Grey Gardens

I just saw Grey Gardens. It came out earlier last year and is based on the documentary, Grey Gardens (1975). I really liked the film. I found it so interesting, that I had to see the original as soon as I was finished watching the film.

Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange were wonderful. Barrymore plays Edith 'Little Edie' Bouvier Beale and Lange plays Edith 'Big Edie' Bouvier Beale. All of the other characters and actors were fairly forgettable next to them (except for perhaps Jeanne Tripplehorn, who did a marvelous job playing Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis). They really stole the whole film.

The original documentary was directed by David and Albert Maysles. The documentary follows Edith Bouvier Beale and her daughter, Edie. Edith is nearly eighty years old and Edie is fifty-six. They live with many cats and racoons in their crumbling home in East Hampton. Edie came home 24 years prior to care for her mother. They two rarely have visitors and never leave their home. With very few exceptions, they are suspicious of the outside world. Despite this, both cling to their past lives. Edie still seems to believe that she can return to New York to become a dancer and a debutante.

I would definitely recommend both films. I am not sure what order I would recommend them in (I saw the film before the documentary, but I am sure it would be just as interesting to reverse the order), but they are definitely must-sees!