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STELLA DALLAS, besides being amazing, shows Hollywood's transition from pre-code to prodcution code cinema as well as its continued reliance on genre and stars. The film is the second film of the course starring Barbara Stanwyck, who ranks as one of Classical Hollywood's brightest and most talented stars. Equal to Bette Davis, Katherine Hepburn, and Joan Crawford, Stanwyck constructed an impressive career that was supported by her versatility as much as her consistency. She performed in comedies, melodramas, thrillers, and westerns with the greatest of ease. Despite the variety of her performances, she played heorines and villians, she always played her parts with a strong will and intense integrity. Stanwyck recieved four oscar nominations, and one honorary oscar, during her long career (the first for STELLA DALLAS).
The film itself represents the women's melodrama, or a maternal melodrama, which was a cornerstone of Classical Hollywood. The film begins when Stella Martin, a working class woman, who marries up to Stephen Dallas and has a daughter, Laurel. Stella soon learns that the upper class is not all she dreamed it would be as her husband constantly destroys her fun. However, Laurel remains the epicenter of Stella's life. After an embarrassing incident, Stella decides that she may be holding her daughter back from living the life Stella always wanted. The ending ranks as one of cinema's best and leaves the audience wondering if Stella's final act is one of self-sacrifice or self-preservation.
Suggested Supplemental Screenings: IMITATION OF LIFE (Stahl, 1934), ALICE ADAMS (Stevens, 1935), REBECCA (Hitchcock, 1940), PENNY SERENADE (Stevens, 1941), and NOW, VOYAGER (Rapper, 1942)
Also STELLA DALLAS was remade as STELLA (Erman, 1990) starring Bette Midler.
Stella Dallas
ReplyDeleteSarah Garcia
I really thought that this movie was great. I could see that it brought the audience to true emotion when the girl next to me started crying. I thought the whole develop of the film from beginning to end built up to the last moments when Stella was so selfless in letting her daughter go realizing that she would be better off with her father at that time in her life. I also liked how it remarked on the times where if I woman had a man over she was shunned, but a man could be practically living with another woman while still married and no one would take offense.
The only thing that I did not like about the film was the over acting. Most of the scenes were very dramatic, and that got a little exhausting because there was hardly any in between. It was just all big dramatic scenes so I thought it asked to much of the audience because sometimes they just need a break. Especially when it came to Stella’s daughter. She was just so dramatic in her tone, her expression, and her blocking sometimes I just wanted to laugh at her instead of feel for the emotions she was feeling. If she could have toned it down a bit I think it would have made her character a lot more believable.
I also liked the way this filmmaker played with time. He was really able to show these characters either grow older and prettier and more mature, or grow older and more worn out. You could see where their lives had taken them and what had become important to them. In the beginning Stella was concerned about being married then about going out to parties and dressing the part, but after having her daughter she soon realized that her priorities had changed and she was slowly becoming someone she did not recognize and was consumed by her daughter and whatever she wanted. That is why as difficult as it was for her to hurt her daughter and give her to her ex husband to care for she knew that it is what she wanted, because she only wanted the best for her.
The only thing that was not quite clear was the father’s role in her daughter’s life. It did seem as though he loved her, but to only see her on holidays until she grew old and was almost married seemed strange coming from a father who seemed to be loving towards her.
All in all, I thought that the movie did a great job of drawing the audience in to some real emotions that the films before had a hard time doing.
“Stella Dallas” was my favorite movie of the year so far and I honestly don’t know if I’ll let something top it for me. Mae West has NOTHING on Barbara Stanwyck! She’s fantastic! She hits every notch on the emotional spectrum in this film so brilliantly. In the beginning, she’s fun and sassy but by the end she is just broken down. On the train back home, when she finally overheard people making fun of her, I felt terrible for her! Then all of a sudden she was coming up with a plan to send Laurel away, to live with her father and replace herself with Helen and all I kept thinking was “someone has to stay with this poor woman and make sure she doesn’t hurt herself.” For a second, as Laurel was getting on the train and Stella was walking along side it, I thought that she was just going to toss herself under the train. I was freaked out. Thank GOD I was wrong because that ending was gorgeous and devastating!
ReplyDeleteShe’s watching her daughter’s wedding from the street among a crowd that’s being herded away. This daughter, she selflessly gave up based on a misguided idea that she would be better off without her. She actually had to convince Laurel that she was selfishly abandoning her to marry an awful drunk that kind of tormented her throughout her young life, constantly making inappropriate advances on her. The music begins to swell along with her desperate plea to a policeman to let her stay and watch them kiss. Then she turns, and walks away smiling, with tears rolling down her face and it is absolutely heartbreaking. I’m sorry this response is almost just a list of adjectives but honestly I got goose bumps watching her walk into the street, away from that window and for once it wasn’t because of how goddamn cold it is in the Cosford. This movie rested entirely on Stanwyck’s performance. There was almost nothing else in the movie but her actually. Laurel wasn’t a very good performance and neither was Helen. Steven was pretty good though. Viewers end up feeling bad for Stella the entire time, even through her gaudy, “I deserve things” phase, but there really is no bad guy in the movie. Steven was never really the enemy. He had some legitimate concerns in the beginning of their marriage and it turns out he was fairly right. Stella never even seems all too upset with him. I don’t even know what I could say about cinematography or anything technical in this response. I guess it was always in focus, well lit, and lovely but I cant recall anything other than Barbara.
