Without going into the whole story, there are two characters in the show who appear every other episode or so. They are Vivian and Lily Charles, spinster Aunts to the female lead, Chuck. Vivian and Lily believe Chuck is dead and have been in mourning, unable to continue their famous and popular mermaid synchronized swimming act. One of the other characters, Olive, who knows Chuck is alive, has been interacting with the Aunts, trying to cheer them up and get them to move on with their lives (especially important since Chuck isn't actually dead).
In last week's episode, "The Smell of Success", Olive made some progress in reminding the Aunts of what they had lost by living in grief. Near the end of the episode, after the case of the week was solved, the scene shifted to the Aunts' house and pushed through the window to show Vivian (Ellen Greene) looking out the window, watching the rain, which of course is water, the medium of their former mermaid act. Behind her on the couch sits the more cynical Lily (Swoosie Kurtz).
Vivian then starts to sing "Morning Has Broken" in a quiet, halting voice. Lily utters the only dialogue in the scene, gruffly asking Vivian what's she's doing. Vivian gains strength and moves outside, singing with more conviction. Although it's raining, it's one of those weird rains where only part of the sky is cloudy so the sun is also shining. The song choice is particularly appropriate because the singing symbolizes that finally "Mourning" Has Broken. Lily is shown inside the house, with the shadow of raindrops on the window making it look like she's crying. A tentative smile starts to form.
The scene cuts to the Aunts standing face to face in front of a swimming pool, still in the rain, in costume, with the song continuing. The performances by Greene and Kurtz here are just amazing. They are crying in sadness and at the same time smiling in utter joy. They jump into the pool and begin their routine in a beautiful segment that runs until the song ends.
Galactica and Lost often create these kinds of touching, effective scenes with only music and imagery, no dialogue. Pushing Daisies has shown that it can do the same to emotionally devastating effect.
Greene and Kurtz should both be nominated for Emmys for their work in this show.
(Edited to add: All previously aired episodes can be seen in their entirety on ABC.com. If you enjoy great television, check them out.)
2 comments:
Ya. That was good. Really good. I've caught myself singing that song many times since last week and remembering.
That Olive is also turning out to be a really strong character. The Chuck character is having a hard time keeping up, I think -- though she is nominally the co-star. Funny how that happens sometimes when a minor character starts to take over the show.
Yes, when a show can make you think for an entire week about two middle-aged women practicing synchronized swimming and enjoy it, that says something!
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