#309: Grey Gardens

Directed by: DAVID MAYSLES, ALBERT MAYSLES, ELLEN HOVDE & MUFFIE MEYER
1975, Rank #669

From what I've gathered online, this is a very misunderstood movie. It's a brief, 95 minute look at Big and Little Edie Beale (aunt and cousin, respectively, of Jackie Kennedy) and their eccentric life in a big, deteriorating mess of a house called Grey Gardens. It is a very intimate and candid film, giving you a very fly-on-the-wall perspective. The problem is, people have jumped to such conclusions such as defining the women as mentally ill, assigning them roles of aggressor and victim, and trying generally to sum up their lives in one clever usage of words. These women clearly lived very interesting and complex lives, and their relationship with each other is obviously not perfect, it is still clearly that this mother and daughter love each other very much, despite the flaws. The film is definitely worth watching, a great look at two fascinating and unique people, but I think the viewer needs to not judge them and just accept them for who they are/were.

For my further ruminations on this film and its treatment, look at the review section for this film on Hulu: http://www.hulu.com/watch/166743/grey-gardens

(Rating: 8/10)