Stella Dallas is the second film we have seen starring Barbara Stanwyck. In this film, she plays the somewhat opposite the role she played in Baby Face. Rather than being a manipulative, controlling vampiress, Stanwyck plays an unselfish mother willing to do anything to make sure her child succeeds in the world. I felt the film was a tad bit silly with the way social statuses were played up in it. In fact the entire plot of the movie could have easily been avoided had Stella just went with her husband to New York. In the film, her husband lands a high position in New York, but Stella decides to stay back home because she feels she has it in with the people there. This concept is ridiculous, the fact that she would rather sacrifice her marriage to not start a new social life is completely insane. This made me feel no sympathy for the two involved in the divorce which occurs later on in the film. Stella raises her daughter Lollie practically on her own, with only frequent visits from her husband every now and then. Eventually Stella's relationship with Mr.Dallas wains after years of separation. Lollie takes on after her father, only concerned with how to properly behave in social events and keeping up with the latest trends. This differs from her mother Stella who practically gets stunted in the bawdy fashion and social etiquette of the twenties. There is one particular scene that struck a chord in me and that is when Stella learns that after making the decision of having her daughter live with her husbands new family in order to have a higher social status, Lollie decides to come back to her. Once she discovers this she begins to act in a rude and selfish manner in order to trick her daughter into going back. There are brilliant moments that cut back to Stella when Lollie is not looking at her and you can see the pain in her eyes, knowing she is hurting her daughter but still believing this will help her have a better life. Seeing the daughter slowly break down and believing her mother has become a wretched woman only wanting her daughter to leave so she can marry was also very intense. Overall it was an enjoyable film, but overdramatized the importance of social status.
ReplyDeleteStellaaaaaaa!!! Wrong movie but still made me laugh when I heard her name. Ok back to the movie I thought it was a pretty good movie, but still very very long. Stella did a great job though at acting. When she was skinny and beautiful to fat and older she did a great job of trying to be the mother for her daughter.
ReplyDeleteI think that it was highly unlikely back in the day that the wife wouldn't go witht he husband just because she liked this Munn dude. If he had a great job in New York, just had a kid, were madly in love, they would both go to New York and start over. I guess that doesn't give us a movie then, but its the principle. The husband seemed to be a great guy and Stella screwed it for herself because she could have had the life but she killed it with her being cool.
As for the Oscar nominations, she deserved it and I think she had an outstanding performance, but one thing I didn't like is how the movie moved from Stell to the daughter. They tried making her a selfless character and make her into a bigger role than she needed to be. Maybe the actress didn't handle it well enough or the acting was off I just didn't like it. It was a little long and had a little too much attention to the daughter, but I still enjoyed it. I really liked how they made the daughter look younger and older as time went on, they did a great job I didn't know what age she really was. Same with Stella they did an outstanding job on her getting bigger and older. Overall a great movie a little long, but still a good "talkie" film.
Holy cow! Barbara Stanwyck knocked it so far out of the park that its unbelievable. Her character was extremely moving to me. This movie made me want to call my mom and tell her how much I love her. It was really that powerful for me. And yes, I know that the ending is left up in the air and that you can go one of two ways on it, but I see it as self sacrifice all the way. I think its really about a flawed mother and in the end sacrificed herself for what she felt was best for her daughter.
ReplyDeleteKing Vidor seems very adept at dealing with family situations. In his silent film I once saw, The Crowd, it was about a family where the father was trying to make money and eventually loses his individuality and becomes part of The Crowd. In Our Daily Bread, another Vidor movie he has a family move out and live on a farm where they practice communism. In both he shows that he has a great interest in family dynamic. Here I think it was even more interesting because he was dealing with separated parents who have a daughter. He handles it with a lot of care and makes you feel for everyone in the family.
I really liked the way that the story skipped to the juicy parts of the story, never lingering too long. For instance, both times that marriage is proposed it jumps very quickly. Some people may get annoyed by that, but I like it, because the point of the movie is not the courtship that leads to the event, but what happens after, or in the ends case, during.
Back to Stanwycks phenomenal performance. There were times when the camera only had to sit on her, and many times that some of her sentences didn't have an ending to it, but the nuances of her voice and body language gave you all you needed. It was interesting because at times Stella wants different things and acts differently to get them. Stanwyck is so good that you feel like you are watching a real person, who is after what she wants and isn't the best mother, but cares extremely deeply about her daughter. The scenes near the end I could really feel. The train scene was beautiful, and so was the scene when Stella asks if they could take her daughter, and of course the powerhouse scene at the end.
