The Cider House Rules (Lasse Hallstrom, 1999)

[Michael]

Revisited Hallstrom's The Cider House Rules recently and became very smitten. Out of curiousity, I read a bunch of reviews to see how it was received upon its theatrical release. Amy Taubin's review disturbed me. I felt she was utterly misguided. The author John Irving was very brilliant for having the story set in the 1940s in remote Maine instead of the current climate with the abortion issue still ravaging the American politics. I got very nauseated by one of Taubin's accusations: "Worse still, it makes men the arbiters of what happens to a woman's body and the abortion debate a defining factor of manhood." What the fuck. I took her silliness as she was bothered by the guys peforming the abortions the women requested in the movie and nothing else. It'd be so dishonest if the story turned out Taubin's way, would women performing the abortions in that type of scenario be any better? The two female nurses assisted Dr. Larch with the abortion procedures and it was Candy who comforted Rose with warmth and compassion after the abortion. So it's not like the women were completely out of the picture. Performing the abortion was NOT the defining factor of Homer's manhood. The whole year in the apple orchard was the defining factor of his manhood and Homer experienced and saw a lot of things during that year. Perhaps Taubin slept through this chapter. The tone of her review really makes her come off as an Ellen Jamesian. I'm sorry for her that the story was not urbane or progressive or feminist.

I just felt this strong need to defend the movie which I found to be warm, sad, and beautiful. Senstivitely directed and written with an emphasis on people - men AND women - caring for each other.

[jesus the mexican boi]

From your comments, it strikes me that this might be a good pairing with Chabrol's Story of Women.

It's been forever since I saw the film (only the one time in the theater), but I was really struck by the whole orphan/loss of innocence/goodnight-you-princes-of-maine-you-kings-of-new-england/lost-boy angle of it all. It's a film about surrogate families, love placed and misplaced, and the fleeting nature of such relationships. I would like to see it again to get at what Taubin's talking about, because the abortion angle has faded in my recollection.

Thanks for bringing it up, Michael.

[Michael]

I do hope you get to see The Cider House Rules again and report back with fresh thoughts. The story has a weirdly old fashioned and folksy nature, a very typical quality of Irving's best novels. Taubin seems to be offended by the paternalism of Cider House. I have no clue what she expected but this story takes place in rural Maine during WW2 (very much intended by Irving). A remote world of abandoned children and apple farmers. Being very familiar with Irving's literature, I never found one object he created against women. Women in his world are tough strong, caring and loving as much as his men. They are all equally messed up humans. In Cider House, women wants abortions and Dr. Larch performs them even though they are illegal. Homer performs one abortion on his own, it is to assist Rose to free herself from the incestuous prison of her father, her bearing her father's child. How is that has anything to do with being the "defining factor of (Homer's) manhood" according to Taubin? If Homer needed to prove his manhood by performing an abortion solo, then he could have returned to the orphanage to do it. He just happens to know the procedure from his years of being at Dr. Larch's side and gets unexpectedly caught into this father-daughter tragedy, he simply wants to help friends he cares about. Folks come in and out of our lives, each one always with a gift - that's what I always get from Irving.

Taubin wrote that Toby Maguire seemed to be channeling Forrest Gump. That I also don't get. I thought Toby was perfect, sublimely monotone - just perfect for the role of Homer. He does appear like a boy who grew up in an orphanage so untouched by the world outside. Awesome job, Toby.

[Polybius]

I got very nauseated by one of Taubin's accusations: "Worse still, it makes men the arbiters of what happens to a woman's body and the abortion debate a defining factor of manhood." What the fuck.

"What the fuck", indeed.

We've all encountered this kind of shallow, reductionist kind of identity politics before. Crudity of that sort is ultimately damaging to whatever cause the reviewer is putting out front because it's so obviously an example of someone trying to shoehorn their weltanschuung, whatever it may be, into the realm of aesthetics where it usually doesn't belong.

Additionally, it always seems that films like this, which have a decidedly progressive (for lack of a better term) outlook come in for the most scrutiny and, all too often, opprobrium. It's the critical aesthetic version of the fabled Democratic party circular firing squad.

And, just for the record, a really fine film, with a boatload of memorable performances.