Feeling Grey

This week, Criterion released The Beales of Grey Gardens, a follow-up to the Maysles brothers' 1976 documentary Grey Gardens that consists of about 90 minutes of never-before-seen footage. I recently wrote about both films for TimeOut Chicago -- you can read my thoughts here. Because I already wrote that review, I don't feel the need to critique the new film any further than by stating how much I love it. In fact, I love it almost as much as the first film (which is, by the way, a gay cliché I feel no remorse about getting behind, simply because the world of the Beales is so singular and, in fact, not clichéd at all). Take that as a major endorsement.

One of my greatest revelations while preparing to write about Grey Gardens was how helpful and awesome turning on the subtitles can be while watching these movies. Big and Little Edie tend to talk over each other, which can result in a jumble that needs parsing beyond the ear's ability. It's also helpful to read what's being said because it's often so outrageous and bizarre that you almost need to see it to believe it. Little Edie has a tendency to say one thing and then shoot immediately into a tangent. For example:

Oh, Edie!

While Grey Gardens and its sister film warrant plenty of discussion about exploitation and proto-reality entertainment, something awesome about the Beales (and something that makes this post easy to prepare than, say, a dissection of the films) is that they speak for themselves. And so, here are a few of my subtitle-enhanced Edie-isms from the new film, which I think is just as quotable as the first:

Edie on dieting tribulations:

Edie on the stars:

Edie on allegations of mental illness:

Edie on telling cats apart:

Edie on detecting nationality:

Edie on war:

Edie on her substitute for sunglasses:

Edie on our natural resources:

Edie on the Maysles' decision to call the film Grey Gardens:

Note that the first words in this extremely perfect exchange with the "palmist of the Hamptons" are Edie's:

And then there's this:

It comes from one of her entirely manic episodes that you should probably hear for yourself. Add this to the list of things I've posted that would make great ringtones. Just sayin'!

All things considered, Edie reaches a natural conclusion:

Yep. Who wouldn't be intimidated by such refinement?

Big Edie, Little Edie's mom, has her share of amazing dialogue as well (we just see her less in both films because she's mostly confined to the bedroom):

"Lucrema" makes it sound like some sort of beauty aid. I want to put it on my face.

She's really big on heckling her daughter, which I also love:

And if you want sophistication, check what happens when their friend Jerry sneezes:

So, naturally, Edie reaches behind her...

...while complaining about the germs that Jerry has produced, and not, you know, the cats and raccoons and flies and squalor of their living conditions...

...and gives him a paper towel from a roll that she's been using as a cushion. Just to be sanitary!

Speaking of those cats...

...that's what she's referring to in the quote above. I think she might mean "escape." Or, maybe she's really that in love with all of her cats (sadly, I can kind of relate). This would make a wonderful wedding photo:

One incident that I can't believe the Maysles didn't see fit to include in the first movie was this:

Of course, it's not a huge deal, just a small fire that came from their copper pipes (apparently? Virtually everything the Beales say is unclear, and perhaps merely based on fact -- docudrama as dialogue):

It's also nice that we get some shots of their decaying house from the front (I don't think any are included in the original documentary):

Anyway, The Beales is awesome. I'm so happy to have 90 more minutes of these women's lives in my life. It's inherently a companion piece -- if the original is a free-form collage of scenes from a life, this is like a celluloid blob. Beales is definitely not a good starting point, and probably fans-only territory. That said, the Beales' admirers will understand how encompassing the following statement is:

Amen, Edie. Amen..

Comments

[Joe]

Bravo. The thing that's so genius about this blog is the sheer randomness of the way you lay out your thoughts and it suits this film well. The first time I watched it I thought, "Okay, when's the film going to to begin?" I mean, it was two women in a decaying mansion babbling over each other. But you kinda get suckered in, particularly by "Little" Edie. She's so delicate, but so frightening at the same time. I will never say the word "staunch" without a severe New England accent again. NEVER. Jerry's hot (and gay, btw) - I read an article that said when he wasn't eatin' corn with the Beales', he was go-go dancing at gay bars in NYC. Jealous.... Are you going to see the play with Christine Ebersol, Rich? Us non-New Yorkers would be interested in how it is.

[matt]

Awwww!!! I'm so excited they finally released it and cannot wait to see it.

I am not really a fan of watching Grey Gardens all at once. I find that its much easier to watch in bits and pieces. If you watch it all at once, it depresses you I think. But in bits and pieces...its hilarious.

