Watching a Film ...

Angela Maria Decent Nobrega Freitas, BSc Hons., Social Sciences, Open University, DipGeog., Open University Masters, MA, MLit., Literature, studied, Open University, Masters MA, MSc., MPhil., and Playwriting, studied, Birmingham University I am writing the following because I am struck by how Meryl Streep's character behaves in this film ... The Bridges of Madison County ... I am watching the Bridges of Madison County with Meryl Streep, and Clint Eastwood, the other actor I am familiar with in the film. It's about sexual profligacy outside of marriage. It's a loose and immoral tale of profligacy, the protagonist who is female and played by Meryl Streep rather too convincingly I fear to add, walks into an affair with the other protagonist played by Clint Eastwood, obviously not her husband, far too quickly, far too easily. A man arrives with pick up truck and asks a woman standing on a porch for directions, in Iowa, woman offers to get in truck to show man she has never met, a stranger, the way, we know nothing more of the character than that. I mean, would you? Matters of decorum seem to have escaped Francesca, Meryl's character who invitingly walks into the man's life, the character played by Clint Eastwood, a complete stranger, as in, someone she doesn't know and has never met, and proceeds to converse at, I have to say, converse at and i repeat, he stands there slightly struck listening, and matters go on from there./> There is music, to try to convince us, the studiously careful audience, but, of course that's not possible to do. I saw her say goodbye to her husband who left for a spell and apparently took the children, to go somewhere, it's all rather convenient for those involved to start an ill-advised affair, it was so easy that a man came along to take the husband's place for a while, a complete stranger, as I have said. Meryl Streep seems to have those types of encounters in films and has spent a lot of time crying, and not just crying, but distraught, which undoubtedly is due to mental distress, heavy duty worry that situations are not right, beaux/men/women, youth who work with Meryl and who ought to know better, she can be charming, but she is married; as a result she becomes strident, she cries, a lot, and she can be ferocious, and she talks as she cries, she puts forward her feelings, which are psychologically angry, unresolved, and when in discussion with Clint's character can appear imbalanced, and which are more to do with psychiatric concerns which ought to be addressed in psychiatric therapy and with medication, that is my personal prognosis for Meryl, at that time, as seen in the film, and it doesnt actually help Meryl to act in films that portray complicated or mentally challenged characters, and characters who have to deal with difficult personal concerns, that as an actor she thinks she will be able to address, impossible because the life experience that is essential to cope with such an undertaking is not there, she doesn't have that kind of background, how can she know, the psychological ability to deal with the disconnect of you as an actor and the character which you are determined to play is not there, and as well as that they are characters who don't ask the appropriate questions. She has done that a lot. And so to the matter of the film. Those situations have consequences, which neither protagonist seem to consider or give much thought to. I can't think of anything more strange as it must be to invite a stranger in, kiss a stranger's lips and mouth and touch a stranger's body, or even to contemplate it, which is where a lot of people go wrong, they give in far too easily to bodily functions of the mind and body, consequences they treat as something separate, something to deal with afterwards, if at all, and that is careless and uneducated, but they two do; especially when you have been in a marriage or relationship for a long time, going outside of that remit requires serious contemplation.  What happens afterwards, does anyone think about that? There is nervous exhaustion in Meryl's character, Francesca, undoubtedly and of course we the audience experience that as we watch, i was watching the film with only half an occasional eye to the screen, paying half the attention, i could hear a lot of noise and tears soon after she met Clint's charactert and it was too much to take in, very difficult angry sumation of her position and the situation she finds herself in, Clint was looking around himself, hello, Clint, saying his part ready to bolt, hello, they only have themselves to blame, she should have stayed home, inside not hanging around outside on the porch, which makes her character seem unsettled, and ready for any action that appears on the scene, and some, troubled and not really at home, but seemingly looking for something other than home, her whole persona speaks 'up to no good on her husband and kids', it has to be said, loose, home seems trash the way she abandons it and walks out and into a stranger's truck, never even locked the door, crazy, or check with her husband to make sure he and the kids arrived safely, she was most defintely not at home. Clint's character is a little more laid back, at least that's how he started in, initially, pretty soon Clint's laid back persona and his character is put through his laid back paces and he clearly is also someone who struggles to make sense of the riot party he has entered into, challenging his slightly ambiguous moral position because he somewhat willingly and slightly unwillingly enters into the fracas with Meryl, a position, and i have to say, once he loses the ego, or forgets his ego, he soon realises, he is really quite an ordinary concerned person, he has his faults, due to his standing as an actor that people liked to watch in western movies and he possibly knew it, hence the ego that creeps in in-between his tete a tete with Meryl/Francesca, however, the Bridges of Madison County is no western movie, it is Meryl's world according to Meryl, histrionics are included, and having to deal with grown up contretemps, with Meryl, as one does, but, however while the whilrwind whirrs he is no less psychologically impaired or hindered, as in hardly able to cope with the situation unfolding before him, it is what people bring out in each other who are opposites in almost every regard, that is what i see, until they finally arrive at the point consequent, they rub up and rub down, to use a quoloquial term, and after a while the words spoken by Meryl/Francesca grate on the nerves, burdensome, too much, he seems incapable of holding that particular baby, and the rest of us can only watch agape in utter disbelief at her behaviour and her willingness to enter into what should be forbidden territory, because of her marriage, to all intents and purposes, and how does she know that he is not engaged, that question didn't seem to qualify its credentials with Meryl, and Clint has a very wriggly baby in the