Magnificent Obsession: The Influence of Douglas Sirk
Before TV took over the soap opera business, Douglas Sirk owned it in his films. He was the master of melodrama like how Alfred Hitchcock was the master of suspense, making his name felt with a handful of lush, colorful films during the 1950′s. Though Sirk’s films were poorly received by reviewers during his time, today they are considered influential by directors like Lars von Trier, Wong Kar-wai, Pedro Almodovar, and Quentin Tarantino. (In Pulp Fiction, John Travolta orders himself a “Douglas Sirk steak”.)
Magnificent Obsession was one of the first films Sirk made in America. Though it’s not his best film (IMO that honor belongs to All That Heaven Allows) it’s a strong example of his storytelling and visual style.
Drama with a capital D. Bob Merrick (played by Rock Hudson), a wealthy playboy with a devil-may-care attitude, is out racing his boat. On his first run, with a girl at his side, he hits 120 mph. But that’s not quite fast enough. So he stops at the pier, dumps the girl, and tries to go faster, hitting around 180 mph before his boat crashes into the shore. Merrick somehow survives, thanks to the quick arrival of emergency aid — but paramedics use the town’s only resuscitator to save him. In that same moment, well-loved local Dr. Phillips suffers a heart attack and dies.
I know what you might be thinking. But that’s not all. After finding out that he indirectly caused Dr. Phillips’ death, Merrick tries to make amends to Helen, the man’s widow (played by Jane Wyman). Naturally, she does everything she can to stay away from him. When Merrick follows her into a taxicab, Helen jumps out the other side — and gets hit by a car. She survives, but is blind for life.
And so the story begins. Such is the stuff of soap opera.
“The angles are the director’s thoughts. The lighting is his philosophy.” No matter what the story is (and Magnificent Obsession is pretty hard to swallow) the films of Douglas Sirk are marked by a keen sense of lighting and composition.
The first half of the film belongs to Merrick and America, full of rich, vibrant colors and balanced, surefooted lighting. Oddly enough, characters are sometimes shown looking out from these pretty frames, gazing into the world offscreen.
The second half of the film takes place mostly in Europe, where Helen goes on a last effort to possibly save her sight. At this point, the palette and lighting change as the dramatic focus of the story shifts, becoming darker and more expressionistic.
It’s strange to think of melodramatic films like these as great films. After all, there are soap operas on television today. But Sirk’s films weren’t just fluff pieces; they were ironic statements about American life, disguised beneath their bold visual style and swooning romantic plotlines. Today, irony is king, and a film made like this might be seen purely as a period piece, as a throwback to the era that poked the Golden era with a stick.
sirk is the shiiiiiiit. of the modern directors who are influenced by dougie doug, lets not forget Todd Haynes whose Far from Heaven is a tribute to sirk’s style!
Gimme melodrama over flashy thugs who drift all day.
They don’t make ‘em like they used to
Yes yes, of course, Todd Haynes! Far from Heaven was great. Where has he been lately? Also, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, who remade All That Heaven Allows as Ali: Fear Eats the Soul.