Orpheus

To start off, Orpheus was a little disappointing for me at first simply because of how the myth was molded to fit the film. We were just talking about Orpheus' story in my Chaucer class and I never imagined there would be this kind of version to it. But, putting aside the fact that it was based on the myth, there were so many interesting concepts to this film!
My favorite idea is the thought that Orpheus was falling for Death, or playing with suicide. It was actually brought up in class and the more I think about it relating to the movie the more interesting it is to me. At the beginning Orpheus feels threatened by another poet, who is killed shortly after we meet him. This is the first time Orpheus is encountered by Death, he follows her and is entirely intrigued by her. As the movie progresses, he becomes more and more reclusive, interestingly enough confined to the vehicle in which Death travels while in the mortal land. He falls in love with her and seems willing to do anything for her. Orpheus showed little interest in his wife throughout the film until the very end, in which he had forgotten he had encountered Death at all. Even when he has the chance to go get his wife from the underworld, he is interested only in the chance to see Death again.

Laura, Femme Fatale?

As we watched Laura in class on Tuesday, I personally had much difficulty not getting caught up in the plot. I had to keep reminding myself that I'm watching this for a class, I need to pay attention to detail, mechanics, I need to analyze these characters. It was just so easy to let the images flood my mind and let the story take me.

But as I continually forced myself back into analysis mode I took some interest in the character of Laura. Before we started the movie we talked a little in class about the femme fatale and that in this particular movie the femme fatale wasn't especially traditional. The only femme fatale characteristic I could really apply to Laura was the infatuation others developed for her, even when she was thought to be dead. Her portrait had an overwhelming effect and was often strategically placed in the background of camera angles.

After I read the femme fatale article No Place For a Woman I forced myself to notice a couple more ways Laura would fall into the catagory. She had a strong career, and the film showed her with the power to grant jobs, as she did with Carpenter. Also perhaps at the end when we assume that she chooses to be with McPherson, which will most likely lead her to a domestic life.

Although I did see a few ways to support Laura as the femme fatale woman, I still don't believe it is strong support. It just seems to me to accidentally fall into this catagory. After I read No Place For a Woman I imagined this kind of woman to be strong, independant, and self-assured. I imagined her to be above all opposed to marriage and opposed to all other means of depending on men. Laura was impassive and couldn't make up her mind. And finally when it seemed that she had made up her mind, she changed it.