In the past several years, I have re-watched many classic films and had to shake my head at the various significant details that had flown right over my naive little head. Like the fact that Dorothy and the Lion got lured into a poppy field in The Wizard of Oz; and how in The Wiz, that same the poppy field was re-imagined as a Studio 54-themed brothel. Granted, I made the connection between "poison poppies" and their hallucinogenic effects years ago, so those aren't the best examples. (However, it was a bigger deal to realize that the Bad video and this subway scene were probably filmed on the same set. And also, upon watching the full video for the first time in years, MJ was heavily influenced by The Wizard of Oz, but that is another piece for another time.)
Contrary to what you might think, I didn't clutch my imaginary pearls over any belated revelations about Holly Golightly's 'profession'. I have known what she did and don't consider it all that scandalous in the grand scheme of things. While most of us have condemned Mickey Rooney's unfortunate cameo as a bad joke that has just gotten worse with time, we haven't thrown the entire movie away. No, it was the appearance of Buddy Epsen's Doc, the cuckolded husband that really opened my eyes. I'm guessing that most people were sympathetic to him: the simple country man who had taken in a poor waif and her brother, only to be abandoned by her when she left him for the bright lights of the big city. Except we overlooked one crucial detail--he married her when she was a 14 year old girl!
Oh, and he had been stalking her for some time until Paul confronted him in the park. Which means he knew where she was, what she had been doing, and somehow thought that he was rescuing her from debauchery and perversion. By no means does this revelation suggest that anyone should question whether this movie ought to be seen, lest we provoke another unnecessary culture war. I'm just saying that there were probably myriad reasons why Holly might have run away from that life.
And that is one of the clever things about movies. There is always more to see than what we tend to pick up in a casual viewing. For instance, I am sure that Star Wars fans have conveniently overlooked the incestuousness of Luke Skywalker's initial attraction to his twin sister. Or how it really makes no sense that Danny Russo's mother packs them up to move across the country to take a job as a restaurant manager in the original Karate Kid movie. In The Sound of Music, the Captain must have gotten busy with one of the governesses he fired because the Mother Superior tells Maria that he had been widowed for seven years; however, his youngest child says she is five. Everybody I know can quote lines from Coming to America, but how many of us took notice of all its sexism, like the swimsuit competition at the Black Awareness Rally? Shall we even discuss those early gratuitous Spike Lee movies, and can we finally admit that as much as we love Purple Rain, Prince is a misogynistic asshole throughout?
My status update was never intended to admonish folks for loving their favorite films. It was merely an observation that we all see what we want to see on screen. I love Pretty Woman, and Vivian certainly has a heart of gold, but we never question Edward's manipulative use of his money to control everyone and everything in his orbit. Does anybody who loves Gone With the Wind ever wonder what Mammy and the other former slaves got paid for their continued service and loyalty to Miss Scarlett after emancipation? Are we only mad at Mickey Rooney for his bad Asian caricature, while forgetting that he, Judy Garland, Fred Astaire, and other major stars performed in blackface? And we should probably throw West Side Story in the mix for casting one Puerto Rican star in a film that was supposed to tackle racial tensions among immigrants.
Yet, I will continue to watch these movies with my 45 year old sensibilities in 2019 and beyond because I accept that art is a product of its time. I like Italian Renaissance paintings even though I am clear that their depictions of Jesus are inaccurate. As much as I love both the book and the movie version of To Kill a Mockingbird, I am intrigued by the prospect of a staged version that gives more voice to the peripheral Black characters. I think The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a masterpiece that kids need to read unedited in order to understand its brilliance. Our modern interpretations of those artworks don't detract from their value or significance...sometimes our updated perspective enhances the original work.
In fact, my 45 year old sensibilities allow me to appreciate Holly Golightly as a self-determined woman whose choice to escape her arranged childhood marriage is far more revolutionary than I previously realized. Maybe that was always the intention--for us to see a woman taking charge of her life on her terms instead of acquiescing to the choices made for her by others. In that respect, Breakfast at Tiffany's can be forgiven for some its more egregious transgressions. We just need to look beyond the iconic black dress.
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