All That Heaven Allows (1955)

I too like this best of all the Sirk films. I like the bohemian party with the great mix of people , each conservative enough in their own culture, but bohemian in that they reach out to others. Then there’s Rock Hudson with his goofy charm, his soft baritone and his mock tango. He just lets himself loose in a way I do not recall in his other films. My favorite thing is Gloria Talbots’s performance. She perfectly portrays a you g college intellectual who believes what she is learning but finds that her feelings don’t follow her head. Her scene when she breaks down , after having defended her mother is practically raw, the last thing you would look for in a DOUGLAS Sirk i film. The brother was simply jealous but Gloria was really torn by conflicting emotions, devotion to her principles, assurance that her mother’s interest in Ron dated from well after her father’s death, her embarrassment at the idea of a much younger step father, and frustration over her inability to control these feelings.

The best thing is the way the kids simply dropped their objections and went on with their lives after she did what they wanted. This was bound to happen any way. JANE did not like her snobby friends, and did not get any support or satisfaction from their relationships. They left her alone even when she complied with their rules. Even Agnes Moorhead left her stranded, not coming to lunch , not being available. Aside from the sexual tension she was plainly and simply lonely, and their answer was for her to shut up and watch tv. Most of her discomfort with the idea of Ron as her partner disappeared when she quit trying to bring him into her life. Among her friends Ron was prickly,standoffish and simply refused to pretend he did not feel their snide disdain. When she was with his friends there was no discomfort. By trying to hold on to her old life with her dead husband she was not allowing her new relationship to take shape.


Télé I had a little experience with this. When mom died my father was in his 80’s but of perfectly sound mind. There was a very nice widow in her 70’s who began spending a lot of time with him, and whom he enjoyed. My sister was a little uncomfortable. I felt that after long difficult years of caregiving during which he was completely loyal to mom and her needs, he deserved some pleasure if he chose it. The lady would not have moved into our territory financially or any other way. I can imagine though that when we were younger, this situation could have been more challenging.