Though it is set at an all girls school over 50 years ago, Mike Newell's latest film, "Mona Lisa Smile," seems eerily applicable to modern day U.Va -- or it did to me at least. Perhaps it's because some of my female friends are getting engaged, while the word "relationship" still scares me (let alone the thought of matrimony). Perhaps it's because we go to a school with conservative roots where conformity is still fashionable after all these years (and if you disagree, look around the classroom and count how many North Face fleeces and Herve Chapelier bags you see and then we'll talk).
Either way, Newell's treatment of the story of forward-thinking, novice art history professor Katherine Watson's (Julia Roberts) experience teaching at traditionalist Wellesley college in the 1950s is not merely a work of nostalgia but a reflective film with enduring themes: can a liberal outsider hack it in a conservative setting? Or should she find a place where she can truly be herself? Can a woman make it without a man? Or alternately, can she manage both a career and a family life? Somehow, the answer to all of these questions is yes, as Newell and his star-studded cast show us.
The story begins with Katherine's catastrophic first class at Wellesley in which she realizes that these students are far more intelligent than those she was used to in her native California. Despite the rude awakening, the tenacious Watson doesn't give up; rather, she changes her tactics. She challenges the girls' conception of what makes art, and in so doing challenges the girls' conception of their conformist surroundings and their destinies. Over the course of her tenure Katherine makes friends with the students, enemies with the administration, and admirers of her audience.
In addition to telling the specific story of Katherine and her students, the film also serves as a more general study of life at that time. From music and fashions to the social mores, the film aptly depicts 1950s America, which it both glorifies and acerbically critiques.
The film is incredibly well cast. No other actress could have portrayed Katherine's complex independence as well as Julia Roberts does. One gets the impression that the real Roberts has a similar streak of defiance and individualism in her, as her personal history might suggest. The casting choices for all of the students were well made; two actresses in particular stand out. As Giselle, Maggie Gyllenhaal is sharp, sensual and brilliant. While she plays a sexpot with a quick wit, she shows surprising emotional depth. Her performance is truly inspired. Hollywood newcomer Ginnifer Goodwin is absolutely adorable in her portrayal of the somewhat dorky Connie. Her romance with the equally nerdy Charlie Stuart -- who is superbly portrayed by Ebon Moss-Bachrach is one of the better sidelines of the movie.
As Katherine's colleagues, Juliet Stevenson ("Bend It Like Beckham") and Marcia Gay Harden ("Mystic River") play convincing opposites as the forward-thinking nurse and the traditional etiquette instructor. Stevenson's brief performance is stirring, while Harden is perfect as the conformist image from which Katherine is trying to escape.
The only (and only somewhat) disappointing performance was that of Dominic West as the school's supposedly lust-worthy Italian professor. The problem was that he wasn't all that lust-worthy. He wasn't much of anything, really. Maybe it just seemed this way because of the stellar performances turned out by his female co-stars, but everything about his character seemed pretty, well, blah.
What is somewhat disturbing about the film is American's disparate reception of it along gender lines, namely the fact that while women find it inspirational, some men in particular seem to really hate it (check the Internet Movie Data Base's message board for some exceptionally malevolent virtual battles on the subject). If it were another run-of-the-mill chick flick, I might understand, but this film was well-written with an interesting plot and a great cast. I have to assume then that the haters misunderstood the movie's message, because if a story about women becoming more independent and pursuing their dreams still inspires hatred in the American male, then this movie is a lot more important than I previously thought.
Besides, while it is a movie about women and women's lives and women's roles, it has a meaning that extends far beyond the 1950s female. Newell shows that some people can change, while others never will; what's best for some may not work for others. The best you can do is find yourself, be yourself, and encourage others to do the same. It is this enduring, individualistic message, even above the consummate cast and dead-on treatment of 1950s America, that makes "Mona Lisa Smile" such a fine film.
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