{"id":646,"date":"2013-10-20T07:06:09","date_gmt":"2013-10-20T06:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/?p=646"},"modified":"2013-10-26T19:15:42","modified_gmt":"2013-10-26T18:15:42","slug":"summary-of-discussion-on-rain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/2013\/10\/20\/summary-of-discussion-on-rain\/","title":{"rendered":"Summary of Discussion on Rain"},"content":{"rendered":"

Posted by Sarah<\/p>\n

Our post-screening discussion ranged widely and encompassed: analysis of Joan Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s first appearance; Sadie\u2019s costume, especially compared to the other female characters; Crawford\u2019s performance \u2013 in particular the many layers of performance; a comparison between Mildred in Of Human Bondage<\/i> and Sadie in Rain<\/i>;\u00a0 noting of Crawford and Bette Davis\u2019 contrasting acting styles; Sadie\u2019s antagonistic relationship with the reformer Davidson; Walter Huston\u2019s performance; the film\u2019s happy ending.\u00a0 Throughout discussion was illuminated by reference to Maugham\u2019s short story and the 1928 silent version of the film which starred Gloria Swanson.<\/p>\n

\"Rain<\/a>We\u00a0began with discussion of one of the film\u2019s most memorable moments: Joan Crawford\u2019s first appearance. \u00a0It is especially significant in terms of female representation that Crawford\/Sadie is introduced by shots of her body, which themselves are fragmented. (See Laura Mulvey\u2019s \u2018Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema\u2019 for more on the fragmented female body and the \u2018male gaze\u2019[i]<\/a>.) First Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s right, heavily bangled, hand almost thumps a door post. This is quickly followed by a shot of her left hand making a similar gesture towards the opposite door post. Then her right foot is planted heavily on the ground. A similar action shortly occurs with the left. This is more than the usual star entrance as it makes such a bold statement. Indeed the character\/star punctuates the scene with the forceful movement of her limbs. In addition, the stance this pose would constitute if we were to see it in full looks incredibly ungainly, with Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s feet seemingly planted quite firmly apart. As such it appears less than ladylike. Finally a shot of Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s face gives us a view of her insolently sulky mouth which is accentuated by the heavily outlined lips. Through Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s dangling cigarette she utters her first word, a huskily intoned \u2018Boys\u2019. It is an astonishingly powerful, and not at all subtle, introduction of both the star (Crawford) and the character (the prostitute Sadie). It was mentioned that a similar scene does not occur in the 1928 silent film starring Gloria Swanson.<\/p>\n

The costume was also commented upon at length. Crawford\/Sadie wore a tight gingham dress, with a wide white belt further accentuating her curves, for much of the film. The accessories worn at this point, and a little further into the film, are of great significance. Despite the stifling heat of the island, Sadie has a fur draped around her neck and a hat which resembled swan feathers covering most of her head. \u00a0Sadie is clearly a woman who cares about appearances, and indeed her own performance in everyday life.<\/p>\n

Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s first appearance is memorable not just due to the energy and the \"Rain<\/a>somewhat startlingly heavily made up face, but the fact a very similar scene occurs towards the film\u2019s end. Before this happens though, Sadie undergoes a spiritual and physical transformation. \u00a0She is seen with minimal make-up, brushed-out hair and wearing darker, more modest clothes. When <\/b>she <\/b>reverts back to type this is reflected by the return to her previous outfit, make-up and hairstyle. This is a great example of Jane Gaines\u2019 assertion that dress often tells the woman\u2019s story.[ii]<\/a> Crawford\/Sadie is re-introduced by shots which once more fragment her body. \u00a0It was also noted that Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s costume marks her out from the other women in the film \u2013 the actresses Beulah Bondi and Kendall Lee playing the characters Mrs Davidson \"Crawfrd<\/a>and Mrs Macphail. The clothes of the latter pair are more modest than Sadie\u2019s and tend to be in blocks of one colour in contrast to the gingham patterned dress. \u00a0Similar delineation between the female characters also occurred with Davis\/Mildred in Of Human Bondage<\/i> in relation the actresses Kay Johnson and Frances Dee who play Philip\u2019s other love interests Norah and Sally.<\/p>\n