The rest of the cast does a good job as well, it was really strong. In Babyface Stanwyck's male counterpart was boring and not the best actor, this guy was much better, and really everyone was good, even the younger actors. I was really surprised to see this and pleased.
Vidor's choices are very interesting in this. I noticed that at many times and all the time in the end, Laurel is higher in the frame than her mother. We also get those scenes where the daughter does her mothers hair, or comforts her as if Laurel were the mother and not Stella (these scenes were also touching). The final scene is fantastic as Stella stands behind the bars and looks up into the window. The bars are the barrier that keeps them from being together and she is still below her daughter. Then when she walks away in that tracking shot, as with other long takes in the movie, lets us see all the emotion happen organically, which makes it that much more real.
Also I noticed that at times this seemed like a hag picture. Stanwyck wasn't afraid to not look her best at certain times, and instead to look worn out and tired, and unkempt.
It’s hard to think back on this film and remember anything negative, and it seems that most others had a fairly positive reaction. Interesting how the most united acceptance of these classic films has only really shown itself once we moved into the age of sound. That aside though, this was a very delightful movie, and made me wonder if the “post-code” era was also the emerging American-girl giggly era, the beginning of that now legendary vocal style all our Disney princesses and female leads like Cinderella or Dorothy from Wizard of Oz. In no way do I mean to imply it’s agitating, in fact, watching Stella’s daughter Laural in all her exploding enthusiasm and extremely unabashed display of happiness or despair was probably my favorite part of the entire movie. As I’m watching her I can’t even believe it’s really happening, acting or not. It does borderline on being too much at certain points, but I find it just fascinating. The story was also excellent, never a slow moment as we see most of the characters lives from almost beginning to end; a progression we rarely see lived out in most of today’s movies. This is appropriate because some stories that centralize themselves around one pivotal relationship within a year or two time span will fail to capture the long term effects of these characters decisions. Some truths are only revealed to us over longer time spans, and some people’s change is stubborn enough only to be significant in the long term.
ReplyDelete- Gabe Basham
Stella Dallas was fascinating to watch both in conjunction and in contrast with last week’s film Baby Face. Both movies starred Barbara Stanwyck, but Stella Dallas differed greatly due its production after the newly emplaced production code. In Baby Face, Barbara Stanwyck completely honed in on the character of Lily and shined as a sassy woman, determinedly charging towards an excelling career path, money and luxury even if her method is less than savory. But in Stella Dallas, Barabara plays perhaps a more complex character…it’s a lot more tricky figuring out “who she is” and what she wants… Stella starts out wanting to rise up the ranks of society so she gets married to a man of distinction, only to feel trapped and dissatisfied at home raising a baby.
ReplyDeleteIn the courtship stage, Stella seemed polite, well mannered and intelligent, despite her different social standing. She aspired to walk, talk and act like the elite and her husband-to-be wished for her to stay the just as she is because he didn’t want her to be “boring”. Once married, Stella no longer wishes to walk, talk and dress like the upper crust, but her husband seems mildly embarrassed by her actions, though patient. Stella just wants to rub noses with the elite and “have fun”, whining that she wants to go to a party even the day she comes home from the hospital, practically forgetting she even has a baby. Her attitude towards raising her baby is very loose at first, drinking and cigars abound and the creepy, unsavory “Uncle” Ed Munn joins the picture, much to the dismay of her husband Steven who is coming home less and less. Eventually her and Steven lead separate lives and the film centers around mother and daughter.
As the picture moves on, it’s easy to see the distinction between Stella and her daughter’s social standing… her daughter loves school, is very soft polite and girly, whereas Stella is more blunt, awkward and tough…it seemed as though her thirteen year old daughter surpassed Stella’s own intelligence and their opposing reactions of the bawdy and lewd actions of Ed Munn was a harsh dividing line showing the different moral beliefs of mother and daughter. Stella’s slow demise was sad to watch. At the beginning of the film I never imagined her as almost a hermit, living in a hotel room and a scraggly, yet gaudy robe eating bon-bons and hiding out so that her daughter could rise in social standing. Self-sacrificing, true, but why did Stella need to forfeit her own “fun”? What made her snap to the point where when she did leave the room she was compelled to start wandering around in a almost Halloween-like get up? At this point, she reminded me of Sara Goldfarb from Requiem For A Dream, who’s not quite in touch with reality, but wants so badly to look good. The ending was especially sad, but Stella walked away smiling, so she must have been satisfied with her choice to let go of her daughter.
