03.11.08

Sliding Doors

Posted in misogyny, romance, drama, reviews at 1:53 pm by FilmFemme

Sliding Doors is a movie for girls.  I am a girl.  I love this movie.

It’s one of those WHAT IF movies that starts with WHAT IF Gwyneth Paltrow does a British accent?

WHAT IF she is adorable and misses her train so she doesn’t find out that her boyfriend with the bad haircut is cheating on her with the uber-hot Jeanne Trippelhorn?

WHAT IF she is adorable and doesn’t miss the train, does find out about the philandering, and also does meet the not-so-cute-but-so-charming-and-funny-

even-if-he-is-kind-of-short James?

(Spoiler alert: everything turns out great either way).

And then, WHAT IF you think about this movie and its implications too hard?

Here’s what happens, then:

Ostensibly (per marketing, story, themes, etc.) this is a movie for women.  A “chick flick” if you will.  But though the movie is focused on a woman, her happiness and success in life is only because of the failings of other women.  Firstly, Jeanne Tripplehorn’s Lydia is in love with Gerry.  God knows why - he has terrible hair and is a complete dick and unemployed - but she loves him.  She wants him to leave Helen so they can be together.  But instead of telling him this, she tries to manipulate him into it.  At one point, she even states outright (I’m paraphrasing) that “Women don’t have to tell you what we want, but we reserve the right to be pissed off when we don’t get it!”  Oh lord.  This is the worst kind of female-hating.  So, the fact that Lydia is a manipulative (if horribly sexy) bitch, makes Helen look sweet and demure and perfect.

Then there is Helen’s best friend Anna (Zara Turner).  Anna is single and when Helen has to leave Gerry, she lets her stay with her, helps her apply for a small-business loan and they drink wine and do things like decorate and talk about feelings and stuff and of course eventaully everything turns out great for one of the alternate reality Helens.  But what about Anna?  What about the not-really-frumpy best friend who just looks frumpy because her best friend is Gwyneth fucking Paltrow?  She has a crush on James at first, but of course he goes for Helen.  And she is relegated to being a nobody, single, we never know anything about her, she’s just the Supportive  and Fiercely Loyal Friend whose happiness is entirely unimportant.  I understand how Anna as a character is necessary to this story, which I like, but I wish she would have been married or had something going for her at least.  Like, maybe she could have been a cool lesbian.  Helen’s story is cool, she’s cool and ambitious and cute and stylish and funny, but come onnnnnn, give Anna SOMETHING besides being ‘the friend.’  Let her at least be a whole character, even if we’re not meant to focus on her.

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