All that said, I'll admit to dressing my 3 year old daughter in assorted dish towels complete with head scarf and taking pictures of her for the family photo album. What can I say? Its hard to get the movie out of your head!

[Katie]

Mr. Maysles just spoke at my school (actually it was in conjunction with my school at this small museum in my town.) He's quite the character. He just turned 80 and has about a dozen ideas for future projects. I think he was telling us all about them so if he died we could go out and fulfill his dreams (weird) but he kept telling us if we were students he wanted us to film poetry. Good guy.

[Brandon H]

hmmmmm. As of late I've been seeing reviews for both films all over the place and wondered what the buzz was about. I think it's high time I rent the first one to see if it lives up to expectation.

[Girl #1]

I love this movie too! We linked to you today, check it out! Keep up the fantastic work!!!

Girl #1

[gil]

oh my god. i laughed like no other. im in love with you and your insight.

[Ando]

Rich you never cease to amaze me. I just sat down to watch this again last Sunday! IFC was having a Maysles marathon. Gimmie Shelter played right before Grey Gardens. Another facinating movie. I saw this when I was younger and it scared me, but watching it again recently made me realize while there is a sadness to their story, it's also hilarious.

[Steph]

If this sort of wild ungrounded documentary on mental illness with that charisma of a train wreck flair floats your boat you all might want to consider seeing that 1995 documentary called “Jupiter’s Wife” Directed by Michel Negoponte. –Maggie is an amazingly crazy woman!

[n69n]

you did a wonderful job of the screencaps!

[kdub]

Rich, I bought Grey Gardens based on your recommendations on this site and I must say I was not disappointed. They are/were fascinating characters (Big Edie is gone now, I understand).

[spazmo]

Well, I caught GG on Bravo a couple of years ago, and I thought "Well, this is the damnedest thing..."
Stupidly, I forgot to check the guide to see what it was called.

Then you come along with your spot-on Jade comparison, and I was off like a shot to buy the movie.

Afterward, I signed up at the GG Yahoo Group. Jerry (Gerard Joseph Torres) is a regular poster there. I asked him about the actual floorplans of the mansion, and he said that Big and Little Edie were frightened to go into "the Eye" of the house. Apparently, it's a shuttered room on the second floor that's haunted by a sea-captain and his wife. It is believed that from this room he can see everything that goes on at Grey Gardens...
Spooky!

[regan]

ever notice how much little edie resembles janeane garofalo?

[madison]

Fantastic film, fantastic legacy, fantastic follow up.

And fantastic summary. Thanks Rich!

[English Major]

The play, it is not good. It is very much a set of impressions. Quite good impressions, but impressions nonetheless. And the necessity of story has done some violence to the effective scatteredness of the documentary.

This, on the other hand, looks like something worth seeing.

[Michael]

These came in today's mail! It'll be my first exposure, so thanks for this lil' inoculation.

[Danielle]

Rich:

You are so right about the subtitles-I had given up on it 5 minutes in. When I turned them on-it was a totally enjoyable film.

xo

ps-I think if I had stayed with my mom and the cats this would have been us, twin beds w/handy icebox nearby, filth, bickering, *shudder*

[paccky]

These women are obviously mentally troubled. The only thing that seems to make them documentary worthy is that they are related to Jackie O.

Discussing their words as if they are just unusaly things coming out of the mouths of normal people misses the point.

[Titsley LeMieux]

Rich - I'm just about to start writing my piece on Grey Gardens for x-mas presents I'm giving to friends and this cracks me up. I was thinking of including a list of what I planned to call "Amen Moments" of the best Edie-isms looped together. Anyhow, I'm giving friends a copy of Grey Gardens with an essay on why I love it as well as a Little Edie doll - customized from the 99c Store's "Miss Mexico" doll. I need to send you one. XOXOXO, Matty

[erikakane]

I didn't know if I'm the only one who shed buckets of tears while watching the Grey Gardens. But I also cried during Murderball. So..

Thanks Rich. I'll be waiting a couple of months for the Beales of Grey Gardens.

I love you (as always).

[EveHarrington]

You've done it again Rich! I'm obsessed with these two women! Brilliant!

[jackejett]

fucking brilliant.

i know what i want for xmas now.

and i mean like today.

jack jett

[Mercer]

This was great. Have you seen the new musical about There's a great piece on Jerry, my new best friend.

[Jean]

I LOVE the original Grey Gardens documentary and saw the HBO movie. I would like to see The Beales of Grey Gardens and eventually would like to own the boxset of both documentaries !