Crawford\u2019s performance also prompted much discussion. It was noted that physically \"Rain<\/a>she looked quite a bit like Gloria Swanson at certain points. Lies revealed that this might well have spilled over into performance too as Crawford had yet to find her style and imitated Swanson\u2019s earlier portrayal. Indeed comparisons between Crawford and other female stars in melodramas (primarily Swanson and Davis) were found to be useful in examining Crawford\u2019s performance.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This \"Bette_davis_of_human_bondage\"<\/a>is made easier by the fact Of Human Bondage<\/i> and Rain <\/i>contain several parallels. \u00a0Both are based on Somerset Maugham stories and were produced at a similar time (1932 and 1934). In addition both the female characters are prostitutes for at least some of the narrative, and marked something of a departure for Davis and Crawford. There are, however, several big differences between the performances of Davis and Crawford, and the characters they play.<\/p>\n

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Crawford is required to perform on several levels. There is the bold front Sadie assumes as the prostitute joking with potential clients \u2013 brazenly drinking whisky straight out of the bottle in public and dancing with abandon. Sadie\u2019s insincere acknowledgment of her sins is juxtaposed with her contrasting sincere repentance. When Sadie finally reverts to type, this bears similarities to her very first appearance also has significant differences. We particularly noted the transformation scene in which Sadie gains religious enlightenment. \u00a0Its importance is indicated through the staging on the main staircase (important to several melodramas) and the camerawork. Sadie\u2019s adversary, the religious reformer Alfred Davidson (Walter Huston) stands solidly at the top of the stairs while Sadie looks up from the bottom. \u00a0She climbs the stairs, ready to take him to task. There is little movement apart from the ascension of the stairs, though Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s worrying of the top banister indicates her distress. She descends the steps and appears ready to go. \u00a0Davidson is seen is close shot standing still and a cut to Sadie reveals that she is also riveted to the spot. \u00a0The moment in which Sadie is \"Rain<\/a>transformed occurs shortly after and is visible onscreen. The camera lingers on her beautifully lit, tear-stained face as a look of realisation starts in her eyes and then spreads across her features. The camera then moves out to give a better view of Sadie and Davidson, now pictured together in the shot. The scene ends with an attention-pulling crane shot which exits the building.<\/p>\n

\"Crawford<\/a>There is further opportunity for Crawford to show her acting skills. When William Gargan\u2019s character O\u2019Hara (referred to as \u2018Handsome\u2019 by Sadie \u2013 another example of her playing the gallery) soon returns to take Sadie away to a new life Crawford plays the scene rather robotically to start with. She speaks in a monotone and refuses to look at O\u2019Hara\/Gargan. Total disengagement is not possible though as Handsome continues and Sadie briskly pushes him away, raising her voice as she does do. Crawford ably performs Sadie\u2019s conflicting desires as she struggles to resist temptation. \u00a0The shift between the obvious exaggerated performance Sadie puts on for the surrounding men and the more quiet moments (which occur later on in the film when we first see her alone) help to create a complex and sympathetic character. It was mentioned that perhaps the shifts between different levels of performance by Crawford were what led to the negative contemporaneous critical reviews. Though, as Lies noted, Crawford\u2019s performance has been viewed more favourably since. (Apparently there is still little written on Rain<\/i>, and pre-code Joan, however.)<\/p>\n

By contrast, while Davis\u2019 performance in Of Human Bondage<\/i> is by no means on one-level, we rarely get a glimpse of different aspects of what might be considered the \u2018real\u2019 Mildred. Of course the notion of a \u2018real\u2019 character is a very fraught and abstract concept, more so when star image is added to the mix. Here it is very noticeable though, since Mildred the character is always performing; she puts on an accent and gives herself airs to appear more refined and she manipulates Philip, and other men, by exaggerated dismissive gestures or flirtatious behaviour. In addition, Davis\/Mildred is always moving \u2013 facially and bodily – a whole performance in itself. There are two main scenes in Of Human Bondage<\/i> when Mildred is not performing. The first is the tirade she unleashes \"Of<\/a>against Philip which is very physical and exaggerated. The second is the unglamorous scene in which she is seriously ill and escorted from her lodging to hospital. Here she is incapable of moving much. In both of these scenes Mildred\u2019s real self is revealed as truly horrible: in the first her vindictive character is fully vented and in the second she is physically hideous.<\/p>\n

We found it interesting that there was such a variance between Crawford\u2019s, at times, fairly restrained playing with little movement and Davis\u2019s constant movement and big gestures in these two melodramas. Especially because melodrama is a genre in which performance is often thought to be related to exaggeration. \u00a0Lies highlighted the difference between Crawford\u2019s naturalistic and Davis\u2019 theatrical approaches. In addition, it was thought that Crawford\u2019s instinctive playing coincided with Sadie\u2019s almost primitive awareness of danger. \u00a0As soon as, at first sight, Sadie sees Davidson looking intently at her she appears to recognise the danger, first returning the look and then glancing down. \u00a0The different types of performances are also related to the fact that while Davis is seen primarily as an actress, Crawford is largely remembered as a star with little range.<\/p>\n

