Solange es Menschen gibt (1959)

Solange es Menschen gibt: Directed by Douglas Sirk. With Lana Turner, John Gavin, Sandra Dee, Susan Kohner. An aspiring white actress takes in an African-American widow whose mixed-race daughter is desperate to be seen as white.

“There was barely a time during the 50u0026#39;s that Douglas Sirk was not at work directing a picture for Universal. By the middle of the decade his work began to reveal a distinct assurance of style. By the end of the decade he had become a master in the craft of filmmaking. Recognition for this mastery took a long time in coming and though much has been written about Sirku0026#39;s unique talent, he has not been acclaimed as a master director in the sense that Ford, Welles or Hitchcock have been. This is largely owing to the fact that Sirku0026#39;s success lay in melodrama, often and ridiculously called u0026quot;womanu0026#39;s picturesu0026quot;. (u0026quot;Thereu0026#39;s Always Tomorrowu0026quot; (1956) is a ruthless study of the male role in the American family of the fifties and a film criminally passed over.) Nobody before, nor since Douglas Sirk has elevated the melodrama to a relevant and powerful art form with such style. (Fassbinder, who idolized Sirk, came close). This achievement is all the more remarkable since the scripts and actors, for the most part, with which he was allotted to work, were decidedly second rate. u0026quot;Imitation of Lifeu0026quot; was to be his final film. It is a cinematic masterpiece.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSirk was an intellectual with a rich theater background in pre-war Germany where he staged productions of the classics, well versed in Ibsen, Shakespeare and the Greek tragedies. Like many other European emigres, he was initially enchanted by America and all it stood for. His earlier films, particularly his u0026quot;Americanau0026quot; trilogy make this clearly evident. By the end of the fifties he had clearly awoken from the American dream. It was to him an imitation of life. u0026quot;Imitation of Lifeu0026quot; was wildly successful at the box office, grossing more money that any other Universal film. At the very peak of his powers and success, Douglas Sirk not only left Hollywood, he left America and returned to Europe, never to make another film.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs the credits begin to roll, large diamonds begin to drop, eventually filling the screen. They are, of course, imitation. These are chunks of glass which can be shattered and cause harm, unlike the perfection, strength and beauty of the real thing. The film is a study of human imperfection and injustice. At the core of the work is the racial discrimination which shatters and devastates the lives of its victims.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOstensibly Lana Turner portrays the main character. Hers is the familiar, evergreen rags-to-riches tale, made even more glamorous by its show business context. By the end of the film, her story is secondary. The focus has shifted almost completely to the lives of her maid/companion and her daughter.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTurner was no stranger to the genre, having delivered a host of superficial portrayals which all leant heavily on her beauty rather than her decidedly limited acting talents. She is quoted as saying that u0026quot;Imitation of Lifeu0026quot; was the first time she really felt an actress. The reason for this lies in the subtlety of her character. She is unashamedly ambitious. The choice between a stable, loving relationship with a u0026quot;good manu0026quot; versus a vague career possibility presents in effect no choice at all. She is also clearly shallow. On two occasions, both her daughter and suitor tell her to u0026quot;stop actingu0026quot; in response to her melodramatic posturing. The irony is razor sharp, this being in the context of a melodrama itself. Yet, from the very outset, the manner in which she relates to the impoverished black mother and daughter is completely natural and devoid of any of the rampant racial discrimination of the times. Lora Meredith (Turneru0026#39;s character) has no qualms about taking both mother and daughter into her home. While the black woman, Annie (Juanita Moore), willfully functions as her maid, she is a confidante and true friend. Lora Meredithu0026#39;s inherent humanity tends to make us overlook her many and glaring imperfections. Under Sirku0026#39;s direction Lana Turner delivers an assured and effective performance, undoubtedly amongst her finest work. Perhaps Sirk utilized the melodramatic events of her own life, in which her daughter stabbed her lover, not long before the making of the film. This would have resonated particularly in the secondary theme of mother/daughter rivalry for the affection of John Gavinu0026#39;s character, Steve.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJohn Gavin was a highly inexperienced actor, who Universal, much in need of a new male star, hoped Sirk would turn into a new Rock Hudson. Hudson had been largely Sirku0026#39;s creation, under whose coaching had turned into Americau0026#39;s top cinema idol in a matter of a few years. Besides having his handsomeness brought to the screen by master cameraman Russell Metty, Gavin performs well, though major stardom was to elude him.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSandra Dee is competent as Turneru0026#39;s daughter, but she is naturally overshadowed by the powerful role of her black (though clearly white) peer. Susan Kohneru0026#39;s is a performance brimming with searing pain. Sirku0026#39;s films often contain characters with raging inner conflicts. Even when these are not the primary roles, they are the ones that by his own admission fascinate him the most. He called them u0026quot;splitu0026quot; characters. Kohneru0026#39;s is one of his most viciously split characters, though Robert Stack in u0026quot;Written on the Windu0026quot; comes a close second. This fascination with split characters probably has much to do with Sirku0026#39;s perception of Rock Hudson who starred in eight of his movies. Hudson after all was the ultimate split character, simultaneously gay while embodying on screen the ultimate American male. Ironically Sirk did not feel Hudson was suited to playing the split character on screen and only once gave him such an opportunity. His portrayal in u0026quot;Battle Hymnu0026quot; did not quite meet the demands of the role.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJuanita Moore ultimately becomes the center of the film, in a truly moving, unforgettable performance. Critics who find her role demeaning in not demanding her or her daughteru0026#39;s rights, fail to grasp the complexities of the times. From her very first scene, her perceptive understanding of the harsh reality of the times is clear. She is a realist trying to survive with dignity in a world where all the odds are stacked against her. Itu0026#39;s a stance her daughter and an entire generation would passionately rebuke.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAt the melodramatic height of the movie, Sirk tops it all with a surprising and incredibly moving appearance by the famed gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. Her rendition of u0026quot;Troubles of the Worldu0026quot; encapsulates the devastating suffering of the blacks which Sirk has toiled so hard to portray.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;Imitation of Lifeu0026quot; is as visually perfect as one has come to expect from Sirku0026#39;s movies. Cameraman Russell Metty was always Sirku0026#39;s first choice. The symbolically obscure inner design of Turneru0026#39;s home is captured from every possible angle in a dazzling show of cinematography.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe final funeral sequence is symbolic of Sirku0026#39;s end in Hollywood. The reason for his departure was put down to ill health, though he lived for another 18 years. He had played the game by the rules and never expressed any kind of remorse towards his studio. Perhaps he simply felt he no longer wanted to be part of a place or indeed a society which had become patently an imitation of life.”