The late, great Roger Ebert once wrote a piece on how the film La Dolce Vita helped him “measure the inexorable progress of time.” Each
decade from 1962 to 2002 he saw the film and each decade his view on it altered
based on his own experiences and gained knowledge in life. I first saw Take This Waltz in 2011,
and watched it again in 2020. While it hasn’t been a decade yet, my life has vastly changed during those nine
years. I’ve graduated, own a house, a
dog, and a cat, had several jobs, and most notably been married for over five
years. My marriage is the key to this
review. My understanding and perspective
of Take This Waltz has altered vastly between viewings—as has my immense
appreciation. Where I once viewed Take
This Waltz as an interesting love triangle romance-drama has blossomed into
a beautiful cautionary tale on love and desire—full of clever, deceptive storytelling,
fleshed-out characters, lovely cinematography, and a knack for going against Hollywood conventions.
Take This Waltz opens with an unassuming yet ambiguous shot of its protagonist Margot (Michelle Williams) baking a cake. Margot sits down on the floor, next to the oven, with a melancholy look of dejection on her face as someone walks in—not acknowledging Margot—to look out the window. The somber scene transitions to Margot on the job, working as a freelance writer visiting a French colonial reenactment. Margot ends up getting chosen to participate in a fake lashing of a prisoner, much to her dismay, and is prodded by one of the audience bystanders to put her back into it, prompting the entire audience to egg on the request. Margot is thoroughly embarrassed by the event and chastises the stranger for his jab.
What stands out about Take This
Waltz is how unorthodox it can be.
From its story to characters to cinematography, the film has an affinity for the quirky and
enjoys doing strange stuff seemingly for the heck of it. There’s a genuine charm to its weirdness,
however, going against Hollywood conventions and trying its own thing. Take when Margot catches a flight back home and is
shown being brought through the terminal in a wheelchair. The oddity is noticed by the stranger named Daniel
(Luke Kirby), who happens to also be on the same flight sitting next to Margot. Daniel asks Margot about the wheelchair who
clear-cut lies about it—saying she has a condition where she can't stand for no
more than four minutes without help. Conventional
storytelling and pacing would have Daniel call out Margot’s bull then, but the
film instead has a transition where Daniel falls asleep and Margot watches
him. Daniel wakes up and THEN calls Margot
out on her lie as well as her watching him sleep.
It’s a strange way to progress the
plot, but it works in further showcasing their character. Daniel only calls Margot out after she’s
caught doing another unusual stunt (staring at him)—a sort of push for him to
continue their interactions. Margot does
not like being called out, yet when she’s confronted into a corner, she…laughs,
as humans—like myself—often do when caught in a lie. Yet Daniel laughs as well, because he’s not interested
in chastising her actions—he’s interested in her. The pair start getting along with some cute
banter before Margot explains the reason why she used a wheelchair—giving some
surprisingly deep insight to a stranger she just met:
Margot: I'm scared of
airports… I'm afraid of connections in airports. Getting from one plane to
another. Running and rushing, and not knowing... Trying to figure it out...
Wondering if I'm gonna make it...
Daniel: What do you think
will happen if you do not succeed?
Margot: I think I may get
lost... And that I may rot and die in some forgotten empty terminal that nobody
even knows exists.
Daniel: And you miss your
plane.
Margot: No... that's not
really the fear.
Daniel: Then what are you
afraid of?
Margot: I'm afraid of
wondering if I'll miss it. I do not like being between things... I'm afraid of
being afraid.
Daniel: Sounds like the most
dangerous thing in the world.
The two end up leaving the airport together
and share a taxi for separate drop offs—playing cute games along the way—yet
as it turns out, Daniel has recently moved close by to Margot’s house. The impression audience are supposed to get
here is clear-cut. An undeniable chemistry
between two characters who met under quirky circumstances and just happen to
live in close proximity of each other. All
aboard the love train! Yet just as
audience interpretation has molded where the film’s going, Margot—who’s very resistant
to ruin the fun—drops the bomb on Daniel that she's married. Daniel calmly, yet with a heavy undertone of
disappointment, notes how that's too bad and precedes to go to his house across
the street. He gives a shrug to the now
complicated situation, with Margot simply exhaling a quiet obscenity. In a matter of moments, the film’s tone and
dynamic has shifted entirely and become a lot more interesting and attention-grabbing.
The film cuts to the next day and
introduces Margot's husband Lou (Seth Rogen). The two have an array of goofy games and
interactions between them, such as loudly speaking into each other’s eyeball
saying they have something in it, or competing over how much they love one
another:
Margot: I love you so much,
I'm gonna mesh your head with a potato masher.
