"Far From Heaven" (2002)

“Far From Heaven” (2002)

I’m always late to discover things, so I feel it is perfectly natural I just dug up ths movie from director Todd Haynes.

I think it was because his new movie “Carol” had just finished shooting in my hometown. Reading the synopsis, it almost feels this could be a companion to “Far From Heaven.”

As a kid, I recall going to church every Sunday. Just, as my Mom would say “kill time on weekend.” When services ended, there were a group of adults that got together and watched melodramas. You have to understand during this time in the early 80’s, cable t.v. was very limited. And there were only 3 networks. Waiting for my Ma, I’d poke my head in and watch the dumpy tube television with the shitty VCR. They had these really deep soap opera-like movies playing. Although I didn’t understand the language (as they were in Mandarin) it seemed everyone was earnest in what they were saying. And I could tell there was lost love, or heartbreak. I recall being moved by this. That’s what this movie seemed like. A hyper-realistic flick, done in the style (pitch perfect) to a Douglas Sirk movie.

Julianne Moore has that face. That wonderful classic face. It’s the inner strength you see in a tough gal of that era. She has a quiet force that forces you to follow. She could be wounded one minute, but turn around and use it as resilience. Masterful. In this type of style, it is really easy to go corny. This movie anchors itself into a legit story of life’s masquerade. And we go with it. What cuts deep is that their themes still resonate today. Except in the more modern world, people on social media do the most damage. And we’re still curious about people’s secret lives. We still find ways to keep people from caring who they care about. The taboo runs much deeper as it is now much more insidious.