--Brianne McKay
STELLA DALLAS
ReplyDeleteI thought this movie directed by King Vidor was really good! Its melodrama genre gave the movie a great feeling. Everything as far as costumes and actors were amazing especially how they exaggerated ok Stella’s outfits and stuff to make her character look less elegant to the eyes of the other characters. I believe this film deals with great themes, those of maternity, wealth and desire. We can see how Stella’s lust at the beginning of the film changes completely when the only thing she has left in life is her only daughter. This movie teaches us that money is never sufficient to make us happy we need other things as well, as love and family. At some points the film was not realistic, like for example the husband is offered a new job in New York and Stella rejects his offer and so they normally go on to live separate lives, instead of demonstrating more conflict between them because of this matter. Barbara Stanwyck played an amazing role and aspects of her femininity were shown when she had to raise her daughter all by herself. One thing I did not like that much was shockingly the ending because I think her decision may not have been the smartest. Leaving her daughter in the hands of her father and disappearing from her life like that was inconsiderate. I personally think that even though her daughter’s friends talked bad of her and she did not have all the money that her dad could offer her she would still be in amazing hands with her mother because the unconditional love that a mother can offer a daughter is irreplaceable. Although she seemed as if she cared so much for her daughter and wanted the best for her I still keep thinking that she did not love her enough because if she would of she would not have disappeared from her life like that, a daughter needs a mother in her life.
After watching this and Baby Face I now understand Barbra Stanwyck’s versatility as an actresses. The way she was able to transition from pre code to production code films was flawless. Stella Dallas a 1937 sound film directed by Kind Vidor follows the story of Stella Martin who gets married and divorced and decides to devote her life to her daughter. In the beginning Stella wishes to marry Stephen Dallas for his financial security and to be apart of the upper class. Her and Stephen have a daughter named Laurel, but after she is born Stella begins to realize that the upper class isn’t what she though it to be. She is constantly fighting with her husband as he moves to New York for business and rarely comes home, eventually they divorce. Stephen decides that it is best for Laurel to stay with her mother than to move with him to New York. From that point on Laurel becomes the center of Stella’s life. Years later Laurel visits her father and his new family in New York; she falls in love with the lifestyle. Stella doesn’t want to lose her so she takes Laurel to a fancy resort where she makes friends with some rich kids. Laurel becomes embarrassed of her as the rich kids see that she is not of the same class. Stella finds this out and decides that it is best for Laurel to live with her dad in order to have a better life. Years later Laurel marries a rich man and Stella is finally happy. I can’t say I loved the movie but I would be into watching more King Vidor and Barbra Stanwyck films.
ReplyDeleteI LOVED Stella Dallas! I really enjoyed watching the film and really loved how it evoked different emotions out of me. There were a few moments when I held my tears back, but I definitely got watery eyes. It was a realistic, sad yet loving story, told in a beautiful way.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting how different Stella became over the course of the film. In the beginning she was solely concerned with marrying a rich man and being able to attend extravagant events with the “it” crowd. She wanted to be like her husband in so many ways, but he kept reminding her how he wanted her to stay how she is and that fortune and popularity is not important. Yet she insisted on befriending men, whom her husband did not appreciate having around.
Soon after their marriage they have a beautiful baby girl named Laurel, who has many of her father’s qualities even at an early age. She grows up to be a lovely young lady who is liked by many, always leaving good impressions with people. Yet, she grew up in a single-family home with her mother, as her father worked in New York (where Stella refused to live). She saw her father during the holidays and he always took her on fancy trips. Yet after one trip with one of her dad’s old friend, things seemed to change.
One thing that I really admired about the film was the relationship that Laurel and Stella had. Laurel is a daughter that any mother would love and hope to have. Laurel is extremely polite, elegant and loving. When Laurel hears the girls on the train talking badly about her mother, she immediately looks to see if her mother heard the gossip and goes down on the bottom bunk to cuddle next to her mother. Then when her soon to be “step-mother” tells her the news of Laurel having a new home, away from her mother, she refuses and says that she could never leave her mother alone. Laurel is constantly worried about her mother’s well being, as is her mother towards Laurel.
Stella loves her daughter very much and made major scarifies for her throughout the film. Although there were instances where she might have embarrassed Laurel, she was always trying her hardest to make sure that Laurel was happy. It broke my heart in the end when she pretended to be mean to Laurel and pretended like she wanted to Mary drunken ED, but she was only doing it to make Laurel go back to live with her father. Stella knew that it would be best for Laurel to live with her father and that she would have a better life.
The very end of the film was the most sad, yet most beautiful moment. When Laurel is getting married to a man that she has fallen in love with and her mother is standing in the rain, looking through the window at the ceremony. The cop then allows her to stay a few extra moments so that Stella can see Laurel’s beautiful face as she kisses her husband. Lastly, Stella sheds a few tears and her frown turns into a smile as she walks away. Just beautiful …..
