Many of us loved movies because it can take us to a place different from our present lives. It can create such illusion that trigger us to be happy, sad or wherever the movie takes us. Why Shakespeare made romance maybe because he was a romance junkie, and people who love romance loved his work. Why Stephenie Meyer created Twilight maybe because her-teenage mind wanted to be with a man like Edward Cullen. And many women love the story and become a fan because they loved her imagination. Many, many women loved the illusion, the fantasy, of a hottie, out of ordinary have interest in a common woman like them. Many women like Cecilia (Mia Farrow) in The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985).
Cecilia love movies. It’s probably the highlight of her day, everyday. It’s what she talks about to her sister in the morning as they waitressing. People who work in the theater knows her as a regular customer. Nevermind her lousy gambler husband, nevermind their poor financial situation, nevermind the The Great Depression in New Jersey. She can always turn to cinema and get lost to the story every night (Boy, do the movie ticket must’ve cost so much cheaper than today).
Somehow she winded up watching the movie currently playing in the cinema, The Purple Rose of Cairo five times. In this particularly fifth time, Tom Baxter (Gil Shepherd), the dreamy hunk character in the movie, suddenly takes a look at her from the big screen and said, “You’ve watched this movie five times already.” He jumped out of the screen and confess to her that he love her. He takes her away from the cinema, leaving the cast in the screen and the crowd in the cinema, also the cinema staff shocked. What??
“I just met a wonderful new man. He’s fictional but you can’t have everything.”
Stop right there. I love how Woody Allen just flows his imagination and writing to make the story so imaginative yet believe-able. I can feel how there’s no interruption in his fantasy that the story felt flow smoothly. Creating magic, like beautiful music. Cecilia, the poor woman bashed with harsh reality (husband who takes advantage of her and their money, got fired from her job and feeling alone), suddenly have the handsome leading man’s heart. The dreamy prince in the fairy tale (or in analogy) wants to be with her and fall for her. Wants to do everything just to be with her, though the cast in the movie waits for her in the screen and left the producers of the movie all confused.
Everything comes down to Cecilia. Or, every woman who chose to watch romance movies rather than be out there to be in the real world. What to choose? Perfection but unreal, or imperfection but real?
Sometimes we do need ‘that’ illusion. That’s why we keep waiting for good movies to come. Not just romance. But from all genres. You need the illusion, to keep you entertained and to ‘forget’ your current state for just 90-120 minutes average. You’re not a regular person for a moment, but you are in the movie with the action stunts, all the thrills and all the high feeling of in love (in romance movies). Who could blame Cecilia for wanting to watch movies every night when reality just is unpleasant.
But movies are just movies. They are fictional. Like when Tom said money’s no problem to him, but the waitress wouldn’t accept his money because it’s fake. And then, they run from the restaurant because they can’t pay. Tom jumped to the car and wait for the engine to start, but nothing happens. He said, the car used to just drive after he jumped behind the wheels. It’s hilarious, but it’s pretty much effective for Cecilia and us to realize just how unreal Tom was.
I love how Tom is all adventurous and romantic, but at the same time felt unreal. It was also hilarious when Tom invited Cecilia inside the movie and the head waitress realized that because of the new freedom Tom took, he also can stop taking care of the guests. And he started dancing to the main stage. I love how Woody tear down the walls between big screen and us audience, like movie characters actually have their own interests. It was out of the box and refreshing. The best performance to me was Mia Farrow, the commoner woman who thinks she doesn’t have anyone but her hard husband. Very natural and modest, and simply naive. But her knowledge about movies is covered with her common looks.
Reality sometimes can fool us that things will never got better, where Cecilia should feel low after her husband, who should be taking after her, ended up wasting her. But it doesn’t need to be like that for the rest of her life.
I have always cautious before I watch Woody Allen movies, as I usually hated it or like it. But I love this one. It’s a perfect story how movies can ‘trick’ you like that, put you to spell and snap you to reality after it’s over. We all need illusion, but in the end we always choose the reality. We are after all humans, we got tired with reality but it doesn’t mean we quit from it.
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