Blog Directory CineVerse: Planes, trains and 300-foot yachts

Planes, trains and 300-foot yachts

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Preston Sturges knew how to subvert and twist the mainstream values and mores of his time by spoofing sacrosanct concepts like the sanctity of marriage and fidelity in his films. An excellent example of this is showcased in "The Palm Beach Story." Here's our CineVerse group's read on this flick:

WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN RISQUE, OFFBEAT OR REFRESHINGLY DIFFERENT ABOUT “THE PALM BEACH STORY” FOR 1942 AUDIENCES?

  • The sexual subtext: This film is replete with double entendres and hints about sex that only a very clever filmmaker could have possibly gotten past the censors. Consider these examples:
    • the “Wienie King”—who carries a big wad of money in his pocket that symbolizes the phallic power of money and how cash can be a surrogate for sexual potency.
    • “I paid the butcher, the grocer and the drug store,” says Gerry, suggesting a subtext of prostitution.
    • “Just let me catch you on a 300-foot yacht, or even a 200-foot yacht,” says Ben; on a Freudian level, this could be code for warning his wife of having trysts with well-endowed men.
    • “If it’s one thing I like, it’s a woman who can whip up something out of nothing,” says Hackensacker. “”Would you like me to whip up something for you right here at the table?” asks Gerry. “I like a whipping woman, too,” says Hackensacker.
    • Don’t take it so seriously—they want to bake a cake, dear,” says the Princess.
    • “You never think of anything but Topic A, do you?” asks Tom. “Is there anything else?” replies the Princess.
  • This film challenges the concept that money can’t buy you love. It suggests that having money is important for a relationship to function properly.
  • The irreverent approach to the institution of marriage and its casual attitude toward divorce is evident in this story: The picture opens with a strange prologue that would have thrown audiences for a loop:
    • Colbert is in a wedding dress while another woman is bound within a closet
    • a question is posed to the viewer: “And they lived happily ever after. Or did they?” Right up front, this is playing with the convention of the tacked on, obligatory happy ending Hollywood typically gives a film at the conclusion. While most movies of this period end with a wedding, this one starts with a wedding and proceeds to a separation/divorce.
    • Additionally, Gerry’s motivation for wanting a divorce is rather odd; she claims to be an impractical wife for Gerry, as she admits she cannot cook, clean, sew, etc. Sturges is perhaps poking fun at how men view female spouses as utilitarian housekeepers in this time period.
  • This is in the tradition of classic screwball comedies, especially in its depiction of a battle of the sexes and its comedy of remarriage; however, it takes the screwball, now in 1942 near the end of its classic cycle, to another zany extreme with subversive sexual subtexts, false pretenses, mistaken identities, intentional misdirection and fortuitous coincidences. Most of the story is essentially an extended chase.
  • This film was released shortly after our entering into World War II, yet there is no mention of the war; unlike the more serious and often patriotic movies released at this time, this is a refreshing, funny departure from fare of that kind.
  • Mary Astor, a nymphomaniacal side character in this story, was known for having a sexually scandalous recent past—this character pokes fun at her reputation. 

WHAT PROVES TO BE PARTICULARLY DATED AND INSENSITIVE ABOUT “THE PALM BEACH STORY” THAT MIGHT MAKE MODERN AUDIENCES CRINGE?
  • As in several Sturges films and other movies of this era, African Americans are showcased as buffoonish, ignorant butts of the joke, typically employed in some lower-class servant type occupation.
  • The suggestion here is that Colbert, like other women of her time, had to rely primarily on sex appeal and physical beauty to get ahead. 

WHAT THEMES ARE ESPOUSED IN “THE PALM BEACH STORY”?
  • A happy and successful marriage takes a lot more work than many couples anticipate.
  • The institution of marriage may not be that sacrosanct after all.
  • There’s no romance without finance: money helps grease the gears of a successful man-woman relationship.
  • Love is a game of cat and mouse. Here, the mouse is “Tom” and the pussycat is “Gerry”—two names that obviously reference the cartoon characters. Other characters in the film with cartoonish or pet animal names include Toto, Snoodles, and Princess.
  • The danger of building your relationship on a “house of cards” in a manner of speaking: consider how Tom’s airport model features quite flimsy-looking buildings and structures that resemble houses of cards.
  • A healthy sex life is what helps fuel a strong marriage. Think about how Tom doesn’t care about the fact that Gerry cannot cook, sew, clean, etc. Yet, when she sits on his lap, they’re both turned on and their romance is rekindled. This lap-sitting is, in fact, the catalyst that reunites them at the end and changes her mind. Perhaps Sturges is suggesting here that marriage not only requires having some money to grease the wheels, but also maintaining a healthy sex life based on mutual attraction—which flies in the face of traditional romantic notions of the time holding that those who marry are meant to be together no matter what and must love, honor and obey, with women expected to be homemakers/housekeepers. 

DOES THE PALM BEACH STORY REMIND YOU OF ANY OTHER FILMS OR BOOKS?
  • The Philadelphia Story, in that its title is a play off that earlier film
  • “The Marriage of Barillon” by French author of absurdist and farcical plays Georges Feydeau; this story depicts complications that split several married couples, who pair up with new partners prior to reuniting them with their original partners 

OTHER FILMS BY WRITER/DIRECTOR PRESTON STURGES
  • The Great McGinty
  • The Lady Eve
  • Sullivan’s Travels
  • The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek
  • Hail the Conquering Hero
  • Christmas in July

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