Far from Heaven
Composite Score: 83.43
Starring: Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, Patricia Clarkson, Viola Davis, James Rebhorn, Bette Henritze, Michael Gaston, Jordan Nia Elizabeth, and Celia Weston
Director: Todd Haynes
Writer: Todd Haynes
Genres: Drama, Romance, History
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content, brief violence, and language
Box Office: $29.03 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Far from Heaven is Todd Haynes’s romantic drama about the dissolving relationship between a 1950s housewife and her husband as each of them begins to explore other romantic options. Julianne Moore stars as Cathy Whitaker, the ideal suburban wife to Dennis Quaid’s Frank Whitaker, successful ad executive at the company Magnatech in Hartford, Connecticut, in the late 1950s. As Cathy’s “liberal” tendencies lead her to starting a friendship with their black gardener, Raymond Deagan (Dennis Haysbert), Cathy’s life begins to devolve as a result of events and forces well beyond her, Raymond’s, or Frank’s control. The film’s exploration of racism and interracial relationships and of homosexuality in the 1950s is elevated by Moore’s leading performance and some brilliant cinematographic work that truly sets the film within the time period.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
By addressing both racism and homosexuality in the 1950s, Far from Heaven sometimes feels like it’s trying to do too much all at once. Since Cathy is the main character of the film, the racism and fear of interracial relationships takes center stage far more than her husband’s closeted homosexuality, which is introduced in the first act before virtually disappearing for the film’s middle stretch and then reappearing suddenly at the film’s climax. It doesn’t feel so much that the film is looking to make a statement on homosexuality as it is on interracial relationships, which feels slightly off for a film released in 2002, but by trying to engage with both “abnormal” 1950s romantic relationships, neither theme feels quite strong enough on its own to actually be saying anything.
So wait why should you Watch This Film?
To that point, if it weren’t for Julianne Moore’s performance and some gorgeous cinematography and production design, I don’t think I’d be writing about this film right now. Moore’s Oscar-nominated performance as a woman in crisis at the brink of a new era (both in the world and in her life) does so much of the film’s heavy lifting. She plays the part of dutiful housewife well, while still letting the audience in on how much of a façade it truly is. Her attempts at romancing her husband appear admirable, and her growing love for her gardener never feels unnatural or forced. The true testament to Moore’s performance comes in the final scene of farewell at the train station where no words are exchanged, but her face speaks volumes of her gratitude, love, and heartache, bringing closure to Haynes’s film.
Visually, Far from Heaven also leaves very little to be desired. Haynes and his production team worked hard to make this film appear very reminiscent of the films of the 1950s, particularly the romantic dramas, utilizing lighting, sets, and costuming to pull off a wonderful look for the film. They go above and beyond in their work, however, utilizing a gorgeous color palette as well to signify the various shifts in the narrative. Opening the film in fall, with splashes of orange and yellow and red all over, there is a vibrancy to the colors that matches the positive direction of the narrative – however false that may be because of the trouble brewing below the surface in Cathy’s life and the inevitable decay of winter that follows fall. The scenes that take place in Miami serve to return to this vibrant palette, offering Cathy and the audience a false sense of hope in the future before her return to Connecticut and the winter that waits there. Nevertheless, the film does not end in winter but at the start of spring with one final shot of white flowers just blooming, signifying new opportunities for Cathy in her now unblemished life. All of that is just the tip of the visual iceberg, but I’m not here to write a full-on scene-by-scene analysis of the visual imagery in the film, so I’ll leave it at that for now.
A beautifully shot film, full of color and imagery brought to life in Julianne Moore’s leading performance, Far from Heaven leaves little doubt as to how it made its way onto a list of the Greatest Films of All Time. Even though it fails to do satisfactory justice to either of its central themes, the film is still a masterpiece of visual storytelling that is certainly worth seeing once. It is currently available to rent on most streaming platforms for people looking to do just that.
