SUMMER WISHES, WINTER DREAMS
US, 1973, 88 minutes, Colour.
Joanne Woodward, Martin Balsam, Sylvia Sidney.
Directed by Gilbert Cates.
Summer wishes. Winter Dreams has some fine credits to commend it. Joanne Woodward received another Oscar nomination for her performance and won some prizes. Sylvia Sidney, making a comeback, also received a nomination for her brief but moving role. The screenplay is by Stewart Stern, responsible for Miss Woodward's Rachel, Rachel, and the direction is by Gilbert Cates who directed the harrowing - I Never Sang for My Father. This film is a moving human document, harsh in some of its realism, hopeful in its self-acceptance and an honest appraisal of reality.
The main theme of the film is the transition from middle age to old age and the realisation that life is passing very quickly and raising the important question of whether one has done anything. Attention focuses on Rita Walden, well off, a grandmother, but a .woman who has never been able to tell her mother that she loved her, who finds it almost impossible to express emotion. The experience of her mother's death, the subsequent family bickering, the constant support of her devoted husband (played with warmth by Martin Balsam) and the revisiting of the scene of some of his summer wishes makes a difference to her life.
1. What is the significance of the title, its mood, message, illustration?
2. What impact did the opening dream have? Was it a creation of Rita's imagination? Relief when she awoke?
3. How vivid a study of Rita did this film give? Was she a snow queen, middle-aged, a grandmother? What, meaning was she finding in her life? Her relationship with her husband, daughter, grandchild, and the love in her life here? Her relationship with/her son whom she drove from home? Anxiety she felt for him? Relationship with her mother and inability to say she loved her? What were the main characteristics of Joanne Woodward's performance?
4. How important were the sequences with her mother? The telephone call, Rita's attitude? Her mother unwilling to face old age? The horror and reality of her attack and death in the street? Why did she appear later to Rita on the escalator?
5. The importance of the sequence with Harry at home - discussion after the funeral, the quality of their relationship, offering Rita the trip? Why could she not show more emotion?
6. How much did the trip mean to Rita? The filming of their walk in Kensington gardens, the Peter Pan statue, memories?
7. The significance of the shopping sequences and the escalator?
8. How important for them were the experiences in Bastogne? Harry's summer wishes and his winter dreams? The emotion in Harry's memories? What did it make Rita realise?
9. Was reconciliation possible after this vision of the past? The happiness of the day, the meal, Rita facing the truth? The importance of the final reconciliation scene in the bedroom? The unity of the marriage and the possibility for the future?
10. What insight and wisdom did the film give into suffering, growing older, the differences in love, necessities of giving things up and risking change?
11. Insight into death and life: Rita's mother's small talk and yearning for the past? As old and unwilling to face it? Behaviour at the restaurant? The result of their shopping? Her attack in the street? (The irony of Bergman's 'Wild Strawberries'?), the severity of the attack on the cinema floor, the reality of her death? What was the quality of the relationship between mother and daughter? How much love in each? How much taking the other for granted? The immediate impact on Rita of her mother's death? Her wandering around thinking? Arranging the funeral? What was the impact of the funeral sequences? How harrowing? How realistic with the bickering? Aunt Betty and her cattiness? The inability of the two husbands to help? Anna's reaction? The importance of Rita's wandering around the old home? What it meant to her? Or the impact of her summer wishes contrasting with the winter dreams? Her looking at the jam, the loft, her memories of care and romance? The importance of the memories with her grandmother and her happiest day? Why did she not grow up happy? What had gone wrong? In view of this, why did she refuse to sell? Was she a selfish bitch? Her love for Bobby blinding her to the needs for her husband and for Anna?
12. Rita's insight into life: Her buying the bag for Anna and her reaction to spending so much money? What did this shopping and the visit do to her? Why did she break-down on the escalator? The symbolism of the escalator, going up and unable to reach the height, her seeing her mother and grandmother on the escalator? The impact of this? In view of all this experience, why was she ready to face the truth about Bobby? Why was she horrified at this? (The importance of her nightmare about Bobby and the dancing friend? The black and white sequence? In the context of Bergman film; and her dreams, in view of her dream about Bobby's happy return home, when she was on the plane?) Why was Harry so strong in his dealing with her about Bobby's return? His not wanting to see them?
13. Summer wishes and winter dreams: How moving was the excursion in Bastogne? The visit to the museum and the war commentary and Harry's memories? Rita's following him to the field and his description of the road, the ugliness, the fear of battle? The ordinariness of the dirt and rain compared with the memories of decades ago? How much emotion was there in Harry's memory? What did it make Rita realise?
