What separates All that Heaven Allows from other romance films of its time? One can say the remarkable age gap between the two lovers or, perhaps, the colorful set design and serene winter feeling in the latter half of the film. For me, All that Heaven Allows is unique because of Cary’s split decision between her Bourgeoise identity and love interest. However, the Mise-en-scene and especially editing heighten Cary’s emotions and show the audience her true intentions deep down.
Before diving into the editing, All that Heaven Allows’ mise-en-scene builds the groundwork for the dynamics of the film. Firstly, the costume design makes it clear that Ron Kirby is a working man. The audience knows this from the beginning, but his flannels exemplify the lifestyle that he lives. As a result, it seems out of place for the audience when he dresses in a suit, mingling with wealthy snobs. Ron’s outfits are generally juxtaposed with Cary’s costume design. Accustomed to the high life, she wears elaborate dresses that convey to the viewer that opposites indeed attract. Secondly, the director of the film, Douglas Sirk, utilizes lighting in a clever manner in intense scenes. My favorite example is the confrontational scene between Ned and Cary. Ned is blackmailing Cary, his mother, and is illuminated by almost nothing. What remains is a silhouette of his face. Cary, however, is illuminated by low-key lighting. Above all, the low-key lighting emphasizes the fear on her face at the thought of never seeing her son again.
For the film’s editing, Durk takes a unique approach to an emotional romance film. He employs continuity editing and match-on-action cuts to bring out emotion within the movement on screen. Two examples best prove the effectiveness of this editing style. Cary’s first entrance into the Bourgeoise club is presented as a rapid-paced party. Her friend, Sara Warren, moves Cary from conversation to conversation. At no point is Cary particularly engaged in these conservations, nor does she show any interest in meeting these people. Throughout these “conversations,” match-on-action cuts keep the viewer’s attention on the action, while Cary’s expressionless face appears in almost every shot.
In another dinner/party scene, Cary finds herself in Mick Anderson’s house. His home is far simpler, and Cary takes some time to settle into the unfamiliar lifestyle. As the scene continues, the party starts and match-on-scene shots begin. It’s a sequence of snappy shots of characters from different angles. Cary, unlike the bourgeoise party, enjoys the environment.
In addition to its mise en scene, “All That Heaven Allows” stands out as an innovative film because of its in-depth view of societal pressures and desires. Additionally, it is a unique work in the romance film genre due to the way it utilizes match-on action cuts.
Hi Luke,
I completely agree with you that Sirk utilizes color and lighting to evoke emotion out of the audience. I noticed two scenes especially. One of them was a scene that you mentioned when Ned was trying to talk his mother out of marrying Ron Kirby. When Cary walks into her home after the party at Sara’s, the lighting outside is very blue, but the house is well lit. As Cary and Ned move towards the fireplace and there is a mobile shot, Cary turns off the light, which suddenly changes the mood as Ned’s expression seems more dark. Additionally, the blue lighting outside is highlighted as it shows through the window, which makes the scene appear more dark and mellow. In the scene, Cary’s face appears to be lit by a lamp as it is very low-key. However, I also noticed that mainly her eyes are shown, which makes her appear soft and mellow. This is directly juxtaposed when there is a reverse shot and Ned is shown with blue back-lighting coming from the window. This evokes suspense and almost a sense of villainess. Even when Ned moves and there is a mobile shot, he moves into a shadow, which maintains the atmosphere and aura he emits.
Another scene that I noticed the color of was right after the scene with Ned. There is a fade out transition and it is a scene of Kay crying. It is an action shot because the shot continues from the stairs to inside the room where Kay lands on her bed. In this scene, it appears to be natural lighting coming from the window, but the window is filled with a lot of color that alters the ambiance. In this scene, Kay’s face is lit with stripes of darker colors like green and red, while Cary’s face is a softer light of one color. I thought that Sirk utilized the lighting in this scene to show how Kay is feeling stripes of sadness, but also anger with her mother for being in love with Ron Kirby.
Luke, great observations regarding the misé-en-scene of the film! Your analysis of the editing was also extremely insightful. I also noticed the many match on action cuts that were present in the film. This type of editing emphasizes the action and reaction, which further deepens the emotional aspect of the shot. For example, when Ron cuts a branch from the tree growing next to Cary’s house and gives it to her, there is a match cut on the branch. Ron gives the branch to Cary, and directly after, the branch is shown in the vase on Cary’s dressing table. This example further illustrates the emotion between the two, as Cary immediately placed the gift from Ron on her dressing table. The use of continuity editing in this film guides the viewers through the story and provides insight into the characters emotions.
Hey Luke. This is a great analysis. To add on, at the end of the dinner scene, the shot gets cut with a fade-out. The next shot then starts with a fade-in. This helps show the transition between two completely different times and settings. The emotion between these two scenes is also very different. Before the fade-out, Cary was happy. The transition between the two shots establishes Cary’s emotion when she is with Ron. This adds to the development of their relationship and helps show how difficult it is when Cary separates herself from the engagement later on in the film.
Hi Luke,
I agree with your insights about how at the club, Cary’s face is expressionless while the viewer is kept interested through match-on-action cuts. I think that a match-on-action cut helps the viewer stay interested because it creates a smooth flow within a scene. Match-on-action cuts also portray a sense of realism, and this is seen in many instances throughout the film. For example, during the scene where Cary is approached by Ron in the garden, there are seamless close-ups of the two character’s faces. I think this is done to portray the tension between them, and the close-ups also serve as a way to emphasize their age gap. Furthermore, at the end of the film, when Cary and Ron get back together, when Ron sees Cary, the shot connects his facial reactions with Cary moving towards him.
Hey Luke! I think your discussion of costuming in the movie is a fantastic observation. It seems clear that color is a device that is used throughout the entirety of the film. Whether it is the red dress Cary wears on her date with Harvey, the “outdoorsy” appearance of Ron, or the bright blue suit of Sara in the opening shot of the film. These colors play a recurring function in the development of the romance between Cary and Ron and the false “appearances” that are reinforced through suits, dresses, and ties. On your point regarding match-on-action cuts at the big party, I think your observation is spot on. The camera seemingly tracks the movement of Cary as she superficially socializes with the party guests. However, I would like to stress these cuts are further accompanied by interrupted dialogue, seemingly rushing the audience along with Cary. Since the audience is dragged through the endless small talk, Douglas Sirk reinforces the theme of appearances and the facade of suburbia.
Great job!