Compared to Baby Face, Stella Dallas seemed to move at a slower pace and the “riskiness” of the film was toned down, which goes to show the effects of the Hays Code on Hollywood films at that time. Also, Barbara Stanwyck’s character in this film, although eccentric, did not seem so over powering or seductive.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Stella Dallas’ emotional ending. It was a bittersweet ending where everything turned out for the best even though it is clear from Stella’s expression that letting go of her daughter will probably take some time to get used to. I truly did not expect Stella’s decision to pretend to want a life with Ed in order to encourage her daughter to move in with her father. What I also like about the ending is that it left me thinking about it after the movie was over – something many films today do not achieve. It was a very powerful moment to see a mother give up her daughter because she knew she could not give her the life she deserves. Having Stella walk away sad and then show a hint of happiness through a smile made me wonder what she is going to make of her life after this incident. I appreciated this being left out because it leaves one invested in the film by thinking of the countless possibilities after the film ends.
Stella Dallas was wonderfully shot, however, in contrast to the earlier films we’ve seen in class, this film does not rely on intricate camera movements or effects in order to convey emotions. It was able to portray meaning simply through the use of sound and character relations.
As a whole, I really liked Stella Dallas. All the performances were great (especially Barbara Stanwyck’s) and the story was touching. Based on the two classical Hollywood films we’ve seen, I’m interested in watching more films from this time period.
I thought Stella Dallas was a great Classical film. I enjoyed Barbara Stanwyck again as the lead and thought that she really carried the movie – much farther than any male lead I’ve seen in other classical piece films. Something about her character, and I think her persona in general feels very raw and gritty, which is nice compared to a lot of the campy acting I saw throughout the film. Stanwyck was able to deliver her scenes in a very realistic fashion that actually carried a lot of emotional weight for me. She was able to play a role that had her completely consumed in herself, but still aware of other characters and her impact on them. The scene where she sat with her daughter for the party as Laurel’s guests could not attend hit me pretty hard. Additionally, the scene and progression of her finding out that Laurel’s friends had been making fun of her, and the subsequent realization that Laurel would do better without her mother were all delivered and set up very well. There was a great dynamic between the superficial life she enjoyed and her true love and passion for her daughter. It just felt like a real person, as did most of the relationships in the film. No one was particularly bad, but life had worked out so that Laurel’s parents were separated and moving in different directions. It was not the best and most ideal scenario, but one that still felt real and protected the goodness and natural tendencies of the characters. That is why I appreciated the ending so much. It did not turn into the perfect Hollywood fantasy everyone dreams of, but preserved the characters and storyline’s integrity with an equally satisfying and heart wrenching conclusion.
ReplyDeleteIts funny because as many times as I laughed out loud at the how cheesy the film was, or at how overdone some of the acting was I could not help but be swept up in the story. Everyone jokes about the classical Hollywood genre and it’s typical romantic storyline, but that magic and stereotype did have me enjoying the film. The relationship between the Dallas’ also served to break up the predictable storyline of Classical Hollywood where the powerful male lead ends up in the typical romantic ending with the female lead. The fact that happiness was blended with anguish in the ending allowed the audience to connect even more with the film.
This week we watched another Barbara Stanwyck film called, Stella Dallas. Even though it is called a woman’s flick I really enjoyed it. Actually, in fact I think it should be a called a person who has ever had a mother or a child film. I thought the movie was very well written and acted and I am not without shame to say I might have been a little choked up at the end. Though each film however good it is does have its faults and Stella Dallas was no different. In the beginning of the film all Stella wanted was to move her social standing from the poor house to the rich mansion. But when she told Mr. Dallas he told her don’t change because he loves her just the way she is. Though right after they got married she was all against changing who she was and all Mr. Dallas wanted her to do was change in to a prim and proper female. I guess this helped to develop the story but their was no explanation in change of this characteristic change. People say this is one of the greatest endings of the classical Hollywood period. I agree with these people and even more because I think this is one of the greatest endings of all time. It shows that Stella really loves Laurel and will do anything she can to support her. No matter if it is standing in the snow watching her daughter get married through a window while a cop tries to get her to leave. Than when Stella finally leaves the window you se her crying but than she starts to smile because she knew Laurel was raised correctly and is a great young women now. If you did not choke up just a little than you really don’t have a heart. I loved this movie and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a film like this. Now I need to see more Barbara Stanwyck films cause of the two I have seen I really enjoy.