Lou: I love you so much, that
I will put your spleen into a meat grinder. And it is gonna be a freaking rusty
meat grinder.
Margot: I love you so much,
that...I'm gonna inject your face with a curious combination of Swineflu and
Ebola.
Lou: laughs You win
this round my friend.
Most adorably is Lou’s daily prank
on Margot when he pours a cup of cold water on her as she showers—Margot
unknowingly believing it to be the shower spurting. Lou is a chef who makes delectable dishes for
them to eat together while watching TV.
He is a kind-hearted man who cares immensely for Margot, stating how
happy he is to have her home again from the trip.
Despite their relatively happy
situation, Margot shows clear restlessness—staring up into space while in bed as
Lou sleeps soundly. When going outside
to water their plants, Margot spots Daniel leaving his house with a rickshaw. The unusually intriguing site is interrupted
by the usual site of Lou, who comes out and amusingly begins spraying water at Margot. The giggling pair begin kissing outside with Margot
increasingly determined to make it passionate—yet Lou halts the moment by
turning it into a thumb wrestling competition, causing Margot to dejectedly
walk back inside having not gotten the spark she was looking for.
When heading out to the grocery
store, Margot runs into Daniel pulling his rickshaw. The two converse and lightly bicker like
goofy children—ending up getting coffee together where Margot states they
should just be friends. Daniel doesn't
disagree with her, yet his intentions of getting to better know Margot are obviously
not to have another friend. Daniel
brings Margot back to his place to show off his other job as an artist (or a painter as he calls it)—revealing a picture he painted of Margot, causing them
to once again get into a self-reflective discussion:
Margot: Oh. That's... That's
pretty disturbing actually. Okay. I guess my response is: "F*** you".
Daniel: What!? One side is
full of hope.
Margot: Yes, but the other
side is a junkie, about to throw herself from a bridge.
Daniel: No, you become
melodramatic. One side just does not live up to its full potential, maybe.
Margot: One side of me, or
one side of the picture?
Daniel: So... frowns at
the picture that wasn't a good idea, clearly.
Michelle Williams has a very distinct
style of acting that brings a very unique performance here. Daniel's character puts it best in that she
feels restless "in a kind of permanent way". It's clear that she's not entirely happy with
her life at the moment, and the increasing presence of Daniel is only fueling
this mentality. She's trying to fight an
inner urge here, and it comes out as an angry dismissiveness both towards Daniel
and towards Lou. She compares herself to
her infant niece: nine out of ten times being able to figure out what she wants,
yet one-tenth of the times there are instances where her emotions are
unexplainable. Daniel offers a simple
explanation that perhaps it's that she just hadn't found out what “her niece”
really wanted. Daniel's way of talking is
notably abnormal, speaking often in a reflective manner about himself or Margot—the
latter like a psychiatrist to his patient, constantly asking open-ended questions like “Do
you?” or “What do you think?” It's a
very odd way for a human to speak, particularly to a relative stranger, yet I believe
that is the point—to make Daniel stand out as something distinctive and new to Margot
as opposed to the goofy, yet otherwise typical Lou.
Margot fear of being stuck between
things is showcased as her anxiety rises from this escalating love triangle
scenario. The mere sight of seeing Daniel
walking outside causes her to get extremely stressed out—seeking out Lou to hug
him and play their quirky games to reaffirm that she is indeed on one side:
Margot: When did you start winning
this game?
Lou: I do not know. Maybe it
means I love you more now.
Margot: ...I love you.
Rogan is as stark contrast to Kirby
in appearance as he is with filmography.
Whereas Rogan’s primary forte is comedy, Kirby’s stems more towards
drama. This is displayed in their
character interactions with Margot—whereas Daniel’s interactions are more
passionate and philosophical, Lou’s are childishly affectionate, goofy, and playful.
There is a very...interesting scene
that occurs next. Margot ends up going
with Lou's sister Geraldine (Sarah Silverman) to a water aerobics class. Daniel happens to be there watching—in a
manner that should be creepy but because of his status as the mysterious,
handsome stranger isn’t—as Margot makes a fool of herself. She is embarrassed at first but soon (like
before) gets over it and breaks into uncontrollable giggles—Daniel laughing
with her—to the point that she pees herself, causing the urine-indicator dye to turn blue and force everyone
out. Geraldine notices Daniel, and notices that Daniel is particularly noticing Margot, and that Margot is
particularly noticing Daniel. She puts
the pieces together and in a subtle yet not-so-subtle manner strikes up some
banter in the showers:
Geraldine: Sometimes I
wonder if there is any point to shaving my legs. I'm pretty sure James wouldn't
notice either way. Who am I shaving my legs for?
