Before these films can be examined, it is first necessary to define the methodological approach to be used in this analysis. In order to examine the way in which Gainsborough films operate as melodrama whilst also sharing some of the concerns of the realist film, a generic analysis will be used to isolate the conventions of both melodrama and realist film form. It is therefore necessary to first of all identify what has been written on melodrama as a generic form and how these ideas can be developed for the analysis of these films.
The area surrounding melodrama and the woman's film requires some discussion; although the focus of a large quantity of writing, both terms are difficult to define precisely. The term 'melodrama' has been used inconsistently in film criticism; there has been a tendency to define and understand melodrama through "the 'feminine' excesses of 40s 'weepies' and 50s films directed by Douglas Sirk" (Altman 1999: 71). Therefore, broad generic distinctions and conventions have been constructed from a comparatively small number of films.
There has also been a considerable critical campaign to validate the woman's film as a separate genre. Doane has suggested that although not a 'pure' genre (in that it is informed by any number of pre-existing genres, such as the romance, gothic drama, or melodrama), it is ultimately unified in its point of address (Altman 1999: 73). Similarly, LaPlace states that one of the most important aspects of this genre is "the prominent place it accords to relationships between women" (1987: 139). The woman's film is therefore defined not so much by content and form, as its audience and the emphasising of female relationships and experience.
Despite the comments made earlier, Elsaesser's analysis of 1950s family melodrama contains perhaps the most useful observations on melodrama as a genre. This writing highlights a number of important differences between these and Gainsborough's melodramas, made in quite different cultural and historical contexts. These discrepancies are however useful in highlighting how Gainsborough's films are distinct within the field of melodrama. I wish to concentrate on six of the issues that raised by Elsaesser, which are of particular use in defining the generic markers. These points are:
The utilisation of music
The strong presence of social pressures
The inability of characters to act freely
Characterisation and the use of stereotypes
The privileging of the victim's point of view
The frequent alternations between emotional extremes.
(Elsaesser 1972)
Music
One of Elsaesser's central arguments is that the inability to act and express themselves of melodrama's protagonists is offset by the use of music, mise-en-scene and the camera in stating what the characters cannot. Elsaesser emphasises the importance of music in the melodrama as a form of expression; one of his main arguments is that because many of the characters are unable to express themselves directly, film form, in both mise-en-scene and music, compensates in stating what cannot otherwise be said.
Social pressures and the inability to act
The theme of overpowering social pressures, particularly those resulting from class issues, are central to the construction of melodrama. This strong sense of social pressure is inextricably connected to the way in which protagonists are unable to act "in a way that could shape the events and influence the emotional environment" (Elsaesser 1972: 55) and so escape their tragic narratives. This inability to act is in part suggested by the setting of the middle-class home, which surrounds the heroine with the "apparent order" of patriarchy, ultimately to suffocating effect (ibid.: 61). Rodowick asserts that this is visible in the "extreme compartmentalisation of the frame" (1982: 275), for instance the isolation of characters within windows and mirrors.
Elsaesser also suggests that the constraints of melodrama limit "the range of 'strong' actions" available, with the result that the catharsis of the shoot-out or chase becomes instead an inner violence that the protagonists turn against themselves (1972: 55-56). This 'inner violence' is represented by self-sacrifice, either by the suppression of emotions for the benefit of other characters, or by more extreme means. The masochism of certain characters within the melodrama is displayed through a dependency on alcohol. Elsaesser's example of this is Robert Stack's drinking in Written on the Wind as compensatory for his impotence and guilt (1972: 65).
Characterisations and stereotypes
Gledhill notes that derision for the melodrama is frequently related to the perceived simplistic representations of characters and their "personifications of Good and Evil, Innocence and Villainy" (1987: 32). However, it is also suggested that this "persistent clash between moral polarities" is presented in terms of contemporary realism (1987: 32). Therefore, although melodrama may feature easily recognisable character types, they are presented in a way relevant to the contemporary audience. In addition to this, the stereotypes and situations within which the characters interact are juxtaposed in "strange configurations" (Elsaesser 1972: 59) that provoke clashes between characters and contexts.
The privileging of the victim
The melodrama is intrinsically concerned with the privileging of the victim; "'Melodrama', Martha Vicinus states, 'sides with the powerless', while evil is associated with 'social power and station'" (Gledhill 1987: 21). The victim is invariably female; the source of oppression for the melodramatic victim is therefore either men with power, or the social pressures, as mentioned earlier, that work to maintain a condition of subordination.
The quick swing between emotional extremes
Melodrama's perceived conflict with realism is in part a result of the way in which emotion tensions change erratically. Elsaesser refers to this representing "a quicker swing from one extreme to the other than is considered natural, realistic, or in conformity with literary standards of verisimilitude" (1972: 52). These emotion changes then result in 'dramatic discontinuity'. Emotions are allowed to rise, only to be suddenly inverted; characters form expectations of happiness, which are quickly shattered. For example, in The Bad and the Beautiful, actress Lana Turner is given self-confidence by producer Kirk Douglas, whom she has fallen in love with. However, after arriving at his house in anticipation of celebrating their premiere together, she finds Douglas with another woman, only then discovering that he has no emotional interest in her. Elsaesser also notes that a number of these dramatic discontinuities occur against the vertical axis of the staircase (1972: 60), partly because of this setting's physical and symbolic capability of placing one character above another.
The above generic markers will now be used in the analysis of The Man in Grey, Fanny By Gaslight, They Were Sisters and The Wicked Lady.