ReplyDeleteThis week’s screening could easily be seen as the typical Classical Hollywood picture. I can’t help but think of “Stella Dallas” in relation with last week’s screening, “Baby Face.” Even though they trace familiar character arcs and highlight similar social issues, “Stella Dallas” seems the more “pure of form” picture that characterized the classical period. This purity of form is evident through its continuous editing, high key lighting, linear narrative structure, and clear character journey. “Baby Face,” like its protagonist, was less clean-cut and had a bit more attitude; it was no surprise that it was considered a “forbidden Hollywood film.” As a result, I believe that you can really feel the implications of the production code on a film like “Stella Dallas” which details some pretty controversial material for the time it was released – sexual harassment, divorce dynamics, young love, and even adultery. But “Stella Dallas” seems like the much softer, sentimental, distant cousin to “Baby Face.” It sort of evolves from the story of one woman’s desire to live a better life into a heart wrenching tale of female sacrifice. Actually, I saw a few parallels between “Stella Dallas” and “Mildred Pierce,” as well, in their interest with female sacrifice.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite aspects of “Stella Dallas” is that, despite having a seemingly conservative outlook, it is fascinatingly complex. As such, I believe the film allows for multiple readings and constant debate as to what the movie is communicating to the audience. For instance, while Stella seems to have genuine love and adoration for Laurel, it can be argued whether or not Stella also sees an opportunity to live vicariously through Laurel. In much the same way, the final sequence of the film - in which Stella fulfills the “heroine” role - is at once filled with victory and simultaneously drenched in deep sadness for her great loss making it quite unclear as to her future.
Stella Dallas was a very interesting film. Stella plays a very different character from Baby Face and it was entertaining to see her adapt to the role of a selfless mother but she played the part brilliantly. The story is very strong, and just like in Baby Face, I was intertwined in the character's turmoils and found it difficult to concentrate on the technical parts of the filmmaking process. But I suppose this means the cinematography was fantastic because i did not notice any flukes or flaws in the way the film was shot. The ending of this movie was extremely bittersweet, which i found was a change from the previous Hollywood movies we have seen in class. Every movie usually has a happy ending, and although this was a semi-happy ending for Laurel and Stella, there was still a sense of grief for Barbara because of the situation she was in. The ending made her character real to the audience because in life, there's rarely ever a completely happy ending or a completely awful one, it is always a mixture of emotions that drive the character for the rest of their lives. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this film. The performances, particularly Barbara's performance, was very realistic and believable. I can't wait to watch more movies that include her as a starring character!
ReplyDelete- Nathalie Fernandez
I thought this film was pretty good. I enjoyed Barbara Stanwyck’s performance in Baby Face more. You can really see the production code in effect in Stella Dallas. Stanwyck was more raunchy and frank in Baby Face than in Stella Dallas. She was a lot more reserved in this film. But concerning this film, I didn’t like the transition of Stella that the film showed. It was okay to show her deterioration with the hideous make-up and outfit she had on when she went around Laurel’s friends but they made her appear to put on weight too drastically. I think that was unrealistic. In the real world people put on weight but not in such an extreme manner as they portrayed. I didn’t like the character Stephen. First, he didn’t want Stella to change, and then the next moment we see him asking Stella when is she going to change. He didn’t know what he wanted himself. He met Stella out of nowhere and after a couple of dates, he married her. That marriage was destined to be doomed. Stephen knocks up Stella and then isn’t around to raise his child except during the summers. Him moving to New York was a tough decision but that was Stella’s fault for not going with him. It would have prevented all the drama that Stella experienced if she’d just moved with her husband. Stephen should stop Stella from the get go of having that male friend. Their relationship was too over the top for Stella to be having as a married woman and mother. Their relationship just had no chance. I liked the medium shots of Stanwyck. The film didn’t have all of these typical close ups just for an emotional effect. It worked with having the medium shots; we could still decipher her feelings. The lighting was okay. This was an upbeat film so it had a lot of bright colors. I liked Laurel. She tried to make sacrifices for her mother despite her really knowing what was going on. I think the ending was a huge sacrifice that Stella made for Laurel. It was not selfish at all. It was a heroic decision and a the best and hardest decision a mother could have made.
ReplyDeleteI loved Stella Dallas. I thought it was really moving, especially the ending. Having now seen two of Stanwyck’s movies, I can definitely say that I’m slowly becoming a fan. I actually found it almost incredibly difficult to watch the end only because I felt a little unfulfilled. It’s a shame that her daughter would never the full sacrifice that she made and the utter love behind that sacrifice, which, I suppose makes it even more heart-wrenching. But, I still would have liked to see some form of acknowledgment between Stella and her daughter.
ReplyDeleteI found Stanwyck’s performance amazing. It was interesting to see her change from the character in Baby Face to someone so selfless with such intact and astute motherly instincts. Of course, there is the similarity of someone moving up the social ladder, but the characters themselves are vastly different. I really appreciated the way that they represented the separation between the couple. I think that Vidor handled these issues that can be so contrived on-screen, really well. The ideas of motherly sacrifice, and marital separation, can be very overwrought with melodrama. And, of course, this is I guess, classified as a melodrama, but it does not come off as ‘soap-opera’ melodrama. It’s a fairly nuanced representation of familial relations, especially considering the era that it was made in.
