Little Women

During Christmas break in 1994, my mother took my sister, a friend of hers, and me to the movies. I, being 9-years-old and stupid, wanted to see Richie Rich. My sister, being 15-years-old and in her "deep teenager" phase (or, possibly, her "Winona Rider is the best!" phase), wanted to see Little Women. Our poor mother, realizing that it wouldn't look good if she sent the 9-year-old into one theater and went into another theater with the teenagers, went with me to see Richie Rich.

She slept through it, as she had done through The Flintstones Movie, The Santa Clause, and numerous other kid movies before.

And once the movie was over, my mother did something I never expected her to do: she took me across the hall and we went and watched the last forty minutes of Little Women. WITHOUT PAYING. Then again, I made my mother sit through Richie Rich. So, maybe she felt she might as well get something redeemable for the money she spent on her ticket- nap or no nap.

I wasn't completely unfamiliar with Little Women. When we had first heard of the movie coming out, I was interested in reading the book. And, after getting a few chapters in, I realized that it was going to take the rest of third grade to finish the book and decided to instead read several smaller books during that time and turned my copy of Little Women into a flower pressing book (because I was that kind of child).

But then I saw the end of the movie and immediately insisted to my mother that we come back before winter break was over and see the movie from the beginning. I had no idea how the story got to that point from starting with four teenage girls selflessly choosing to buy their mother Christmas gifts with the money meant for themselves (about all I could remember from the book), but I wanted to find out.

Also: I kept asking which guy was Laurie and which guy was Teddy. It's confusing to only see the end of that movie.

So, we went and saw the movie from the beginning a few days later. My mother, a fan of the book and the June Allyson film, did not sleep through this one. While I was very surprised to find a very different movie in the first 70 minutes of the film.

But I loved it.

I think we might've seen it again in the theater a few weeks later. By the time it was released on VHS (the next winter, I think), I had seen the June Allyson version of the film and read the rest of the book over my summer vacation. I loved the story, but along the same lines as how I loved the Little House on the Prairie books- a romanticized peek at a way of life from another time. And I think that might be how most people view the book.

In recent weeks, I switched out my usual Jane Austen and L.M. Montgomery audiobooks from my sleep schedule for Little Women. Some odd urge to revisit the story mixed with the realization that it's a pretty darn long book.

And, in doing so (not to mention actually listening to it when not intending to sleep), I started to realize that there was a lot more going on with Little Women. I had known, vaguely, about Louisa May Alcott's connections to the transcendentalism movement (which is name-checked in the 1994 film, despite how I think it's never full-on named in the book), and some of the most memorable parts of the book- like the beginning where the girls decide to buy gifts for their mother rather than for themselves- I didn't realize that so many of the later parts of the book are basically transcendentalist lessons. And while the movement is mentioned in the 1994 movie, it's not focused on nearly as much as the feminist and human rights issues are addressed.

One of the sections of the book that always stuck with me but that I didn't really understand as a kid was the part where their mother lets the girls "do an experiment" where they don't keep up with their chores during a vacation. Alcott describes the girls as embracing the experiment but also feeling that something is not quite enjoyable about the lack of responsibility. They don't completely hate the experiment until their mother goes away for a day and also gives Hannah the day off, making it so no one is cleaning up anyone's mess or even lighting fires for anyone.

As a child, I thought that section read similarly to the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle stories, where naughty children are slyly taught to lose bad habits. A mother playing with her children.

But, really, it's Alcott attempting something more there. And I'm kind of surprised that the book isn't considered more controversial for being somewhat subversive- as what the movies portray is a much more straight-forward story: a once prominent now poor family of strong women struggling to take care of each other during the end of the Civil War era. But the book is much more blatant about the March women having the mindset of "Okay, so we're poor- how can we challenge ourselves to take this as an opportunity to prove that we can still help others even with as little as we have?"

Really though, I probably am just late to the party any everyone else has already realized this about Alcott. Now that they're thinking about making another film version (it has been almost 20 years since the Winona Ryder version!), I do wonder if it's going to come into play.

Pretty Girls in Puff Sleeves

So, you've seen that Dustin Hoffman clip that's been circulating online, right? If not, here it is.

Now let's talk about that. Because the topic is one that people don't like to talk about. About how a woman's value still rests on her beauty as a major factor. A man can be as fucking grossly ugly as possible, but if he's funny? If he's smart? If he's rich? His worth will always be higher than a woman with the same factors.

Hell, that's sort of where the "Invisible" part of this blog's title comes from. Because some days I do feel that because I'm not attractive enough looking, I am essentially invisible. And how sometimes I'd rather just remain invisible than be seen for what I physically am. I can talk "ra-ra-feminism" all I want, but I still struggle more than I walk the walk. I do still have image issues and self-esteem problems like everyone else. Like what Dustin Hoffman realized when he discovered how lucky he was to be born a man and therefore his looks barely mattered- even as an actor. Everyone knows Dustin Hoffman is tiny and has a big nose but it never slowed down his career one inch because he's a man and that doesn't matter then.

