Monday, March 31, 2014
51 Birch Street
51 Birch Street is a documentary film detailing the lives of the suburban Block family before and after the sudden passing of the family's mother/wife. In watching, the film seems poised to address many different themes ranging from love, marriage, fidelity, to the underlying mystery regarding parents and family. Not only does it settle these themes upon itself, but I think the film also seeks to get the viewer to address some of the difficult questions that it proposes. Can we really resolve our problems with our parents? If so, when is the right time, is there a right time? How much can we really focus on the past, and what aspects of it should we focus on? How much of our past should we ignore? Do we really want to know "the truth," how much of the truth can we really be ok with if any at all? There are many more questions that are asked and that can be interpreted, but these are some of the main ones I got. Either address some of the questions if you want, or speak about what you think is the purpose of the film. What sort of things the film make you think about or what did you think the film was asking or trying to get across?
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In watching the documentary, I felt that there were so many driving forces dictating the central message of the film that its hard to say or dictate the bigger picture of it. Nonetheless, what I took away from the film was that it is easy to often get caught up with these that ideals society has for us, and how we often tend to lose ourselves in the process of getting caught up in these ideals. I guess what I am getting at is that like presented in the film the real reason the filmmaker’s mother got married was really because at that time in society, women who were not married were considered socially “dead”. Therefore, what other choice in the minds of women at that time did they have then to get married? It kind of reminds me of myself in a way because often times I like to consider myself a non-conformer and that inevitably leads often times to being left out or being an outcast socially speaking. And if anyone has ever been an outcast you can understand why someone would not want to endure a similar experience rather than to be true to their morals or values, and or beliefs. Nevertheless, before I continue on this seemingly pointless tangent, I would say that this documentary was far more interesting than one of any celebrity I have ever seen. It really plays on that dynamic that everyday people have interesting stories to tell, whether implicitly known or through unknown truths. Overall, it was a very interesting documentary, and it also ignited this desire for me to start a similar project on my grandparents, especially my great grandfather who fought for Hitler’s Germany during WWII.
ReplyDeleteI know many people can relate to this documentary. You never really know when it's the right time to try unravel some important information from your parent or family member. But I believe we can resolve some problems with parents but not all. I believe this because not all problems can be resolved. It is really hard to just ignore the past because it is going to linger. Your conscious will not allow to just ignore the past. This film really made think when I get older and try to figure out my family.
ReplyDeleteRegardless of the magnitude of it, we all have underlying issues with our parents. For some, talking about it is easy and can be resolved, but not for all. I do think its worth it to try to solve problems with our parents. Many people with parents who have passed on always wish they had settled this or brought up that.
ReplyDeleteThis documentary is a reminder that regardless of how perfect some things seem on the outside, no family is ever perfect. There is some sort of unique flaw to each. That is what makes this documentary so relatable, the story it tells can have similar effects on family dynamics, like those of other families.
This document is something a lot of people can relate to, simply off the fact that people go through this everyday. Losing their family members, grieving, trying to cope with the pain or fill the empty void that's no longer there. I feel as though when the time is right or when kids become of age it's time for their parents to rap to them. Meaning they should talk about the secrets that were untold. When we get older I feel as though we should try to figure our families out.
ReplyDeleteThe film asks questions regarding fidelity and love. In the film Doug questions whether his father and mother really loved each other and were happy throughout their marriage. When searching through his mother's diaries it shows that for most of the marriage she was unhappy and started an affair with her therapist. After her death Doug's father married a woman who he knew years ago. Doug reflects and sees that his father is much happier with Kitty then with his mother. This raises the question of why Mike and Mina ( Doug's mother and father) ever got married in the first place. Maybe they never loved each other in their past. Maybe they only thought they were "right" for each other.
ReplyDeleteTake the first glance of the beginning of 51 Birch Street, I thought it could be a lovely story about Mike and Mina, and how those kids memorize their dear mom. Doug’s mom, Mina, who is my favorite character in this movie, is such a smart and beautiful woman. I can see her energy, intelligence and emotion on her face when she was interviewed by Doug. She is unlikely to an old woman at all. I can feel her humor and knowledge in her every single words, and I still cannot believe that she passed away such immediately. Doug and her sisters always love their mom more than dad. Because Mina spent more time on those kids, she was always a 60’s housewife in her family while Mike was busy all the time. The whole movie turns at the point of Mike’s new marriage with Kitty. Somebody says, men always do that because they are easily to be lonely. However, this Kitty is not a “new” one, they met when they were colleagues. I can see Doug’s resignation and anger in his father’s wedding, but he have to smile and cheer for them. That is his father. After that, he decided to find out those reasons and history that his parents never talked about in front of kids. He found his mother’s diary which is actually massive in that old house. Firstly, he was hesitating that whether he should read them or not. After getting advices from different sources, he started reading Mina’s 30 years life. That is the first time he see Mina as a woman, not a mother, a woman who could be angry, could be thirsty, could be desperation. Finally, he understood what confused him. That is a real family, a real woman, a real mother. Life cannot be one hundred percent good, and that is reality.
ReplyDeleteI found this film very relatable. It shows the hardships of marriage we might not recognize through our parents strong facade. I feel that situations like Mike and Mina's happen more often then we think but just go unnoticed. Sometimes digging deeper into your families past can uncover interesting point of views that you otherwise might have never came across. Other times it may be sad to thing the outlook on the person you knew your whole life might not have been what you thought. It shows the importance of being open with those you love so no stone is left unturned.
ReplyDeleteThis film really made me think about my relationship with my parents. It made me wonder if my parents were truly happy together or even in love? It also brought up a lot about my relationship with them. I dont have the best relationship with my parents, we are civil but there is a lot of unsaid tension between us. The film made me realize the possibility that I may find out something I dont want to if I began to dig deeper into my issues with my parents...a possibility I had never thought of before.
ReplyDelete