Thoughts on Kiss of the Spider Woman

 

via IMDB

Can a sanctimonious leftist and a movie-loving homosexual share a jail cell without driving each other crazy?

Molina (William Hurt), a window dresser imprisoned for statutory rape, fulfills many roles for reporter turned political prisoner Valentin (Raul Julia). He's a storyteller, sharing embroidered accounts of a Nazi propaganda potboiler staring an appealing female (Sonia Braga). Molina is someone for Valentin to look down upon, which frequently occurs. He's the closest thing Valentin has to female companionship and for a time, the two play house. Molina is also an opportunist. Here's something I didn't expect to type: Although it takes a quality, not quantity approach, Kiss of the Spider Woman is ultimately as dependent "on the furious emotional appeal of the 'stab in the back,'" as David Denby put it, as ... Rambo: First Blood Part II?!

Directed by Hector Babenco, Kiss was adapted from Manuel Puig's novel by Leonard Schrader. I've never read the novel and am overdue for another listen of the Vanessa Williams-led cast album*, but they don't matter at the moment. At its best, Kiss has a genuine tenderness. Beautifully, heartbreakingly, it conveys the intersection of repression and romance, as well as the prior deception and the subsequent dissolve. Molina may betray Valentin by acting as an informant, an arrangement that ultimately gets Molina killed and nullifies anything Valentin can still do for his cause, but I didn't doubt the love he felt. I succumbed to the temptation, as perhaps Molina and Valentin did, to look and think, "In another time and place ..." 

*Chita Rivera fans may scoff, but I'm crazy about Howard McGillin's performance as Molina, which is on Williams' recording.

*Molina is resting his head on Valentin's shoulder while being held by him.*

"Do what you want with me because it's what I want. If it doesn't disgust you."

"... Okay."

*An almost orgasmic cry from Molina, followed by both himself and Valentin brushing the hair out of his face. The two stare at each other.*

"You are so kind to me."

"No. You're the one who's kind."

*Valentin lays Molina onto the bed before taking off his shirt and blowing out a candle, which the camera holds on. A little light remains.*

"(Molina whispering) Wait, I'm squeezed against the wall. That's better. Wait, let me lift my legs."

"The two men's relationship evolves in such a natural way that when Julia finally lets Hurt seduce him, more in gratitude for Hurt's kindness than out of lust, the scene is just a love scene -- its homosexuality seems irrelevant."

(Is it me, or does People come across as homophobic here? Still, that's a more fair for its day sentiment than David Denby's. "For of course there's a maudlin side to this forced marriage of nelly and butch, an element of homosexual wish fulfillment. *sigh* Different times.)

Readers, how do we feel about the fact that Molina and Valentin's one and only on-screen kiss comes after their sex scene? Or that the finale is Valentin's fantasy of he and girlfriend Marta (Braga) in paradise? I first thought that Valentin was carrying on Molina's memory by becoming the newest devotee of the Spider Woman** (and then wondered how come that point wasn't made more clear, with, say, Molina waving them off). While I enjoyed Hurt's performance, I am slightly pissed that he's part of the fraternity of straight actors who played tragic gay guys and won all sorts of acclaim and awards for it. Like so many older gay-themed works, it helps to have an attitude of "Well, at least someone told the story then."

**I'm not sure what the hell I was thinking; Braga is clearly playing Marta in the scene. 

Speaking of stories, I got a kick out of Denby opining that Molina's tales didn't come across as magical enough. "Surely Puig's point wasn't simply that gay movie rhapsodists have terrible taste." Braga plays three parts. They all take a backseat to the Hurt 'n' Julia show, but she has some good moments along the way. Leni, the cabaret star of the highest rank, is a role which allows for some inspired spoofing of golden age acting. The Spider Woman is as fabulous as we'd expect. Even Marta, who tells Valentin, "If you leave, don't come back. Please, don't come back," has more depth than her dialogue. In addition to the three leads, there's an ensemble including Herson Capri as Werner, the swain in Leni's movie, Miriam Pires as Molina's mother and Nuno Leal Maia as Gabriel, Molina's would-be lover.

Despite my misgivings over Kiss' old-fashioned aspects, I cannot deny that it is a damn good film. As with Mishima, it makes me want to discover the source material. Also like Mishima, it has visuals that won't easily be forgotten. To Kiss' credit, it is fully realized and emotionally involving. Only the dead know if they died happy or sad, Marta explains to Valentin. A dream can be short, but it can also be happy. And as Molina said apres amour, the nicest thing about feeling happy is that you think you'll never feel unhappy again. Someone -- Hurt? Babenco? Schrader? Puig? -- decided to have him break up the sentiment with a fake laugh. Kiss may blur the boundaries, but it knows the difference between life and make believe.

"... I can't stand being a martyr. It infuriates me. I don't want to be a martyr. ... My whole life, a mistake."
"No."
"Give me your hand. ... I don't want to die, Molina. ... I don't wanna die. ... Don't let me die."
"Of course not."

Recommended with reservations.

Thoughts:

-- "And when it's over, my dreams disappear, into the darkness. And I wake up, alone, waiting as always, waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting ...." "Waiting for what?" "A man. Ha-ha. A real man. But that can't happen, because a real man, what he wants is a real woman."

-- Box Office: Grossing more than $17 million, this opened wide-ish at No. 12 and came in at No. 53 for 1985.

-- Critic's Corner, the movie: "An extraordinarily moving film about manhood, heroism and love," according to Janet Maslin. "Mesmerizing," People declared. "It might have been more exciting or moving if it had busted loose now and then," Denby wrote. "The movie finally sinks from the weight of its own nobility."

-- Critic's Corner, Hurt: He gave a performance "that is crafty at first, carefully nurtured, and finally stirring in profound, unanticipated ways," Maslin wrote. "Some will find him mesmerizing, others artificially low-keyed," Variety admitted. People: "Hurt provides what surely must be the best gay performance every by a major actor, looking and acting like the queen he says he is, but never resorting to cliché or camp." "(He's) disciplined and restrained, a virtuoso actor's demonstration of control," Denby wrote. "(Molina's) the ultimate fan."

-- Awards Watch: In addition to the Oscar, Hurt also won the BAFTA, multiple critics awards and at Cannes for his performance. Julia and Braga, on the other hand, were Golden Globe nominees (and he scored a joint win with Hurt from the National Board of Review). Additionally, the film was an Oscar nominee for Best Picture, Babenco and the screenplay, plus a Globe nominee for Best Motion Picture - Drama and a Palme d'Or nominee at Cannes. It scored an honorary win at the first Independent Spirit Awards.

-- Memorable Music: The film version of Kiss doesn't have any notable songs. The musical includes "She's a Woman," which I insist is the diva worship song to end all diva worship songs.

via YouTube

Also, here's Liza Minnelli's cover of "The Day After That." As usual, all you need to do is give her a close up and she delivers.

via YouTube

-- "Tell the truth: who do identify with the most, the clubfoot patriot or the handsome Werner?" "Who do you identify with?" "Ohhh, the singer. *cooing a bit* She's the star. I'm always the heroine."

-- Next: Ran. On deck: Agnes of God, The Journey of Natty Gann. Coming soon: Commando, Jagged Edge.