GREY GARDENS (1975)

Posted by Daniel Metz

I returned to Grey Gardens as part of the Hey Homo! series. Although I never really considered this a “gay” film, I definitely allowed that audience to be part of my viewing perspective this time around. Unfortunately, drag queen-host Rebecca Havemeyer was not in attendance this week, so I didn’t get my fix of burlesque singing and diaper-talk. Nevertheless, the crowd was rowdy and definitely into the film. If I had to break down the appeal into one word, it would be: drama! This movie has it in spades, as Big Edie and Little Edie spend the film arguing, screaming, and criticizing each other with big voices and New York accents galore.

I’ve seen this film a number of times now, and I realized this time how conflicted I am about it. On one hand, I do believe it is one of the greatest documentary films to be produced, and certainly one of the best of the cinema verite style. Its peak moments, sprinkled throughout the film, are pure cinema bliss. Recall Little Edie’s military march, or her comment about the “best costume for the day,” and you will feel a warmth in your heart for the Maysles brothers’ ability to capture life. And it is not just any life, it is the life of two of the weirdest shut-ins in documentary or fiction filmmaking.

Little Edie explaining that someone needs to think up her costumes.

On the other hand, the film drags on, and the aimless splicing of scene after scene is rusty. The character of Jerry, or the “Mawble fauwen,” is slipped into the picture and not developed nearly enough. Some of their arguments are repetitive, and many aspects of their life, which are hilarious and bizarre in their first viewing, are now tired and expected. At about 75 minutes in, I found myself getting antsy, waiting for the big nude scene that signals the impending conclusion.

But, still, God is in the details of this film, and many of them still knock me out. The photographs of both Edies, juxtaposed against their grotesque aged bodies, is striking, and drew gasps from the audience. Big Edie’s bed, covered in old tissue boxes, radios, and mirrors, is outstanding in its cluttered realness. These two relatives live a twisted life, and it comes through with every frame of the film.

This woman needs to get out of bed,

Little Edie says towards the beginning of the film: “It’s very difficult to keep the line between the past and the present.” I like that, and it resonates with me on my viewing of this film, torn between my memory and expectations.

Grey Gardens is playing again at the Ritz on Sunday, November 28 at 4pm. Don’t miss it!