arms, problematical, but, again, the age of the female protagonist has a lot to do with it, it's that age where some people, people who are unsettled and who don't quite know what to do with themselves, hence the immaturity on display, and, Meryl i thought you had a super dooper education, a-class student, and all that, did you not study your character before inhabiting her space, really? - what is the deal, Meryl, and as I was saying, a lack of experience mentally to cope with heavy mental anxiety, which is not there, or is simply too much to bear, and he of course is just a child, he hasn't lived at that stage in his life, acting in films all your life is not school, college or university for grown-ups, it is youth camp, age ten, i would premise, not unkindly, but let us get with reality, here. If the experience of life and people is not there, an imbalance is certain to occur and creates a dysfunction, which is what is clearly demonstrated in the film. To be psychologically, and physically challenged, there are some things that some people are just not equipped for, i would place Meryl and her character in that bracket at that point, the problem is Meryl can be rather loose, as i said, (very obvious, sorry, Meryl) a nightmare situation for anyone involved with her to have to cope with, her better self knows she is wrong to do what she does at the expense of her better self and her family, her bad side goes on to stand in the middle of the road, so to speak, to become involved in a horrible accident, time and time over, others are unwaringly dragged in or are stupidly willing participants to the accident, it is unbelievable atrocious behaviour, it is irresponsible to say the least, and there ought to be laws about that, it's a problem, an enormous problem, certainly for Meryl, as an actor, her husband and her family, and for anyone else involved to have to cope with. Those kinds of people are generally to be avoided, like expensive diamonds you cannot afford. My friend, for instance, likes Meryl, you will note my friend and i are just friends, its unjustifiable to have leanings towards problematic people, and i do question that, a lot in the people i know and live by, we all have to be careful and know our boundaries, Amen. To continue, its very difficult to conduct a marriage or relationship when only part of the person is there, and if neither participant is there, it's divorce all the way. Back to the film, Meryl seems to have a way of altering her voice, change it's pace and tempo, which works very well in film, and can be seductive, very naughtie, seduction is for the bedroom, if i may so old-fashionedely say, which works well, as I said, and i'm sure in any other artistic boundary she chose to take her voice to, her voice is rather beautiful, in the correct context, she has, however, an inner frustration which i sense to be psychiatrically meditated, medical, and its difficult, i'm sure to work with Meryl for those reasons. To continue, she may have grated on the nerves of those she is working with on the film and, unfortunarely too, the audience, stridency is not a good thing to bring to a part one is acting in on film, you have to be able to disconnect from personal mental frigidity or angst and be more open and relaxed when acting a part, it seems to me, in film or indeed, theatre, or any other forum you can think of, you cannot bring personal angst to bear because that is a pitfall and you will fall into it and become enslaved to your character, which you as a person will not like, it's against the grain to be two people at once, you have to be careful not to let go of who you are and be in control, but not controlling, of your emotions, everything, so you can work without fear and engage convincingly and appropriately with the story you wish to tell and with your co-actors, without bringing tantrums to the scene which is how it comes across, and indeed is what will happen if you have not prepared for the situation you are entering into. Its an educaction for me to see people in films, I'm afraid what I relate is what I have seen, what is obvious to me as an audience, we either watch or engage, as a sensible audience member I can only watch and deduct what I see, I cannot engage because I am not impressed by them or the story they are conflictingly putting across. I repeat, Meryl has been morally loose, and it shows, Meryl, it's far too obvious. Begging your pardon, but reading a script and supposing that it's that easy, oh, I know where she or he is coming from, is a fallacy, you need to concentrate and be learned, superior so you can work to the best of your ability, without falling down at the countless hurdles that come your way. Meryl, through her characters seems to have been in those difficulties for most of her life because we see it so often on film. Her and Clint, or Clint's character have had an encounter, spent time with one and the other, trying to legitimise the situation, perhaps been sexually intimate, however, she has problems and he walks into them, which he, as an actor, and perhaps as a person, rather belatedly comes to realize, and she threw herself at him, Meryl/Francesca, you did, what kind of marriage is that between Francesca and ber husband that she turns and switches off the moment he turns his back, its terrible, considering too he was away with the children, what kind of husband is he to leave a wife he must know is flakey and is likely to wander, and getting back to what i was saying about Clint, he now has a pile of problems he has to straighten out and/or resolve.

And this is the moral of the story. There is no satisfactory and/or conclusion to a 'fornicating' tale, as inevitably it turns into, I beg your pardon, a meeting of bodies, not exactly a meeting of minds, only that both protagonists are willing inadvisedly to enter into a sexual pas de doux, problems and all, dragging their rather torn and shabby and ilicit blankies behind them, and that's what it is, the protagonists are as different from each other as the proverbial chalk and cheese, trying to force cogs of different shapes into one form which is no doubt illegal and most certainly ill-advised, however, we all know the adage, because we hear it so often that opposites attract, a rather stupid quotidian if i may suggest, and, again, I was not convinced, by any of it. It's all messy, it's like tears, sweat and dirt, or what is commonly known as casual sex, to go with casual affairs, something, amen i know nothing about or wish to, particularly, we look at a film, it says Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood, and caramba i carracas (there is a cedilla under the second c to carracas, as in, carrasses), its not exactly a potent mix for our protagonists, and its most certainly not a poem in paradise. Hole in the wall situations. They are not healthy or welcome in any way, as demonstrated in the Bridges of Madison County, aka date ...... i will put in date later ....  Angela Maria De Nobrega Freitas