grey gardens movie (1975)

[sgv123]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 2:48am

i was wondering if anyone has seen the movie from 1975 with the real Edith Bouvier Beale and the real "little edie"?

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 2:55am

I not only the original, I saw Little Edie's 'performance' at Reno Sweeney. (The producer of that spectacle seems to have gotten his comeuppance these 32 years later...)

[ashbash1990]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 3:07am

I've seen it...

[scott68]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 3:13am

Yup, sure have. Did you have a specific question about it, or are you just wondering?

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 3:34am

you have to put that documentary in the context of the 1970s. in '75, the year the film came out, onassis died, jackie was in the press constantly. everyone knew that it was lee radziwill who had brought the idea for the project to the maysles bros. these were the years leading up to studio 54; new york was all about the reinvention of glamour after the hippie/yippie/vietnam years, gay clubs and cabarets were flourishing and "voulez-vous coucher avec moi (ce soir)?" had become the national anthem of nightlife. and while places like 'le jardin' (barry white's birthday party, and his entrance to the club in a white cadillac convertible), '12 west' (the minimilist gay disco that set the tone for aaaaah, freak out, c'est chic! club hopping), and 'the blue angel' (new york's cabaret non plus ultra) were attracting the jet set and in-crowd city dwellers, it wasn't all 'divine' decadence. in the wake of that charming cinematic threesome fosse created for minnelli, york, and griem, miss radziwill could also be found in the down and dirty 'anvil' in the meat packing district watching fist-f(&*)ing demonstrations (and that young man putting the light bulb where the sun don't shine), 4:20 am wasn't for weed but for ethyl (and we don't mean lucy's neighbor), nancy spungen was wandering around max's and cbgb's (along with lance loud and the rest of us) awaiting the arrival of sid vicious, and andrew crispo was at 'the leather man' shopping for the hood that would end up on eigel dag vesti. meanwhile, bette midler was opening her act with the overture to oklahoma, the malls of america were stocking their shelves with merch for the approaching bicentennial, and nobody wanted to wear gerald ford's 'whip inflation now' buttons...

and there's the reason 'grey gardens' struck the right chord...


Updated On: 7/11/07 at 03:34 AM

[sgv123]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 3:54am

i was just wondering. i saw it today for the first time, i was just thinking how well christine ebersole plays her. i knew that the real people were in the film and it was interesting to see the actual people who are being played in the stage production. hopefully i haven't confused anyone!

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 3:56am

the only thing about your post i find confusing is your picture --- which one are you?
lol!

[TechEverlasting]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 8:47am

There's also a sequel "The Beale's of Grey Gardens" made from footage from the same shoots which features a fire and much more singing. Netflix has it, and it's available in a two DVD set with the original film from Criterion. I suppose there's not much chance of a musical sequel based on the second film.

Although I love Ebersole's performance I don't think she quite captures the child-like playful qualities of Little Edie. Mary Louise Wilson is the one who seems to me to be actually channeling her character.

[GYPSY1527]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 8:58am

Just to add my two cents, "The Beales of Grey Gardens" is by far my favorite and Tech, I would agree with you concerning the capturing of Big and Little Edie.. MLW is subperb at captring the real Big Edie while Christine made more of an effort (and amazingly so) to make the character her own! Both are equally brillant, just different!

[madbrian]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 8:59am

I saw the documentary on cable yesterday. Now, I appreciate Ebersole's and Wilson's performances even more.

[mominator]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 9:07am

It was on IFC (or maybe the Sundance channel) not to long ago.

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 9:10am

LOL! Nobody appreciates the work of a dramaturg anymore!

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 11:39am

Quite true -- though Christine DID capture the look, the voice and the visual of Little Edie -- she didn't capture one ounce of Little Edie's childlike or coquetish playfulness.

[sally1112]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 11:42am

Saw it and loved it!
My local "off-the-wall" video store had it on their recommendations shelf years ago.

It is a great doc. The documentary is one of the main reasons I want to see GG. I fell in love with the Beals instantly.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 11:50am

G_Schlozinski2, sgv123 is neither one of those 2 guys.

That photo is from the press preview of SPRING AWAKENING and those 2 guys are: Skylar Astin and Gideon Glick:

[Gothampc]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 11:51am

I believe that the Maysles brothers were originally going to do a documentary on Jackie & Lee. But when they saw the Edies they dropped their original idea.

I don't think Ebersole has quite captured the paranoia of Little Edie. There's a certain "always looking over her shoulder" quality that's missing.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 11:54am

True -- originally the Mayles were preparing to document Lee, but after the media coverage of what was going on in East Hampton with her aunt and cousin, this changed their focus.

[NYC4Life]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 12:39pm

Grey Gardens is a lot better than The Beales of Grey Gardens. The Beales of Grey Gardens is a little too sentimental. I felt like Grey Gardens documented them better.

[rayoflight104]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 12:42pm

I've seen it on TCM before (within the last 1-2 years)..

[SNAFU]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:01pm

Some dialogue from the musical was lifted from the Beales of Grey Gardens. I believe Little Edie's rant about sending the inferm to war.

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:08pm

Brody, Brody, Brody...

nobody takes me SERIOUSLY!

lol

... but seriously, Brody. Note, for example, the focus on the circumstances surrounding Lee Radziwill's approach to the Maysles rather than the zeitgeist that positioned Grey Gardens (the documentary) in the realm of pop culture where it rightfully belongs.

Consider, for example, the role of Andy Warhol in the Jackie/Lee milleu, and how his publication, "interview" (the precursor of People Magazine) set the stage to mass market that demimonde to the American public, and hence, the world. (cf. 'Jackie under My Skin: Interpreting an Icon' by Wayne Koestenbaum)

There is no IRONY in Grey Gardens without considering its Warholian context, the notion of 'fifteen minutes of fame' -- which doesn't literally mean, 'everyone will be famous for fifteen minutes' because fame is diluted to the point of passing infamy when it becomes disposable. The Edies are disposable icons, whereas Jackie is, or was, a true American Icon. Jackie was responsible for stirring real emotion when she put her hand on John-John's shoulder and prompted him to salute his father's coffin as the caisson passed them on national television. The Edies are just another case of the rich falling on hard times, just another 'how the mighty have fallen' story, without their relationship to Jackie (and the sweep of history between the idealistic 1960s and the hedonistic 1970s). This is what's important about Grey Gardens, the singular reason it resonates (or did).

(hey... i get paid for this kind of analysis.) Updated On: 7/11/07 at 01:08 PM

[Kringas]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:13pm

No one takes Brody seriously, either, except poor Stacey.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:17pm

It will be on twice on Monday, the 17th on Sundance. :)

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:39pm

Kringas, I've revised my post... you may want have more material with which not to take me seriously now. (how in the world did i just construct that sentence?) (guess it's the lack of sleep, and trying to switch back and forth between this board and Oscar and the Rhone Maidens...)

[G_Schlozinski2]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 1:58pm

ROFL!

i hear the sound of 351 heads being scratched...