The Bridges of Madison County - PASS

*Note: Wednesday's blog post will be on Friday. Apologies all around.

*Spoilers!

Sweet tap-dancing Jesus, a film starring Clint Eastwood where he doesn't shoot some criminal in the face or beat the shit out of anyone? Sign me up. The Bridges of Madison County is a rather sentimental movie that barely passes the Bechdel test, but still frames the relationship between two people rather beautifully.

Set in the 1960's, Francesca (Meryl Streep) is an Italian war bride who lives on a farm in Madison County, Iowa. Robert (Clint Eastwood, who also directs) is a National Geographic photographer on an assignment to photograph the famous covered bridges of said county. He drops by Francesca's house to ask for directions, and "one of those electric things between people" happens. Francesca's family is away for four days at a fair, in which Francesca and Robert fall passionately in love and carry on an affair.

I enjoy Robert and Francesca's relationship in the sense that it's very much an equal animal. To explain, because they are both adults they understand the brevity of the affair and the consequences of it becoming permanent. Francesca has enough sexual agency to both begin her affair with Robert and realize the consequences of it--she's very much the unhappy housewife, though it takes meeting someone who's traveled Africa to make her realize it. But when she realizes what she wants, she goes for it. It's refreshing.

She's very down to earth and realistic about her priorities--she wants to run away with Robert, but her duties as a mother and a wife come first. Also, marriage and children aren't sacrificed to preachy beatnik gobbledygook. Robert tries to persuade her to leave her husband because she's unhappy and her kids are almost grown--and even I hoped she would, so she could truly be happy--but the guilt of leaving her commitments would destroy their relationship. I really appreciate the level of realism that is invested in her character. Ironically enough, Francesca's affair becomes a lesson to her two children--do what you want for yourself, or forever let real love pass you by. The story is told by the two reading her journals after her death.

It also duly examines the "scarlet woman" syndrome that is typical of the small towns--Francesca's greatest friend becomes the woman who had an affair with a married man, and so they become two women bonded by their romantic choices. And they live with these things until the day they die. It's a resounding message about both judgement and the freedom of women in society--it's the woman the town gossips about, not the married man.

But really, The Bridges of Madison County is a character study of a brief, incredibly passionate affair that goes on to shape lifetimes to come. It's a movie well worth checking out, as it passes the Bechdel test and also features a woman willing to take control of her own life and the consequences that follow.