Reseña de la película "La solitaria pasión de Judith Hearne" (1987) [ESP / ENG]
Nota de la autora: La presente reseña puede contener spoilers. La traducción al inglés fue realizada con la ayuda de Deepl Translator.
Author's note: The following review may contain spoilers. English translation was made with the aid of Deepl Translator.
Captura de pantalla propia, editada con Canva / Screenshot of my own, edited with Canva
Español
Una niña entra a la iglesia y se sienta al lado de una mujer severa. Aquella niña, Judith, ha sido criada por la señora D'Arcy, una mujer extremadamente religiosa, quien la reprende en la iglesia por su comportamiento infantil que hace reír a las niñas de adelante.
Años después, aquella niña, ahora una mujer soltera de mediana edad, se muda a Dublín en la década de 1950, yéndose a residir en una casa de huéspedes regentada por una mujer viuda de apellido Rice, quien vive con su hijo soltero y holgazán Bernie. Judith ignora que su ingreso a esa casa sería el inicio de una etapa de su vida en donde le hará cuestionar hasta su propia existencia.
Con estas escenas inicia este interesante film de 1987 La solitaria pasión de Judith Hearne, dirigida por Jack Clayton y protagonizada por dos leyendas del cine británico: Maggie Smith y Bob Hoskins. Este film, por cierto, es la adaptación al cine del libro Judith Hearne, de Brian Moore.
Como algunos quizás habrán notado, he estado explorando últimamente la filmografía de Maggie Smith, a quien vi por primera vez en El Jardín Secreto, de 1993, como la señora Meddlock. Y debo decir que tiene filmes fantásticos que, literal, al menos para mí, son unas joyas que te dejan con reflexiones. En el caso de este film en particular, la reflexión que me ha dejado es cómo la gente nos percibe a través de las apariencias, cómo hay eventos en nuestras vidas que dejan una lamentable huella difícil de borrar, y cómo la depresión tiene un efecto devastador en una persona que ha tenido una vida complicada.
Judith (Maggie Smith) es una mujer tímida y de carácter afable que da clases de piano particulares. En su primer día en casa de la señora Rice (Marie Kean) y su hijo Bernard (Ian McNeice), conoce a la señorita Friel (Sheila Reid), a Mary, una joven criada (Rudi Davies) y al hermano viudo de la señora Rice, James Madden (Bob Hoskins), quien recién regresó de los Estados Unidos.
Judith pronto se interesa en Madden, quien constantemente hace comparaciones entre Dublín y Nueva York hasta el punto de ofender a algunos de los huéspedes, así como sueña con abrir un negocio en Dublín enfocado al modelo americano. Poco a poco se enamora de él, en especial cuando van juntos a la iglesia una sola vez y de ahí a los restaurantes.
Los dos se llevan una impresión equivocada del otro: Judith piensa que Madden es un hombre devoto y emprendedor, mientras que Madden piensa que Judith es una mujer adinerada, dado que lleva vestidos y joyas caras... Pero los dos reciben un golpe de realidad cuando intervienen los Rice, revelando lo que piensan de ambos una noche después de comer en un lujoso restaurante.
Es en esa noche donde se nos revela que Judith es algo más que una mujer tímida: Es una mujer alcohólica con una profunda depresión que se refugia en la fe para sobrellevar la pesada soledad que siente a su alrededor. Esto es producto de los días difíciles que vivió con su tía, una mujer adinerada con tendencias tiránicas, las cuales aumentan tras un paro cardíaco que sufre durante un recital.
Todo esto, más la decepción amorosa que recibe de Madden, quien le dice en su cara que no la quiere, y la pérdida de pupilos, la llevan a una espiral de autodestrucción personal, un ascenso a la desesperación total por el anhelo de ser escuchada y amada.
Respecto a las actuaciones, ¡ufff!, ¿qué puedo decir de ellas? Para mí, todas fueron magníficas; me encantó particularmente la actuación de Marie Kean como esa viuda de apariencia dulce pero con una malicia tan brutal que te hace odiarla y temerla a la vez. La señora Rice es una viva representación del viejo dicho "farol en la calle, oscuridad en su casa". Se muestra como alguien cordial y amable, pero a la vez como una persona cizañosa e insidiosa.