Other Lady: in an
exasperated tone Married life.
Geraldine: Yeah, it's kind
of depressing. But sometimes I think, after ten years who's gonna take a really
active interest in whether I shave my legs or not and at least after all this
time I like James. Is it worth trading all that in for something exciting with
someone I may not like in ten years? looks at Margot I don't know.
Other Lady: Sometimes I just
want something new. New things are shiny.
Another Lady: New things get
old.
Geraldine: Yeah, that's
right, new things get old. Just like the old things did.
All well and good but I'm not
really addressing the elephant in the room here. Director Sarah Polley takes a very blatantly
open approach to showing the women showering.
Everything is visible, there's no hiding it, and it comes right at the
audience out of nowhere. When I first
saw the film, I was baffled as to why such excessive nudity was necessary to
have in the film, especially nudity that had very little to do with the actual
plot. The scene could have easily been moved
elsewhere, or done when the characters are changing or wearing towels, etc.—so
why was it done? The answer to this
question lies with who is in the scene.
Polley appears to be going for a
two-strike assault against Hollywood conventions and social taboos. The majority of the women shown are
middle-aged or older. They are not
models, nor examples of traditional Hollywood attractiveness. They are everyday women that act like everyday
women. There is not a hint of sexual
titillation to be found within the scene.
Even the more conventional actresses such as Michelle Williams and Sarah
Silverman are presented in a very naturalistic, tasteful light. The scene presents full-on nudity in a blunt and
unassuming manner. It’s treated as an
afterthought, a fact-of-life that doesn’t need to be covered up or treated as a
big deal. The scene has the mindset of a
nudist colony. The nudity and any statements
it expresses are not necessary to the story, much like many of the film’s
quirks, but it is duly noted and I admire Polley’s mold-breaking approach.
Daniel meets up with Margot and they
continue on with their chemical banter.
Their natural chemistry certainly isn't hindered when Williams trips
during their walking discussion and the two actors give a bit of cute
improvisation. The two stop for
afternoon martinis and Margot reveals her secret desire to know what would
happen if the two ended up having an affair.
Daniel, enjoying every second of this, goes into great detail giving a
very passionate, erotic description of how they would make love, only fueling
her inner desires and fantasies. Daniel
certainly has a way with words—a true hipster playboy—and it has a clear effect
on Margot, though she tries laughing it off.
Before she leaves, however, Margot has Daniel make a pact to meet in
thirty years for a single kiss:
Margot: Because none of this
are actually going to happen, can I make an appointment with you?
Daniel: What kind of
appointment?
Margot: I'd like to make a
date to kiss you.
Daniel: My schedule is
fairly flexible.
Margot: Is it flexible in
thirty years?
Daniel: Thirty years?
Margot: I'd like to meet you
at the lighthouse in Louisburg. I'm gonna be fifty-eight. I do not know how old
you will be.
Daniel: I'll be fifty-nine.
Margot: I would like to see
you there, on this day on August 5th, 2040. and I 'd like to kiss you. Until
then, I'm married. But after thirty-five years of being faithful to my husband,
I think I'll have earned a kiss.
It's all very romantic, right out
of a pulp novel, and for Margot it's the perfect blend of being able dip her
toe into the fantasy while still remaining faithful to her husband (in her mind
at least). From this passionate fantasy,
the scene transitions a complete one-eighty into intimate mundanity as Margot and
Lou casually share the bathroom together—her peeing while the other brushes his
teeth, ending with her taking a shower and Lou continuing his cold water prank
before running away giddily. Between the
martinis and bathroom scenes, one of the two is the real deal relationship, and
it's not the one Margot's thinking about.
Yet I wasn't thinking that way
either back when I first saw the film. I
was nineteen when Take This Waltz released, and I recall being on the
Margot/Daniel ship at this point in the film.
I saw a larger-than-life passion between them, something rare that you
can’t find in a typical relationship. Nearly
a decade later, and I see quite the opposite. I’m twenty-eight, the same age as
Margot, and five years married, just like Margot. I’ve been in her shoes now, and I see the
foolishness in hers and my past self’s thinking. Margot and Lou’s relationship is far from
perfect. Lou is still very uncomfortable
with the thought of having kids and dodges having meaningful conversations
about it. He also shows obliviousness to his
wife’s desires for a more spicy, passionate love life. Yet these are types of problems every
relationship faces, and ones they can overcome, but Margot is too caught up seeing
only these negatives to also see the multitude of positives they bring as a
couple. She’s too blinded by the current
fantasy Daniel brings to consider what, if any, strengths they have in the long
run.
LINK TO PART 2!!!
LINK TO PART 2!!!
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