Overall, I really enjoyed the movie. I thought it was actually beautiful in nature, and refreshing in terms of what some may call ‘chick flicks.’
This film Stella Dallas was definitely a new favorite. It’s the first 30’s film I’ve seen that presents the joyous, prosperous, sensitive façade of the upper class in a nearly mocking way by utterly contrasting it with the life of the lower class culture, filled with lewd merriment and lack of social etiquette.
ReplyDeleteBarbara Stanwyck surprised me with her character, Stella Dallas, in this film despite the fact that I suspected her character to mirror her role in Baby Face since they share a similar storyline of her elevating herself through manipulation. She was still an amazing, straight-faced liar in this role, but watching her grow into a senile mother was almost extraordinary.
I loved that her daughter, Laurel, supported her through it all, even though Stella humiliates her throughout her lifetime and continually exposes her to her drunken friend. Her daughter’s support makes the audience love Barbara all the more in this gaudy role.
The ending was definitely bittersweet but nonetheless more realistic than most of the film endings we’ve seen. They captured the person Stella Dallas so clearly and realistically in this film, and I congratulate Barbara Stanwyck on performing another dynamically disturbed character.
-Allison Basham
I enjoyed Stella Dallas and enjoyed Barbara Stanwyck's great performance. One of my few criticism has to be of the melodramatic acting. Sometimes it was over the top and moments seemed staged. The acting was so dramatic that there was never a departure from high emotion and we were never able to just take it in. Stella's daughter is especially dramatic and is too much of a parody. I enjoyed Barbara Stanwyck's change as a character. From beginning to end there is a huge change. The more I see of Barbara Stanwyck the more I am impressed with her ability to take on movies that are so different from one another. It's hard to not become a fan of hers the more movies you see. Overall, I enjoyed the movie and wouldn't mind seeing it again.
ReplyDeleteOn Monday we say the movie Stella Dallas starring Barbara Stanwyck. This is the second film we’ve seen her in, the other one being Baby Face. I really enjoyed the way Barbara Stanwyck delivers her lines. Her dialogue is very fast paced when it needs to be, and very dramatic when that is the case.
ReplyDeleteIn Stella Dallas, she plays Stella a young woman who from a humble family who marries a wealthy man, Dallas, played by John Boles. Even though Dallas tells Stella her likes her the way she is, he tries to change her one they get married and make her more proper so she can be a part of the high class. Stella doesn’t not want to be high class, nor attempt to be high class. They have a daughter, Laurel, whom they both love, but Dallas doesn’t like the way Stella is raising their daughter. After a while, they grow apart and divorce. Dallas marries another woman, and Stella stays in the same place raising her daughter.
By the end of the film Stella send her daughter to live with her father because she knows it’s better for her to be with him, than with Stella. Barbara Stanwyck was great in her final performance when the daughter comes back to stay with her and she pretends that she’s going to marry the other guy. When her daughter sees her self-destructive behavior she runs back to her father.
It was also an emotional ending when Stella cries watching her daughter getting married. It was a great ending I really like it; it was bittersweet. Overall a great film, directed by Vidor, and great acting by Stanwyck.
I found this movie to be not only captivatingly entertaining, but also genuinely interesting in both plot and theme. The plot mesmerized me throughout the entire film and not once did I expect what was to transpire next. From scene to scene, the movie kept me interested. I believe such a high level of interest was created by the almost instant attachment I felt to Stella, the main character. The scene in which she is making the dress for her daughters party was one of the cutest scenes I have scene in a long time. We immediately feel emotion for Stella who we see as a woman who is self sacrificing for the greater good of her daughter.
ReplyDeleteI remember when I was younger, my grandma would sometimes talk about people she knew, or someone we saw on TV together and would say “Oh! She’s a real Stella Dallas”- meaning she is someone who is unselfish and self sacrificing, a good hearted person. After hearing that we were going to watch this movie, I immediately called her to ask her if this Stella Dallas was the same as the Stella Dallas she used to reference- it was. I found it extremely interesting how this movie crossed mediums and broke through into the language of the time. Upon thinking about this, I realized that this movie must have really made an impact on possibly a whole generation’s culture if it, decades later, was still being referenced in language.
The movie, while heartbreaking and sad, was at the same time a movie that made me smile just as much as it made me cry. I cried like a baby multiple times throughout. The unbreakable relationship between mother and daughter is presented in such a real way that I felt true emotion and concern for the feelings of these fictional characters. The mutual loyalty between Stella and her daughter is the epitome of why I consider this movie to be bittersweet. A perfect example of this is during the scene in which Stella insists that Lollie live with her father, to which Lollie responded with a resounding no- obviously resulting in me both crying and smiling at the same time. Stella and Lollie’s relationship also made me evaluate my own relationship with my mother, and made me look at said relationship from a different point of view than usual- I saw myself as a daughter, and became immediately overwhelmed with both appreciation and sadness as I thought about all of the sacrifices my mother probably had to make to give me the life she has. Something I of course have thought of before, but now with a new light shed on motherhood via this movie.
