Yesterday I heard a young married woman holding forth about the reasons why she won’t go to see a recently released movie. The prime reason is because in her words, ‘it makes a mockery of marriage.’ She doesn’t want to support any movie making venture that makes a mockery of marriage.
This young woman has been married only a few years. In her own words she is still on her L plates when it comes to marriage, but it seems to me that she’s got something right. She considers marriage to be something sacred and about forever love, not here today and gone tomorrow love. She sees marriage as something that involves commitment and faithfulness, neither of which this movie portrays.
The movie in question is the latest ‘It’s Complicated.’ Now, let me say at this point that I have not seen the movie and had been considering it purely because Meryl Streep is in it and I think she is a very good actress and one who is getting better as she gets older. But after I heard a little about the movie from this young woman, I’ve had second thoughts about seeing it.
The plot is that Jane (Meryl Streep) and Jake are devorced and have been for almost ten years. He has remarried a younger wife. But then, their son’s graduation, Jane and Jake end up drinking too much and end up in bed together. It results in her having an affair with her ex-husband. “I’m now the other woman,” she tells her girlfriends (Rita Wilson, Mary Kay Place, Alexandra Wentworth). “I’m the one we hate.”And the interesting thing is that having read a couple of reviews of this film, one of them said ‘Much of the film’s considerable charm comes from the interplay between Streep and Baldwin.’
My question is, are we expected to find to find it ‘charming’ to see men and women treat marriage so lightly? Yes, it’s just a film and not to be taken seriously. It is purely entertainment. Or is it? Should we be more discerning about what we watch and what we support and the values portrayed or lack of them?
‘What’s so clever is that the dilemmas are so much a part of our times: life after divorce, dealing with adult children, “repartnering”. It’s certainly complicated but also witty, urbane and unexpectedly wise.’ That’s one reviewer’s opinion.
What do you think? Would you go and see a movie that treats marriage so lightly? Or is it just a piece of entertainment? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this
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