Z/Web

This film affected me deeply. It’s profound. It tells three stories simultaneously: author Virginia Woolf as she writes her novel Mrs. Dalloway, a post-war housewife who’s contemplating suicide while reading the novel, and modern-day woman who’s living the life of Mrs. Dalloway, preparing a dinner party just like her. All three are (at minimum) emotionally troubled or even seriously mentally ill.

I haven’t read the novel, but that didn’t seem to hurt my understanding of the movie (however, after seeing the movie I rushed out and bought the novel). The book is apparently about Mrs. Dalloway preparing to give a dinner party, and everyone thinks she’s fine but inside she’s cracking up. My understanding is that the novel was revolutionary in that it jumps back and forth through time (though the main story takes place during a single day), and that’s what the film does as well, giving us insight into the past while telling the events of a single day. I won’t spoil the ending by revealing some of the powerful suprises, but let’s just say that all the characters become inter-connected even more than you expect. With this interconnectedness comes and increased understanding and compassion for these troubled women (and man). Very interesting and extremely well done. The performances are powerful, and the way the director intercut the various stories is masterful (in one sequence he cuts from flower pot to flower pot as each of the three women move a flower pot). A few things were a bit over the top: all the characters in the modern day story were gay, including one guy dying of AIDS. (That’s good drama? How cliche!) But there’s much to like: the performances are incredible and the make-up superb. However the best part of this film is something many won’t like: it gives no explanations or answers. For instance, we aren’t told why the middle woman wants to kill herself. She seems to have a loving husband, an adoring little boy, and she’s pregnant. They have a good life. Why throw it all away? Well, nothing is explained in the film: it’s up to us to figure it out for ourselves. Very unusual in this day and age where thinking is the last thing audiences are expected to do at the movie theatre. A number of other questions are left vague, forcing us to put ourselves into these characters and experience their lives as our own. That’s powerful. My interpretation is that there are people all around us wearing masks — inside they could be coming apart and we don’t even know it. It’s a sad tale in many ways, but includes some hope. I liked it.