Of course part of the difference is due to the characters and the fact that while Mildred is not the central character in Of Human Bondage<\/i>, Sadie is Rain\u2019s<\/i> protagonist.\u00a0 \u00a0There are many other Crawford and Davis performances in melodramas available for us to compare and contrast to get a better idea of trends. (This could be a very fruitful, and enjoyable, line for future screenings!) It reveals that as well as the infinite variety of melodrama which has been evident in our screenings (male melodrama, animation, theatrical adaptations, Honk Kong cinema etc), even this rather narrow subgenre of melodrama, the Woman\u2019s Film, is diverse.<\/p>\n

\"Rain<\/a>In addition to the sympathy created by Crawford\u2019s performance, it was noted that the film, like the short story, promoted Sadie\u2019s position as the correct one. The Doctor, who is central in Maugham\u2019s story, is seen to be sympathetic to her plight. But he is not the main male character in the film, neither is this role filled by Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s love interest Handsome: instead the reformer Davidson takes centre stage. His anguish in his moment of weakness is one of the film\u2019s key moments. As well as being pictured (it was only ever implied in the story) this is heightened by the film\u2019s wonderfully atmospheric use of sound. \u00a0The beating of rain which has been persistent for much of the film reaches its pitch and is accompanied by diegetic drumming. \u00a0Contrast is present between the changeability in Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s performance and situation and Davidson\u2019s immovable morality. Huston conveys this formidably, with a stolidly still uprightness in which the framing colludes.<\/p>\n

\"Rain<\/a>We also observed the way Sadie was contrasted to other characters, especially the female ones. While the Doctor\u2019s wife, like him, is low-key, Mrs Davidson is as aggressive as her husband in demanding Sadie\u2019s salvation. \u00a0Mrs Davidson is shown to be vindictive, rather than Christian, in her attitude though. She exaggerates when telling her husband that Sadie spoke back to her. We also thought it was fascinating that Mrs Davidson is the subject of the film\u2019s last shot. After Sadie walks off with Handsome (a happy ending not present in the story, but almost obligatory in Hollywood narratives) the camera stays with the newly-widowed Mrs Davidson clasping her hands to her face.<\/p>\n

While Sadie does have a happy ending, which in some ways domesticates her, we thought it significant that she still appears in many ways similar to the Sadie we saw at the very start of the film. \u00a0We concluded our discussion by mentioning how unusual it was for a sinning Hollywood heroine to end a film unreformed, especially after the \"Stanwych<\/a>stricter policing of the Hays Code in 1934. Two films starring Barbara Stanwyck are good examples of pre and post-code attitudes to female character and crime. In the pre-code The Miracle Woman<\/i> (1931) we see Florence Fallon \"Stanwyck<\/a>move from con artist evangelist\u00a0to member of the Salvation Army. This clearly contrasts to Rain\u2019s<\/i> treatment of Sadie. Unsurprisingly, Stanwyck\u2019s character Lee Leander in a later film, Remember the Night <\/i>(1940), <\/i>is punished for her shoplifting crimes by being sent to prison.<\/p>\n

Many thanks to Lies for providing such a wonderful introduction to Joan and Rain<\/i>.<\/p>\n

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[i]<\/a> Mulvey, Laura. “Visual pleasure and narrative cinema.” Feminisms: an anthology of literary theory and criticism<\/i> (1975): 438-48.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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[ii]<\/a>Gaines, Jane. “Costume and Narrative: how dress tells the woman\u2019s story.” Fabrications: costume and the female body<\/i> (1990): 180-211.<\/p>\n

Do, as always, log in to comment or email me on sp458@kent.ac.uk<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Posted by Sarah Our post-screening discussion ranged widely and encompassed: analysis of Joan Crawford\/Sadie\u2019s first appearance; Sadie\u2019s costume, especially compared to the other female characters; Crawford\u2019s performance \u2013 in particular the many layers of performance; a comparison between Mildred in … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5401,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[50576],"tags":[84821,84822,50795,50846,50879,50840,50878,1201,20536,50842,50844,50801,50798,20537,50823,50824,50843,50796,100155,50859],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5401"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=646"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":728,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646\/revisions\/728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/melodramaresearchgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}