Imitation of Life (Sirk, 1959): Barbican Cinema, 3.20pm
Barbican introduction:
This screening of Douglas Sirk's Imitation of Life (1959) is presented in response to Noah Davis’s Barbican exhibition 'Imitation of Wealth', creating a dialogue between film and art about themes of identity, aspiration, and representation. Sirk’s
lush melodrama examines the intersecting lives of two women—one black
and one white—and their daughters, navigating the complexities of race,
class, and familial sacrifice. The film’s exploration of constructed
identities and societal expectations resonates with Davis’s work, which
reimagines illusions of prosperity and cultural symbolism as layered
narratives about value and visibility. This screening invites
audiences to consider how both Davis and Sirk use their respective
mediums to critique systems of representation and question the ways we
assign meaning to art, labour, and life. (The other film screenings as part of the season can be found here).
Chicago Reader review:
Douglas Sirk's 1959 film was the biggest grosser in Universal's history until the release of Airport,
yet it's also one of the most intellectually demanding films ever made
in Hollywood. The secret of Sirk's double appeal is a broadly
melodramatic plotline, played with perfect conviction yet constantly
criticized and challenged by the film's mise-en-scene, which adds levels
of irony and analysis through a purely visual inflection. Lana Turner
stars as a young widow and mother who will do anything to realize her
dreams of Broadway stardom; her story is intertwined with that of Susan
Kohner, the light-skinned daughter of Turner's black maid, who is
tempted to pass for white. By emphasizing brilliant surfaces, bold
colors, and the spatial complexities of 50s moderne architecture, Sirk
creates a world of illusion, entrapment, and emotional desperation. With
John Gavin, Sandra Dee, Dan O'Herlihy, Robert Alda, and Juanita Moore.
Dave Kehr
Here (and above) is the trailer.
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