chrismorrell
Posts 15
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4/14/2008 6:05 PM
posted awhile ago
Re:The idea of female hysteria in films
 patches:There are several films that have portrayed women as these ranting, insane, unstable creatures. The characters lose control of their emotions and need to be slapped. The phrase "Get ahold of yourself!" might be uttered. And it's pretty incredible. Wikipedia writes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria
Black and White images of Barbara Stanwick ,Joan Crawford and Bette Davis ,screaming,with mascara running down ...
The current top hysteria gal,must surely be Naomi Watts.(my all time fave).she does runny-nosed crying soo well..."Mulholland Drive" spoilt me for movie watching for ages,has anyone ever ,before or since given such a gut-wrenching total,turning inside out performance?.. "21 grams" gave her another grief- stricken sob of a workout.
Even in her "bad" films,(like"Ring" and "Funny Games" )we know we are getting some masterly screaming etc...
Thinking back...check out all that screaming at the start of "Kiss Me Deadly",courtesy of Cloris Leachman ,totally ace..ah,then what about Madeliene Khan in High Anxiety?..back to David Lynch,and wigg-out duties are taken up by Laura Dern in "inland Empire" parts of which i worry about seeing again... A definite Queen of the Hysterics is Carmen Maura (more recently found hiding from Penelope cruz in "Volver",along with the other Tomato cocktail drinkers in "Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown" ,but, dont you think everything sounds more hysterical when it needs subtitles..
cheers Chris M
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