Seen with Linda for $8.50 + $1.50 telecharge on 9 August 1997 at the Cineplex Odeon Regency.
Career Girls has the feeling of going to a class reunion or even just reading an alumni bulletin. Some people have done well, some have done worse, and for some people, nothing has changed, and being in the middle of that self-esteem barom eter can be very unnerving. Regardless of the refinements that are added over time, a lot of raw emotions and memories are still bubbling under the surface. This is the defining essence of the film.
Career Girls is different from some of Mike Leigh's oth er works. There is no "high concept" operating here as in Secrets and Lies (black woman with white birthmother) or social commentary (High Hopes). Here it's just two friends having a weekend reunion after a six-year absence.
The storytelling works a lot like memory--there is an fair amount jumping from the present to the past, and while this is difficult at first, it eventually works very well. Memories being revealed at appropriate moments as the women remember them, rather than telling a chronological narrative.
Hannah (Katrin Cartlidge) and Annie (Lynda Steadman) were roommates years ago in a flat above a Chinese take-away in a rundown part of town. Now, they appear average in every way--well coifed, well dressed, and quite grown up. But years ago, A nnie was scarred with severe dermatitis and always shied away from looking directly at people. Interestingly enough, she studied psychology. Hannah was very passive-aggressive and very frenetic, jerking about to and fro and causally making random cruel re marks.
Annie is from Yorkshire, not too far from the home of the Bront‘ sisters. The roommates often use Wuthering Heights as a ouija board of sorts. Annie enjoys a close family life while Hannah has to deal with an alcoholic mother. Both have suffered w alk-out fathers, though, and while it is sometimes hard to figure out why they are friends, they do bond. They also have a friend in another psychology student, the overweight stuttering Ricky, who never seems to have his eyes open, even though he seems t o have insights into others.
Now, while looking at properties together, their camaraderie is evident--it is often assumed they're a lesbian couple. One realtor turns out to be Adrian--a man Hannah slept with and Annie was in love with years ago. But, he doesn't remember either of them. Adrian has "moved up in the world" and is married with a child on the way. Hannah and Annie feel a bit left behind.
Musical Note: An interesting backdrop to the film is the choice of The Cure's mid-1980s work--these songs permeate certain scenes. "Love Cats" touches on a pair who "cratch and scream" but stay together through nightly romps. "The Catepillar Girl" discusses metamorphosis. But unlike butterflies, humans can change their patinas but they stay very close to the ir upbringing and roots. Without fulfilling significant others in their lives, Hannah and Annie are left very much on their own to dwell on their past, and still wishing to meet someone who will "kiss them in the water, and make their dry lips sing," as the song "The Walk" mentions.
Career Girls is an October Films release and they have a lovely little Website.
Copyright (c) 1997 Seth J. Bookey, New York, NY 10021
More movie reviews by Seth Bookey, with graphics, can be found at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/8588/kino.html
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