Why Are Blood Ties Sometimes Really Bleeding?
Exploring Postcards from the Edge (1990)
“The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new.” — Rajneesh
Do you agree with this?
Let's look at the film Postcards from the Edge (1990) directed by Mike Nichols and the screenplay by Carrie Fisher. This is the story of young actress Suzanne Vale (Meryl Streep) and her mother Doris Mann (Shirley MacLaine), who was a former actress but continues to act like a star.
Suzanne takes drugs and people on the set know about it. “I’m not a writer, I’m a walking, talking, drug-taking, sex-obsessed, alcoholic disaster.” — Suzanne
Lowell Kolchek (Gene Hackman), director of the movie, threatens to kick her out if she accepts drugs again. That same evening she passed out from an overdose. One of the random guys she was with during the overdose, Jack Faulkner (Dennis Quaid), takes her to a clinic where she then undergoes rehabilitation. After that, she decides to quit drugs, although it is very difficult for her because of failures on the set and constant arguments with her mother.
Essentially this is a film about a mother-daughter relationship. One of the powerful archetypes. Despite their blood ties, as two ordinary women, they have an instinctive sense of competition. I have seen this happen many times in my life (subspecies of this: a relationship between two sisters).
But in this case, the situation is aggravated by the fact that both of them are actresses — that is, they are susceptible to narcissism. A mother who does not want to admit that she is old and a daughter who grew up in the shadow of a famous mother and cannot prove to herself and others that she is worth something.
It must be admitted that the mother in this case does not act as a single evil. She is a born actress, and for her daughter, acting is just a convenient way to earn money without straining at the expense of her mother’s fame and connections. Even the daughter herself admits this when her mother sings the song “I’m Still Here” (eloquent title). Suzanne: “You don’t want me to sing, you’re the singer, you’re the performer, I don’t want to compete with you. Someone can win, I can do it, even if not as good as you.”
“A mother’s job is to teach her children to be strong, independent, and kind. But a mother’s greatest achievement is when her children become her friends.” — Unknown
A remarkable moment was in the drug clinic. Doctor: “Who are you mad at?” And then her mother comes, it’s like a non-verbal answer to the question. The doctor insists that it’s better for her to live with her mother after being discharged from the clinic. Mother: “She can’t live with me, she’s even worse than her father.” Daughter: “I need a lot of strength.” Mother: “It’s not you, but me who needs the most strength.”
The mother is one of the main stressors for her daughter and the cause of her behavior and drug use.
Daughter: “I want to have my acquaintances who don’t have to admire you.” Mother: “Can’t you combine this?”
Daughter: “You are always the mistress of the situation, you always overshadow me.”
Mother: “You always don’t let me tell you.”
Daughter: “Sometimes it seems to me that it’s not you who is speaking, that this is from some role.”
The daughter is in the clinic after a drug overdose and one of her mother’s fans approaches. The mother immediately begins to communicate, forgetting about her daughter.
Mother: “You’re jealous because I can drink, but you can’t take drugs.”
Daughter: “You’ve been feeding me sleeping pills since I was 9 years old.”
Mother: “It came from the pharmacy.”
Mother: “Why do you hate me? Would you like Joan Crawford to be your mother?
Daughter: “Are there no other options?”
After rehabilitation, Suzanne will get a role in one of the mid-level films.
A cool moment was when she went to the costume designer and overheard a conversation between the costume designer and the director regarding the shortcomings of her acting and appearance.
Suzanne’s life is also complicated by relationships with men. Jack Faulkner said that he loved her. Jack: “I think I love you.” Suzanne: “When will you know for sure?” But it turns out that he constantly dates different women. For him, it’s like a sport.
Mother: “I was nobody and achieved everything in life. You have everything but you want to destroy yourself.
Suzanne: “I don’t need drugs to be creative. I need drugs to be normal.”
Suzanne’s mother is not an iron lady either. Behind the façade of confidence and happiness, there is a great fear of lost beauty. This is why she drinks regularly. The mother reports that Suzanne’s agent ran away with her money. Suzanne: “Thank God I’m sober and ready for this new humiliation.” The daughter goes to her room and the mother takes out a bottle of vodka and pours it into her milkshake.
In the finale, Suzanne goes to Dr. Frankenthal (Richard Dreyfuss), who had helped her after her last overdose, and he invites her to see a movie. Suzanne agreed but said she was not ready to date yet. Dr. Frankenthal told her he was willing to wait. Maybe he is the only one who understands and appreciates her. “Hollywood is a place where they’ll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul.” — Dr. Frankenthal
Conclusion
The film concludes on the final day on a set of Lowell Kolchek’s new film. Suzanne performs a country western song “I’m Checkin’ Out (of this heartbreak hotel)”. This remarkable title gives a hint for a happy end but what happens in reality?
Do you want to know what happened next with Suzanne?
For this, it is worth remembering that the film was based on the novel by Carrie Fisher, Postcards from the Edge (1987). The book was semi-autobiographical where she satirized real-life events such as her drug addiction of the late 1970s and her relationship with her mother. It became a bestseller, and she received the Los Angeles Pen Award for Best First Novel.
Carrie Fisher's mother was a real movie star Debbie Reynolds, who had a breakout role as Kathy Selden in Singin’ in the Rain (1952). Carrie Fisher herself succeeded as an actress, playing one of the main roles in the cult trilogy Star Wars. Carrie revealed that she used cocaine during the filming of The Empire Strikes Back. In 1985, after months of sobriety, she accidentally overdosed on a combination of prescription medication and sleeping pills. In 2006–2011 Carrie Fisher publicly discussed her diagnosis of bipolar disorder and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) treatments. She said she used drugs as a form of self-medication.
When she was asked why she did not take on the role of her story’s protagonist, Suzanne, Fisher answered, “I’ve already played Suzanne.” She passed away on December 27, 2016, at age 60. The report stated that Fisher had cocaine in her system, as well as traces of heroin, other opiates, and MDMA. The day after Fisher’s death, her mother died at age 84.
FYI: The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), including the term “bipolar disorder”, was published by the American Psychiatric Association, in its third edition in 1980. I.e. Debbie Reynolds could not fully understand what was happening to her daughter at her younger age.
Therefore, I don’t fully agree that after the birth of a child, some new entity “mother” or “father” appears as Rajneesh thinks.
“A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning unnecessary.” — Dorothy Canfield Fisher
My point is that the birth of a child is another tough test for a personality. A factor that reveals their essence. The one who is good inside will become better. Those who are bad will become even worse.
Additional Information
The film’s budget was $22 million and the box office was $63.4 million.
The movie was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress (Meryl Streep) and Best Original Song (“I’m Checkin’ Out”) but didn’t win. It’s one more huge mistake on the part of film critics. This calls into question the opinion of some conceited producers that biopics always win Oscars. They better know the results of the movies “Mommy Dearest” or “Blonde”.
The selection of actors is generally normal, although I would prefer to see someone else instead of Meryl Streep. Shirley MacLaine played better, simply because she was more suited to this type. I think Meryl Streep got this role because Mike Nichols had previously cast her in the film Silkwood (1983).
A good opening scene: at the Mexican customs, when the officer hits her, very unexpectedly, but then it turns out that this is filming, they get up and start laughing and Suzanne hugs the officer. It looks very authentic although it might have been better to start with a shot of her hanging on the roof of the building during filming since this more accurately reflects her personal situation.
Scores
I will try to assess the main parameters of the film that seem important to me using a 1–10 point scale.
Selection of Actors 8
Innovation 6
Soundtrack 8
Main Idea 10
Finale 8
Total 8
Thanks for your time.