Barbra Staynwycks performance was absolutely perfect, as per usual. I thought this movie to be a perfect example of the shift in the way women were see in classical Hollywood beginning in the thirties and spanning even into the forties. Both in classical Hollywood films and in films made today, it is rare for a huge female star to even exist, let alone capture the screen from her male counterpart. But in the thirties, this was commonplace. Female stardom in the thirties is something that has been particularly interesting to me since I started studying film. Stanywck is a perfect example of a woman who, unfortunately unlike a lot of female actresses today, perpetually steals the spotlight from male counterparts through pure talent and a somewhat unexplainable quality that can be described in no other way than as stardom.
STELLA DALLAS is one of the best films ever made; I must say that at the end of the movie I was crying like a little girl. What acting style does Barbara Stanwyck have, I love the way that she changes her voice. The first time I ever saw her was in BABYFACE and I feel in love with her voice; everything from the tone to the way the camera picks her voice up. But in this film she changes it from really sexy to a more normal tone. After seeing this film I was sure that Barbara Stanwyck knows how to act, I also love the way that she takes the roles from all the men that she is next to, and this movie is no differs she took the role away from the men that she was married to just by the look in her face, the way she looked at him when he came back from his stay with the other women, she looked at him so madly in love with him, it really made me think that they (off the set) had a love thing going on. I just loved how they look at each other and the way they acted together. I loved the costumes and how Barbara Stanwyck “made all her own” she was really moving when her husband came back and she wanted to look really nice for him so she took off the flower that was on her dress and she also took off the other part of it and then she didn’t put on a lot of makeup I felt that at this point in her life she really was ready to have a family. I also love the way that she acted when she got the news that her daughter found out about what she had done. That part that really made me cry was at the end when she asked the police officer just to see her daughter face at the wedding. I thought it was really nice of the officer to let her stay and watch the wedding even though he had no idea who she was. I also like the part that they transformed Barbara Stanwyck from being beautiful, skinny, almost anorexic, gorgeous, petite body into this awful big bone person. I just love the overall shot of the whole movie. This film was in my opinion done amazingly.
ReplyDeleteWhen we got into the theater I was really excited to see another Barbara Stanwyck movie! For the first part I really enjoyed her acting but as the movie went on I started becoming less interested and more bored of her character, even if she dressed in ridiculous clothes she really did seem to stand out anymore. I think its because I was hoping to connect Stanwyck to a stronger character then she actually was. At the begging she definitely was a strong character, taking the initiative to get what she wants and make sure nothing stands in her way. Once her daughter was born though she began to become obsessed with her and this wasn’t a really interesting concept. The only redeeming aspect of this is that its more interesting than normal life. People might be obsessed with things in their life but when they truly on focus on this subject without any regard for anything else, that’s when it become out of the ordinary and interesting.
ReplyDeleteI’m not sure how I feel about the character Laurel, at times she seems to be mature and in control but others she like a little kid and has no rearguard for anyone else or their feelings. When she talks about Stephen Dallas’ new love interest to her mother she knows how it would affect her mom but still does it. Even if she didn’t I would think she would have more respect to her mother then to yell at her for getting smudge mark to the pictures. The character didn’t really have any growth or direction. She seemed not affected by any of the other characters problems; she just did her own thing. Overall it was a decent movie but I would have enjoyed it much more if Stella was a much stronger main lead.
Stella Dallas was our second exposure to Barbara Stanwyck after Baby Face and can I just say that she is amazing! First, the range of acting and emotions she is able to summon is quite astounding. In Baby Face, Stanwyck played a temptress that was completely self-serving. All her lines were subtly risqué and her role emanated a sense of female empowerment.
ReplyDeleteOn the completely other hand, in Stella Dallas, Stanwyck plays a mother who loves her daughter so much, that she is willing to give everything up so that she may live a life that is better than hers. Although the ending is up to interpretation, I truly feel that Stanwyck’s character (who may not have made the best decisions as a mother) had always had the right intentions for her daughter. Her character is much more complex and is not the black and white of that of Baby Face. She originally wanted and enjoyed the highclass society life, only to figure out that she feels empty beneath the gilded exterior. She no longer enjoys the luxurious life and feels bored of always acting as the trophy wife. Instead, she would rather go out to a party and have fun.
The ending was particularly interesting in that it could have been interpreted in two ways. Some may say that Stanwyck’s abandonment of her daughter was one of a self-serving nature, where she just did not care about her daughter anymore and wanted to live her own life. While others, like myself, believe she did it in self-sacrifice so that her daughter may have a more enjoyable and successful life than that of her own. Either way, the ending is incredibly moving, and I could not help to feel extremely sorry for Stanqyck’s characters in part to her tremendous acting as well as the beautiful cinematography.