Steel Magnolias 3 Act Structure

Steel Magnolias (1989) is a movie that uses the three act structure.  The movie begins with a wedding preparation, and we are introduced to the characters this way. Shelby (Julia Roberts) is about to get married while her family, and especially her mom, M’Lynn (Sally Field), is trying to get everything together for the big day.  The first act ends about twenty six minutes in when Shelby has an episode at the salon and we learn she is diabetic.  Here, we also find out that she won’t be able to have children with her condition.  This first mini-climax sets up a clear issue for the rest of the movie, because Shelby wants to have a baby.

During the middle act, Shelby does get pregnant, against her doctor’s and mother’s wishes, and it affects her health.  This implies complication, because she also has to go through dialysis and get a kidney transplant from M’Lynn.  It is apparent that Shelby’s health is not stable, and the middle act focuses on this uncertainty.  We know that something will go wrong because she riskilly chose to get pregnant and have a baby.  The climax is at the very end of the middle act, about an hour and thirty-three minutes in, when Shelby dies from her health problems. 

The third act shows how the characters are coping with Shelby’s death and what happens after.  The movie ends with one of the characters, Anelle (Daryl Hannah), having a baby.  The third act is geared toward resolution, and the baby is a reminder that death is a part of life.  It’s a happy ending because all the characters are gathered at an Easter celebration and it’s a jovial scene.  Shelby’s son, Jack Junior, is surrounded by people who love him and loved his mother.  Anelle having her baby is a sign of life, growth, and new excitement for the future.

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Enthusiastic About Sitcoms

Sitcoms are situational comedies which cover a wide range of subject matter across the spectrum of shows, but have some defining characteristics as well.  Sitcoms tend to be episodic, which means that characters never age, and plot circumstances from one episode do not carry on to the next.  This is a vital aspect of the sitcom, because it doesn’t allow for much character development; the characters remain relatively static from show to show while the plot is dynamic each episode.  Sitcoms tend to exude a certain type of humor, from slapstick to satire, which is consistent for the duration of the show. 

One of my favorite sitcoms is Curb Your Enthusiasm which stars Larry David, the co-creator of Seinfeld, as himself.  This particular show truly is a situational comedy, its premise relying on the array of painfully awkward and yet, hilarious situations that Larry finds himself in.  Larry's character lacks the sensitivity and manners that is expected of him, and this facilitates the scenarios that the show portrays.  Curb Your Enthusiasm is episodic in nature because the characters remain the same while the plot events and circumstances change from one episode to the next.  The show is largely improvised, and the humor nearly always is a result of the actual situation.  The humor is unique, I think largely due to the improvisation, and is refreshing amidst a sea of shows with humor that’s been overused.  You'll find yourself laughing hysterically over a situation that you never want to be in yourself.

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Camera Shots

Throughout the course of a film, three types of shots are typically used.  The first is the long shot, which is the orientation shot.  This provides the setting for where the scene will take place.  The second type of shot is the medium shot, which is the information shot.  This should provide more clues than the long shot, perhaps by showing what a character is engaged in or how many characters there are.  The close up shot is the third type, and it depicts important detail.  The director uses the close up shot to focus on specific details that he or she wants the audience to pay careful attention to. 

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf (1966) is a terrific movie which has all three types of shots in it, though it most frequently uses the middle shot and close up.  The first long shot is shown when the two main characters are walking up to a house.  This shows us that the couple is walking into a house, presumably their own, and we see that this is where the following action will take place.  An example of a middle shot is after the guests, Nick and Honey, come over to George and Martha's house.  The middle shot is of the four characters in George and Martha's living room.  It is informative because it shows the dynamics of the situation.  Here, we see that the four characters are all engaged, but the energy is tense as Martha is pointing and George is standing.  All characters have a drink, which is consistent throughout the movie. 

There are many intense close up shots within this film; here is one instance when Martha is yelling viciously at George.  This shot portrays the detail of Martha’s emotion and her raw, biting fury.  Through this shot, we can better grasp the complexity of her and George’s relationship through the high level of emotional battery. 

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Contract Talent

The classic Hollywood system had many well-known aspects to it, one of the most important of which is contract talent which the big studios employed.  This method of contractually binding certain stars to a studio was known as the “star system.”  Unlike today, one actor would sign a contract to work for a film studio for a given number of years.  This strategy was immensely important for the studios because during the Golden Era, stars were vital to drawing audiences to a film; they were often more of a magnet than the film itself was and their names were placed above the film title.

Once signed, these contracts required actors to take leading roles in movies that the studio wanted them to, regardless of whether or not the star necessarily wanted to.  Today most actors don’t belong to such intense contracts of this kind, however contracts certainly still do exist.  The practice of contract talent affected the types of films that were made because the studios would pump out as many films with their “star” as they could.  Back then, a studio could produce four or five movies per year with their star talent in a mass-produced, factory-based system.  Since most everything was in-house, this strategy proved to be profitable and effective.

One classic example of contract talent is Humphrey Bogart, who signed on with Warner Brothers.  From 1936 to 1940 Bogart was in 28 films, which shows how much a studio took advantage of its signed talent.  That large a number of films being released in that amount of time is unheard of now, but there is also a greater variety of talent working for different studios.  Bogart was one of the biggest stars then, and he drew audiences to Warner Brothers’ films.  In 1941 he played a role in The Maltese Falcon and in 1942 he took a lead role in Casablanca; both these films are now iconic.  Bogart ultimately was a hugely successful actor and provided the fame and talent for many of Warner Brothers’ films that are now considered classics.    

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All in the Modern Family

"All in the Family", on air in the 1970s, is known for addressing controversial social issues of the times, often through Archie’s outward opinions.  One of my favorite new shows is "Modern Family", which manifests some similarities to and differences from "All in the Family".  "Modern Family", as the title connotes, is a comedy that revolves around the lives of a family in the present day.  There are three generations of family members in "Modern Family" while only two in "All in the Family"; the characters in "Modern Family" do not all live under a single roof, while the Bunkers do.  "Modern Family’s" patriarch also lacks the extreme cynicism and belligerence that Archie wears so well.  However, both shows are comedies that find humor in the everyday lives of people and situations.

"All in the Family" presents many of the controversial and confining issues of the 1970s, as we see in the episode, “Judging Books by Covers” which addresses homosexuality.  Archie suspects Mike’s friend is gay, and reveals his hateful attitude toward homosexuality.  Archie proves his bias throughout the episode with his language and exclamations.  The most impressive difference, and proof of how as a nation we have progressed, is the openness that "Modern Family" demonstrates.  One of the characters is gay and married with an adopted daughter; the couple is openly gay and the family openly accepting.  Dear old Archie would have had a fit over this setup; it is quite a divergence from "All in the Family’s" portrayal.  The contemporary show doesn’t criticize homosexuality or eccentricity, "Modern Family" actually thrives off of the uniqueness of its characters and their lives. 

Shows today certainly wouldn’t use the language that Archie did; while it may have been accepted in that generation, today many of his language choices are considered inappropriate and even explicit.  The contemporary show also wouldn’t be as sexist as Archie often was, as his behavior towards his wife most consistently illustrates.  In fact, many shows today include the theme of women in charge, and "Modern Family" adheres to this theme.  Conversely, some things that "Modern Family" addresses, like characters’ physical relationships, may not have been included in "All in the Family".  Still, though their differences are plenty, both shows’ roots stem from the same tree; they both find humor in the chaos of family and the comfort of home.

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