it is only an "imitation of life". Without a doubt, my favorite plot of the movie (and probably the most worth being fleshed out) involved Annie and her daughter Sarah Jane. Without going too far into detail, the issues that this mother/daughter duo deal with are racial in nature. I'm not a film buff so I can't say the following for sure, but with the exception of the musical Show Boat, I've never seen racial controversies held so prevalently in the storyline of such a box office success in the 1950s. I almost feel as though the story of Annie and Sarah Jane should have been the primary storyline. But for obvious social reasons, Sirk was required to sandwich the gem amongst other "whiter" stories. I still appreciate the care with which Sirk used to tell the heart-breaking story of rejection and self-identity illustrated in Annie and Sarah Jane's characters. Imitation of Life is bigger than life. It's showier. It's glossier. But it's also just a film. Sirk's direction made this quality quite noticable. The shooting angles were always slightly askew. Or we, the audience, were viewing the story through a window, doorway, or hallway. It's all very distant -- almost like a story that is meant to teach us something. Something that we never really want to become, but we should view as a lesson. The characters are untouchable but representative. Some may feel like I'm overanalyzing a pure soapy mess, but I really feel as though this movie has merit. Once you realize how the melodramamatic tendencies are being used to forward the message and not just fluff it up, you can see why I would recommend this film. |