Un film que sin duda alguna recomiendo mucho para los amantes del cine británico.
English
A young girls enters in the church and sits next to a stern woman. That girl, Judith, has been raised by Mrs. D'Arcy, an extremely religious woman, who scolds her in church for her childish behavior that makes the girls in front of her laugh.
Years later, that girl, now a middle-aged single woman, moves to Dublin in the 1950s, taking up residence in a boarding house run by a widowed woman named Rice, who lives with her unmarried and lazy son Bernie. Judith is unaware that her entry into that house would be the beginning of a stage in her life that would make her question even her own existence.
With these scenes begins this 1987's interesting film The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, directed by Jack Clayton and starred by two legends of British cinema: Maggie Smith and Bob Hoskins. By the way, this movie is the adaptation from the book Judith Hearne by Brian Moore.
As some of you may have noticed, I've been exploring lately the filmography of Maggie Smith, whom I first saw in 1993's The Secret Garden as Mrs. Meddlock. And I must say that she has some fantastic films that, literally, at least for me, are thought-provoking gems. In the case of this particular film, the reflection it has left me with is how people perceive us through appearances, how there are events in our lives that leave an unfortunate mark that is difficult to erase, and how depression has a devastating effect on a person who has had a complicated life.
Judith (Maggue Smith) is a shy and affable woman who gives private piano lessons. On her first day at the home of Mrs. Rice (Marie Kean) and her son Bernard (Ian McNeice), she meets Miss Friel (Sheila Reid), Mary, a young maid (Rudi Davies) and Mrs. Rice's widowed brother James Madden (Bob Hoskins), who has just returned from the United States.
Judith soon is interested in Madden, who constantly makes comparisons between Dublin and New York to the point of offending some of the guests, as well as he dreams of opening a business in Dublin focused on the American model. She gradually falls in love with him, especially when they go to church together just once and from there to the restaurants.
Both of them get the wrong impression of each other: Judith thinks Madden is a devout and enterprising man, while Madden thinks Judith is a wealthy woman, given that she wears expensive dresses and jewelry... But the two get a reality check when the Rices intervene, revealing what they think of each other one night after a meal at a fancy restaurant.
It's on that night that Judith is revealed to us as something more than a shy woman: she's an alcoholic with a deep depression who takes refuge in faith to cope with the heavy loneliness she feels around her. This is a product of the difficult days she lived with her aunt, a wealthy woman with tyrannical tendencies, which increase after a cardiac arrest she suffers during a recital.
All this, plus the amorous disappointment she receives from Madden, who tells her to her face that he doesn't love her, and the loss of pupils, lead her into a spiral of personal self-destruction, an ascent to total despair over the longing to be heard and loved.
As for the performances, ufff!, what can I say about them? For me, they were all superb; I particularly loved Marie Kean's performance as that sweet-looking widow with such brutal malice that makes you hate and fear her at the same time. Mrs. Rice is a vivid representation of the old saying “streetlight in the street, darkness in its house.” She comes across as cordial and kind, but at the same time as a spiteful and insidious person.
A film that, with no doubt, I highly recommend to the lovers of British cinema.
A great review, to see how our present is affected by the past and how we gradually evolve into monsters created by circumstances.
Thank you so much for your words, @ghost-art ! And I agree with you, the past will always affect the present, both in a positive and negative way. In Judith's case, is more negative than positive, specially if she was dealing with someone with autoritharian relatives (her aunt D'Arcy) and with people who mocks her (the Rices, by example, but in a subtle way).
Have a great week and hugs from Mexico!
I'm a big fan of British cinema. There's a lot of zest and uniqueness to it that you don't find anywhere else. This was a lovely review and awesome recommendation as well.🌺
Thank you so much, @jhymi ! And yes, British cinema has jewels, some of them unknown for people who are not from that part of the world. For me, this one is a jewel of such where it shows you with a huge dosis of realism how single people (specially women) were seen in the 1950s, not only in Ireland but everywhere. Here in Mexico, by example, in the communities if someone stays single for life, people start to gossip, inventing all sort of rumors (from witchcraft to prostitution).
Have a great week and hugs from Mexico!