I've only recently realized that this underlying fact might be why Anne of Green Gables is often my default comfort story.

People spend so much time making sure to tell Anne that she's worthless- saying that just by being an orphan she's not worth the trouble ("Anne Shirley is a conniving manipulative child, she's pulled the wool over your eyes!") saying that by not being a boy she isn't worth adopting ("You don't want me because I'm not a boy?"), saying that her red hair and freckles are ugly ("Couldn't you send her back?/Her looks are certainly nothing to consider/ she's terribly skinny and homely/ Her hair's a red as carrots" all said in seconds by Rachel Lynde) saying that because she has a temper she isn't worth giving a chance ("That's the kind that puts strychnine in the well!"), saying that he imagination and dramatic ways are silly ("I can't imagine how I let that child worm her way into my affections), and so on.

And she just takes it all and fucking trucks on until everyone is in love with her.

Until they realize how smart she is ("You're a credit to us all and we're all proud of you."). Until they realize how sweet she is ("I thought Marilla Cuthbert was an old fool when I heard she adopted a little orphan girl. Now I see now which of us was the old fool!). Until they realize how talented she is ("After standing first at Queens, you can do no wrong in this community!"). Until they realize that she's going to be able to do things and go further than all the "proper" girls in Avonlea ("Matthew and I are both proud of her. She has the talent to make something of herself.").

And then, suddenly, she's beautiful in their eyes.

Of course, she was beautiful all along anyway. Megan Follows is no slouch and the illustrations on my old copies of the books are all lovely looking redheaded women, too. But I've always adored redheaded women.

I guess I just don't understand beauty. I've always thought my older sister was beautiful and envied her. Her athletic and properly shaped body. Her thick light brown hair that wasn't so dark that hairstyles got lost in it. Her freckles. Her graceful way of dancing and moving. Hell, even the shape of her smile. Everything about her that we didn't share in common, I envied. Wishing and hoping for the day where I'd magically wake up to look like her.

But I'll never forget being about twelve and having my mother tell me that she never really felt my sister was beautiful. And then continued the thought to tell me that I was beautiful. It just left me perplexed. What made her feel the need to say either thing? Was it that I looked more like both my mom and my dad than their other daughter and it was some weird genetic thing? Did she worry that my self-esteem was low and think that saying that would help? She told me that while I was an awkward greasy chubby twelve year old. Then again, my mother was an unbalanced bi-polar mess at the time- so I really shouldn't be trying to figure out what was going on in her head.

But then, years later, I remember listening to my sister and my brother-in-law discuss how they needed to find a cute girl to hand out fliers for a club event they were promoting. I suggested a mutual friend that was extremely social and they both went, "Weeeeell, she's kind of ugly." I stared at them as if they had said, "Weeeeeell, she's got that third eye in her nose that freaks people out." I still would never classify her as "ugly". Not even close. I can't understand why they were both so quick to say she was not pretty enough. This is the type of girl that can make friends without speaking the same language. She has shining eyes and a great smile. She's fit and wears great clothes and jewelry. She wears maybe a little bit too much make-up but that's perfect for a club. I can't understand what makes her ugly in their eyes.

Then again, up until I was about fourteen, I was totally with Anne Shirley on her love of puff sleeves, so... what do I know?

I think the main issue now is just that her hair wasn't yet big enough? Also: it's very "I'm a tea cozy"-esque.

I Feel Like Everyone Missed The Best Lady Friends Movie of 2012...

... Or, at least, I know I almost did! Because I don't think it was in theaters for very long or in wide release.

For A Good Time, Call... is possibly even the best portrayal of girl friendship in over a decade. No, seriously. GO WATCH IT! It's apparently possibly still in theaters in the UK, if you're in that part of the world.

And doesn't pull its punches with how, yes, women have friendships sometimes that are so deeply connected that they are a form of love that rivals romance- without actually being romance. And when those friendships are tested, those break-ups can be so much more painful than losing a romantic partner, as you're losing the person that you go to for talking about your romantic partner- the person that knows all your secrets. The person that you've never had to worry about your looks with. The person that you've never had to pretend with.

Yes, all this is covered in a movie that is about roommates staring a phone sex line. A plot (and R rating) which probably cut the audience short. Which is partially a shame but... it's still a damn good story line. It's fun, it's shown in a new light, and it says something about how women shouldn't be ashamed of their sexuality- whatever form of sexuality they have.

I sure as hell wouldn't have found the movie as funny if it had been about roommates starting up a knitting business. Don't get me wrong, I like knitting, but a sex line was a more amusing A plot.

Hell, the only part of the movie that falls flat is Justin Long's super gay character that seems to exist just to help the two girls and to have scenes with the Miller-Rogan dog. But I'm not even too upset about that, as he serves a purpose and I'm guessing that Lauren Miller & Katie Anne Naylon likely based the character on someone from their real life.

Also, I'm now slightly in love with Ari Graynor. She's just so insanely amazing constantly.