Last night, I decided to watch the 2011 film of "The Deep Blue Sea". I can say that it was a good film, though it definitely was not what I expected it to be. The way in which it was filmed had a haunting sort of beauty to it. There was normally no music; and if there was, it was the saddest string music ever to be heard. There would be the occasional singing at the bars or in the tunnels, but other then that, the movie was silence. I think this made the dialogue between the characters richer. It made it realistic, as though you were sitting in the room with them at that very moment. If anything, I believe the film was more focused on the character's emotions or thoughts instead of how impressive the filming was. It was kept simple, because what mattered was getting into the character's heads.
That was not the only thing that shocked me about the film. What first surprised me was the beginning. The main woman, Hester, was attempting a suicide. She did not succeed, for some people found her and revived her. From there, the movie explains who she is, where she's come from, what she is living for and what she was trying to escape from. In short, her past consisted of marrying a rather old man, not liking her life there and then meeting a younger man, Freddie, who she falls desperately in love with. Her husband, Bill, finds out and doesn't care that she leaves, but he makes the matter difficult by not filing the divorce. So she can live her scandal, but it would be more of a scandal because she was still married. Nevertheless it all takes place and she leaves him. Her suicide attempt came from, I believe, spite to the young man who didn't seem to be present on important occasions. He had forgotten her birthday and was not there to celebrate it. She had wrote a letter to him so he could find it after she was dead, but since that never took place, he accidentally finds the letter and is hurt deeply. The rest of the film proceeds in a manner of her trying to make everything right again.
Now the matter I wish to discuss here is what I noticed were some of the responses on the internet to this movie. Considering her suicidal state, most did not like the fact the Freddie left her after finding out what she had almost done. At first, I agreed with them, thinking "She just tried to kill herself that day and the best thing he thinks he can do to stabilize her is to leave? She'll probably attempt another suicide as soon as he walks out the door." Then the more I thought about it, the more I pitied Freddie over Hester.
And why is that, you may ask? Suicide, to put it simply, is selfish. Most people who take their lives only have one thought in their heads. It's all about them, all about how they can't be happy and get what they want. Hester was upset that Freddie forgot her birthday. In my mind, her attempt at suicide showed her true colors about that relationship. It was all about her. It was not about how Freddie felt. Her marriage to Bill was not about how he felt. It was all about her. I won't put names out, but I know someone who stayed with their spouse merely out of the reason that the spouse threatened to kill theirselves if the other left them. Needless to say that that particular relationship ended badly.
So in short, I think Freddie did the right thing. It was hard and he knew the risk he was taking, but he couldn't live with someone who, if he didn't entirely make her happy, would end her life. That's not a stable relationship. Unless I have mistaken the ending, she didn't kill herself at the end; and I think it was because of Freddie's last act of kindness. He almost bailed out that very night, but decided to stay with her one more night before he left. Everything was packed in the morning and they had their sad farewell, where he said "Be safe." and she replied "Be good."
Well, to say the least, I'm not entirely sure what I wanted to point out in this post; and I certinaly don't want anyone to think I am cruel to the people who struggle with suicide. That's definitely not what this is about, because I pity those people too. I suppose it's up to every individual to take from this what they like. I guess my main goal was not to put the people who voted for Hester down, but to give the frank and dangerous mindset of suicide. I've had my fair share of knowing what the mind can do when in a state of depression and I know that suicide is all about yourself. Other than that, the movie was very good. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to watch something that will make them think.
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