Monday, June 8, 1998
Period piece avoids traps by using modern themes
First-time director Des McAnuff utilizes humor to bring novel
perspectives to history in ‘Cousin Bette’
By Lonnie Harris
Daily Bruin Contributor
Hollywood has a long tradition of costume dramas – that fancy,
decadent genre where women delight in wearing corsets and men speak
English with a foppish lilt not used since the days of George
III.
Adding its own twist on to the costume genre is "Cousin Bette,"
a new film adaptation of a novel by satirist Honore de Balzac. The
story, set in a France on the cusp of its second major revolution
(in 1848), concerns the House of Hulot. Unlike many other such
tales of influential historical families, "Cousin Bette" takes on a
more modern perspective, constantly using innuendo and
lasciviousness for humor.
When matriarch Adeline passes away, her cousin Bette (Jessica
Lange) hopes that finally she will be placed at the head of the
household. Bette has always been in the shadow of her cousin, long
ago forced out of the house to live with the commoners in the
streets of a rapidly decaying Paris. When her hopes for domination
are again thwarted, this time by her brother-in-law Hector (Hugh
Laurie), Bette concocts an elaborate plan for revenge.
Like any historical comedy, the story still enters into a series
of confused and screwball escapades, eventually bringing in
characters as diverse as the mayor of Paris (Bob Hoskins) and a
courtesan from a local theater (Elizabeth Shue). Unlike other
historical comedies (such as "Emma"), "Cousin Bette" includes many
characters in its ensemble with decidedly ’90s attitudes.
According to the film’s director Des McAnuff (for whom "Cousin
Bette" is his debut feature), the story couldn’t be more modern in
scope and relevance.
"This society that Balzac is describing is actually not so far
away from societies that I actually recognize and even have come in
contact with," McAnuff says. "There is a kind of immediacy about
the story that I really recognized. I am interested in history as a
study, but I’m not interested in dusting off old relics to admire
them."
Bette herself, though faced with a set of circumstances unique
to her time in history, is not too distant for modern audiences.
Her personality, replete with jealousy, greed and bitterness, is
immediately recognizable to most people, regardless of the context
of their lives.
"I think this is the kind of character that exists usually on
the periphery of society, and therefore of the films we make about
society," McAnuff says. "There are millions of Bettes out there and
the cinema is a great way to explore a character like that, because
of the intimacy."
To tackle this role, McAnuff turned to one of the most respected
actresses currently working: his friend Lange. This proved an
interesting bit of casting, as Lange has long been considered one
of the most glamorous women in Hollywood. In order to overcome this
inconsistency, Lange had to reconfigure the classical notions of
just what a French spinster would look like.
"I heard some comments, which I don’t get, that people didn’t
buy the fact that I’m supposed to be ugly," Lange says. "Balzac
never comes out and says that Bette’s supposed to be ugly. She’s a
spinster and there’s no reason I can’t play a spinster. I wanted to
let the audience see who this girl had been. Had circumstances been
different, who this person could have been. Beauty is kind of a
question of perception."
Lange also provided an alternate view of Bette’s personality.
Instead of labeling the character as a heartless monster bent on
the ruin of her entire family, Lange sees Bette as a victim. For
her, Bette is not merely a vengeful wench, but rather is a put-upon
waif who is forced by her circumstances to fight back the only way
she knows how.
"Of course, (Bette) over the years has shut down," Lange says.
"Her uncle goes so far as to call her a bud that refused to
blossom. That’s how she is perceived, and no one gives her emotions
an ounce of consideration. She controls her emotions with an iron
fist, except for moments."
Emotional control is something Lange herself worked on, during
her post-college years in France. Lange lived there for quite some
time after college, studying the art of miming and learning all she
could about French society. It was during this time that she first
came in contact with the works of Balzac and read "Cousin
Bette."
"I read about four Balzac novels while in France," Lange says.
"’Cousin Bette’ was always my favorite. There was something about
her character that I really fell in love with, and I’ve always
wanted the opportunity to play her."
McAnuff decided to give Lange this opportunity, mainly because
of her impressive acting credentials. He says, in no uncertain
terms, that Lange was perhaps the only actress capable of "the
depth and complexity of Bette."
Lange uses this depth to add a new twist to a tired stereotype.
Her Bette has modern hopes and desires, as well as a wicked sense
of vengence. It gives the entire film, though a historical genre, a
very ’90s sensibility.
FILM: "Cousin Bette" opens Friday.