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DVD Grey Gardens - Criterion Collection
Grey Gardens is the name of a neglected, sprawling estate gone to seed. The crumbling mansion was home to Edith Bouvier Beale, often referred to as "Big Edie," and her daughter, "Little Edie." The East Hampton, Long Island, home became the center of quite a scandal when it was revealed in 1973 that the reclusive aunt and cousin to Jackie O. were living in a state of poverty and filth. That's the background to this 1976 film portrait by cinéma vérité pioneers Albert and David Maysles, but it's only incidental to the fascinating story they discover inside the estate walls.
The two Edies have lived in almost complete seclusion since the mid-1950s, ever since Big Edie's husband abandoned her and Little Edie (then a young socialite on the verge of a dancing career, or so she claims) was called home to care for her depressed mother. Twenty years later they continue to live in their memories while camped out in a single bedroom of the 28-room mansion overrun with cats (who use the floor as their litter box). Rehashing mistakes and missed chances with an accusing banter that becomes more stinging and angry as the documentary progresses, they exist in a sad codependency brings new meaning to the term dysfunctional. Disturbing and discomforting, it comes off like a freak show at times, but for all their arguments and recriminations, the Maysles reveal two women abandoned by their families who are left to cling to each other, for better or worse. --Sean Axmaker
Review(s): DVD Grey Gardens - Criterion Collection
Addictive!
Since I first saw this documentary some months ago, I have been trying to analyze why I find it so compelling, so unforgettable. I just acquired the new 2-DVD release that includes The Beales of Grey Gardens and I found my thoughts once again taken up with this mother and daughter. Mostly, I am intrigued by Little Edie and her sweetness and self-mocking smiles, her truly good nature. The people who think mother and daughter suffered from some sort of mental impairment miss the point entirely. Grey Gardens is about these women's survival, about making the best of a bad situation with music and playing dress-up in quite wonderful ways; it's about eating a lot of ice cream and holding conversations about everything under the sun without ever trying to murder each other or become seriously abusive. The Beales DVD highlights these two features in a way that Grey Gardens does not, given over as the original is to establishing the chronology of the women's lives. This 2nd DVD shows the great supportiveness that lay beneath the sometime contentiousness that can live below the surface in any relationship--but particularly below those where people are together twenty-four/seven. While Big Edie's interesting, Little Edie is, for me, absolutely fascinating. There is something so utterly lovable about her lack of self-consciousness, about the headgear she concocted to conceal what appears to be a loss of hair and eyebrows due to alopecia; her daily costuming is a form of entertainment both for her and for her mother who, it is revealed, enjoyed Edie's changes of outfit as much as Edie herself. And, certainly, as much as I did. Neither women ever loses her dignity; the filmmakers never take advantage of the situation and are always entirely respectful. The Maysles Brothers found pure gold in the ramshackle mansion, and it's just rivetting to visit this mother and daughter from time to time and marvel at their opinions, their thoughts about music, about family, about war (Edie had some great ideas on the subject), about everything from Miss Porter's School to the dreadful-sounding Mr. Beale. This is one of the all-time great documentaries, done from the heart, and not to be missed. It ranks as one of my favorite films ever! I just wish there were several more DVDs' worth of material ... sigh.
The best costume for the day!
Buy this film. Don't think twice, just buy it! It is a hysterically funny and yet heartbreaking exploration of two outrageous and maverick women. Every artist- whether your medium is painting, acting, design, writing, or whatever else- will be amazed and inspired by "Little Edie". This story will prove that what matters most in life is to be YOU.
SHAME ON THESE WOMEN'S RELATIVES
I gave it 5 stars in honor of the two Edies. But how disgusting that Jackie Kennedy did not set up a financial fund for these two relatives of hers. She could have easily seen to it that the Beales had a monthly allowance that would have given them back their dignity. I heard she did a few things for the Beales but obviously did not fracture herself trying too hard to do them much good. Anyone else related to them who just ignored their plight is just as guilty. Did they profit at all from the film made of them ?! I hope so. Also,both Big Edie and Little Edie probably needed mental health care of some sort. Maybe even just temporary mental help ,but did they ever receive it ? Both were delightful women, so this film was rather sad because they lived in unnecessary poverty and abandonment. Yes they were eccentric and fantastic, but odd that you don't hear much concern for them at all. I've read comments that the Beales were "psychologically fascinating" and crap like that. As if they were specimens. I found a Grey Gardens "fan" site and homage that made me ill due to it's sniveling delight regarding the two Edies,because their story was actually just very sad and someone should have given them more help. How can anyone get so hysterically delighted when the Beales were so ignored and were so needy ? They became victims of people who delighted in their sad lives. That's not being a true "fan" of the Beales.
If you can believe it, the Maysales' films capture a rather sanitized view of Grey Gardens. I witnessed first hand the Beales from an intimate relationship as a young boy from age 8-13, when I lived across the street from them. Grey Gardens was between my family's house and the beach, and it was on my bike that I met Miss Beale by calling to the spooky lady with cats crawling on her back from the street. After getting to know her from the street, then porch, spending hours with her, I finally met Mrs. Beale a year later when she descended from her bedroom, which was a rare occasion. But Mrs. Beale favored me even more than Miss, because I could sing and she loved to teach me "I can't give you anything but love baby" and sing to her niece Lee Radziwell over the phone from her bedroom. ... More Info about this DVD DVD Release Date: Released the 05 December 2006 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Arguably the best American documentary of the 1960s, Salesman was the pivotal film of the "direct cinema" movement championed by such influential filmmakers as Richard Leacock, D.A. Pennebaker, and (in this case) the Maysles brothers and their longtime collaborator Charlotte Zwerin. It catapulted Albert and David Maysles to international fame (later intensified with Gimme Shelter), and it remains the most powerful document of working-class America in the post-Kennedy era. As compelling as any fictional drama, the film follows four salesmen (nicknamed the Badger, the Gipper, the Rabbit, and the Bull, based on their particular on-the-job attributes) from Boston to Florida as they struggle to sell lavishly illustrated Bibles to reluctant, blue-collar customers as desperate to... More Info about this DVD Director(s): David Maysles - Charlotte Zwerin - Albert Maysles DVD Release Date: Released the 04 September 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
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If aliens came down to earth to see if humanity was worth saving, showing them Short Cuts, Robert Altman's bluesy riff on life in L.A. in the '90s, would not be a good idea. Based on the stories of Raymond Carver (adapted by Altman and Frank Barhydt), this ambitious film is a devilish valentine to living in L.A., where happiness comes at a premium. There are at least eight separate stories that crisscross, most about people who choose not to relate to the lives they are living. Seemingly by design, none of the stories (nor the performances for that matter) have more impact than the others--this is a true mosaic film. The most representative plot deals with a group of friends (Buck Henry, Fred Ward, and Huey Lewis) who decide to keep fishing even after discovering a body in the... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Andie MacDowell - Julianne Moore - Tim Robbins Director(s): Robert Altman DVD Release Date: Released the 16 November 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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