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oyceterJust finished watching the filmed London production of Oklahoma, starring Hugh Jackman (aka Wolverine), directed by Trevor Nunn.
I like it a lot better than the older film version (fifties? not sure), but I definitely have issues with this musical. It probably doesn't help that I watched it for a class and analyzed it before I really watched it for the first time, so it's a very different perspective than growing up with it. Hugh Jackman is very cool. And funny. And he made me mostly like Curly, which I didn't in the original. I think the person I liked the best in this production was the woman playing Aunt Eller though, because she was great. I liked Laurie in the beginning (much better than the movie!), but then she got in her dress and got much less interesting. After Laurie gets into a dress, the big conflict is will Judd get his dirty paws on her? whereas before it's a kind of pride and prejudice type thing between her and Curly. The two really managed to sell that in the beginning though.
Beautiful singing all around (Hugh Jackman! Wow!), and a really funny British-American-West accent. I bet the British think that whenever Americans are doing a British accent in movies. It's just kind of funny hearing a British inflection coming in in the middle of Oklahoman slang. Minor detail though.
So I absolutely adored the musical until Judd stepped in, at which point everything just kind of went haywire for me. I did like that they didn't have the tension between Judd and Curly that apparent at the first scene in the smokehouse, so that Curly slipping into song about Judd being dead seems more him putting his foot in his mouth than anything else. I remember my prof. thought it was very interesting that Curly is basically singing Judd to death. Kind of creepy. Creepy scene in general. And it was strange, because I got that they were trying to make me feel sorry for Judd, except they also made it hard to feel sorry for Judd without really despising Curly and Laurie. Well, I really hated Curly and Laurie in the movie version, especially Curly, because he was so arrogant and assured. I though Hugh Jackman did a great job portraying him as someone who talked big to hide some insecurities and to just have fun.
Then there are all the thoughts left over from the class last year floating around my head on patriotism/nationalism (esp. evident at the bursting out of a paeon to the state during a very private affair -- Curly and Laurie's wedding). Also many issues on gender roles and the fear of outsiders (read: lower classes or foreigners) getting their hands on white women. I'm always disturbed by Laurie's psychotic ballet dream and the way it ended in this production with her on the ground with Judd lying on top of her. A lot of sexual issues coded in, especially with Laurie all pretty in white being assaulted by this large, dirty, unshaven man. And of course she weakly struggles but has to have Curly save her all the time. Then there's Ado Annie and her sexual favors. And the dirty pictures and the Little Wonder.
I think the thing I had a very big problem with was also Curly's "trial" in the end. Hey, I want the hero to win with the rest of them, but not by having the entire community bully the law in his favor just because he's popular and Judd's not! If it was self-defense, as it seemed to be, it should have held up to a real trial. And then, not two minutes after the mockery of the law goes by, we get a happy ending with Curly and Laurie driving away and everyone singing about the beautiful morning and glorious Oklahoma!
Weird. You know, this is really a very disturbing musical.
I like it a lot better than the older film version (fifties? not sure), but I definitely have issues with this musical. It probably doesn't help that I watched it for a class and analyzed it before I really watched it for the first time, so it's a very different perspective than growing up with it. Hugh Jackman is very cool. And funny. And he made me mostly like Curly, which I didn't in the original. I think the person I liked the best in this production was the woman playing Aunt Eller though, because she was great. I liked Laurie in the beginning (much better than the movie!), but then she got in her dress and got much less interesting. After Laurie gets into a dress, the big conflict is will Judd get his dirty paws on her? whereas before it's a kind of pride and prejudice type thing between her and Curly. The two really managed to sell that in the beginning though.
Beautiful singing all around (Hugh Jackman! Wow!), and a really funny British-American-West accent. I bet the British think that whenever Americans are doing a British accent in movies. It's just kind of funny hearing a British inflection coming in in the middle of Oklahoman slang. Minor detail though.
So I absolutely adored the musical until Judd stepped in, at which point everything just kind of went haywire for me. I did like that they didn't have the tension between Judd and Curly that apparent at the first scene in the smokehouse, so that Curly slipping into song about Judd being dead seems more him putting his foot in his mouth than anything else. I remember my prof. thought it was very interesting that Curly is basically singing Judd to death. Kind of creepy. Creepy scene in general. And it was strange, because I got that they were trying to make me feel sorry for Judd, except they also made it hard to feel sorry for Judd without really despising Curly and Laurie. Well, I really hated Curly and Laurie in the movie version, especially Curly, because he was so arrogant and assured. I though Hugh Jackman did a great job portraying him as someone who talked big to hide some insecurities and to just have fun.
Then there are all the thoughts left over from the class last year floating around my head on patriotism/nationalism (esp. evident at the bursting out of a paeon to the state during a very private affair -- Curly and Laurie's wedding). Also many issues on gender roles and the fear of outsiders (read: lower classes or foreigners) getting their hands on white women. I'm always disturbed by Laurie's psychotic ballet dream and the way it ended in this production with her on the ground with Judd lying on top of her. A lot of sexual issues coded in, especially with Laurie all pretty in white being assaulted by this large, dirty, unshaven man. And of course she weakly struggles but has to have Curly save her all the time. Then there's Ado Annie and her sexual favors. And the dirty pictures and the Little Wonder.
I think the thing I had a very big problem with was also Curly's "trial" in the end. Hey, I want the hero to win with the rest of them, but not by having the entire community bully the law in his favor just because he's popular and Judd's not! If it was self-defense, as it seemed to be, it should have held up to a real trial. And then, not two minutes after the mockery of the law goes by, we get a happy ending with Curly and Laurie driving away and everyone singing about the beautiful morning and glorious Oklahoma!
Weird. You know, this is really a very disturbing musical.
(no subject)
Tue, Jan. 6th, 2004 06:35 pm (UTC)There was no good plot reason why Laurey couldn't afford a dress. It jarred for me -- v. ahistorical. I thought the actress cast as Laurey was flat -- not musically but as a performer. You couldn't see why the men were competing for her. Ado Annie made sense, as she was a cheerful sexpot.
My 10-year-old son has decided that all musicals are disturbing, based on Oklahoma and Batboy. Must keep him away from Sondheim, although my husband thinks Into The Woods is family fare. (!)
(no subject)
Wed, Jan. 7th, 2004 02:54 am (UTC)I actually liked Laurie compared to the movie version of her, who I just wanted to slap, and I got the feeling in this production that it was mostly just Curly who wanted her, with Judd going after her because she was nearby.
Batboy? I just got a flash of a singing and dancing Batman and Robin in my head in the Adam West TV show incarnation! Hee!
(no subject)
Thu, Jan. 8th, 2004 11:11 pm (UTC)