All That Heaven Allows

Directed by German film maker Douglas Sirk, All That Heaven Allows is one of the Hollywood melodrama masterpieces in 1950s. Focus mainly on women’s identity and desire, the film tells the story of Cary Scott, a wealthy, middle-aged widow living in a typical town in America in the 50s. Cary’s life is simple and boring after her husband’s death: she spends most of her time at home or goes to one of those boring country club parties. Longing for love and companionship, Cary falls in love with her young and handsome gardener Ron Kirby. Ron is like no one Cary has met before; he despise materialism and worships freedom. Cary soon finds peace and regains her passion for love during her time with Ron and his friends. But things do not go well for the couple. The gap between Cary’s and Ron’s social class immediately makes them the center of gossip in town. Cary’s neighbors mock Ron’s incivilization and Cary’s inappropriate behaviors as a widow. Under the pressure of her children and neighbors, Cary has to break up with Ron to keep her family together. But soon she finds that her sacrifice means nothing, as her son Ned is leaving the country and her daughter is getting married. Lonely and heartbroken, Cary returns to Ron but only finds out that he has an accident. Luckily, Ron wakes up and they confess love to each other. In the end, Cary leaves home and decides to live with Ron at his old mill.

Similar to many melodramas we have discussed earlier in the class, All That Heaven Allows focus on women’s identity and suffering, which is often caused by difference in socioeconomic classes. From the very beginning, Cary’s uneasiness in the cocktail party has showed the audience her struggle in the community. After her husband’s death, Cary is supposed to be an “unsexed” woman because of her identity as a widow. During her conversation with her daughter about  the old Egyptian custom of sacrificing the widows, Cary says “perhaps not in Egypt”, implying that her community in some way already view her as “dead. ” However, she wears a red dress to show her still existing beauty and sexuality. It is a sign of her resistance to the community’s values. Her relationship with Ron is the emancipation of her sexuality.

One of the most melodramatic scenes in the film is Ned and Kay’s reaction to Cary’s marriage. Cary is a typical motherly figure, and we can see that motherhood and desire for love are both intuitive to her. The melodramatic element comes in when she is forced to make a choice between the two. Cary starts to doubt her decision to marry Ron when her children are hurt by their relationship. Even though she tries to ignore people’s opinion and chases for her love, she is not as strong as she thinks. Ned, who becomes the patriarchal figure in the family after his father’s death, accuses Cary of giving up the family tradition and falls for “a good looking set of muscles.” Kay, no longer able to ignore the malignant comments about her family, forces Cary to choose them over Ron. Here, Ned and Kay serve as the  force that results in Cary and Ron’s separation and later tragedy. They do not care about Cary’s feeling and only consider the benefits of their own. Ned and Kay are satisfied with their positions in the community. Even though Cary can withdraw herself from the community, there is no way for her to separate her children from the rest. At that moment, it seems like Cary does not have a choice beside breaking up with Ron (actually she does, but she choose her children and the community). Later, when the children return home joyfully because of the breakup, they immediately move on to other things and leaving Cary at home with a television box. Unlike the mothers in Haha no Kyoku and Stella Dallas, Cary does not seem very happy with her son’s success and her daughter’s marriage. Instead, she regrets her meaningless sacrifice for them. Obviously, Cary longs for companionship. But her children, the ones who she decides to sacrifice for, never care about her feelings, considering she is a widow who doesn’t need love. The Christmas scene is very melodramatic as Cary’s emotion, her emptiness and helplessness, forms a sharp contrast to everything else. The scene ends with Cary’s reflection on the TV screen. With Ned’s and Kay’s faces hidden, the only thing that Cary can see is herself, emphasizing her solitude at the moment.

It’s comforting to see Cary return to Ron at the end of the film, after all those difficulties that they go through. Cary and Ron’s story has a happy ending, which in some way also reflects the melodramatic nature of the story. If it’s in real life, Cary could have ended up alone at the house, like many other unfortunate women.