Gilbert Grape!!
Happy February! I just want to post my impressions of Gilbert Grape before I forget them XD I read the entire novel and re-watched the movie right before heading out so I'll be making some comparisons :3 THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!
What I loved: Okay I'm going to go theatre geek on you and say how I loved the staging of the play. It was a small, intimate theater and a simple set. Lamson's Grocer was staged by setting wooden chairs on the floor with boxes of grocery items on top. The small cast played multiple characters and also helped move the props/set in a well choreographed sequence (not dancing, just moving in an organized fashion XD). Gilbert's inner thoughts were displayed on the back wall of the set, which was a clever way to portray what he's thinking without him saying it out loud. His thoughts throughout the play were quite important so I was glad it was done that way. A sheet was used to convey different poignant parts of the story--the caving floor from where Momma always sat, covering Mrs. Betty Carver as she did you-know-what to Gilbert while he was on the phone with her husband, and used as a medium to convey Mrs. Carver's fluctuating emotions about her troubled marriage/family, and her growing troubled relationship with the emotionally detached Gilbert. The water tank which served as a pond/lake, Arnie's bathtub, and Momma's casket.
I will go off on a separate rant about how they portrayed Momma. I was worried about how she'll appear--if it'll be some thin Japanese woman stuffed with pillows and bright clothing. But this was done very respectfully and fit well in the simplistic theme of the set. There is a curtain with a light in the back. A woman who portrays "Momma" sits behind the curtain and her shadows act out Momma's actions. I think the lighting helps emphasize Momma's size. The actress who was Momma's voice sat in front in a chair as she said Momma's lines. At one really emotional moment when Momma died, the actress who was her voice laid on top of the water tank. For a woman who never wanted her face to be shown in public, she was shown in a vulnerable state, completely exposed and alone. If you couldn't tell I really loved that moment XD Momma was done so well and her actress was amazing.
Nakao Akiyoshi-san was very great as Arnie too. One of the parts where I teared up was when Gilbert finally snapped and beat up Arnie who got into the FoodLand cake and refused to take a bath. Arnie was truly a symbol of unconditional love for Gilbert and when Gilbert recognized this the tears just filled up in my eyes XD I think he portrayed Arnie respectfully too without going too over-the-top and without any physical gags at the expense of his mental retardation/autism. Sure in the movie and in the play it wasn't portrayed perfectly accurately, but it wasn't exaggerated to the point of becoming absurd. And that's why I liked it :)
Gilbert's little sister Ellen was not as annoying as she was in the novel and in the movie which I greatly appreciate. Tucker was also pretty funny. There was one sequence where he was standing on the floor by the audience and tried to jump up on the stage multiple times but failed, so then he just stayed down and said "here is fine". It just summed up the essence of Tucker I think XD Tucker also included his "how do you say this" for bigger words he didn't know but Gilbert readily supplied, although the word wasn't that complicated XD His Burger Barn moments like when he offered his apron to wipe Gilbert's tears at Arnie's birthday party was great too. My smile widened when I saw Lance too. He was exactly like I envisioned Lance to be. The whole scene about being chased by the mob was fabulous too. I'm so glad they kept that in! I'm sad that Bobby wasn't there but he would complicate the storyline by adding his stuff in so it makes sense that they cut him out. I was glad to see Crispin Glover's adaptation of him anyways XD It was wise to cut out Janice and Larry too, because as mentioned before, they'd just complicate the storyline more.
I also liked the random obasans from Lance's interview who acted like a manzai combi for a bit XD
What was surprising to me: Maru's Gilbert is more emotional than the novel or the movie version which threw me off a bit to be honest. Because the main feature of Gilbert to me was that he was emotionally detached from the world and from his relationships, and found humor in making fun of other people who are supposed to be close to him--like his mother. He's supposed to resemble his father Albert who showed no real emotion on his face--just a smile. Whereas for Gilbert he's just unreadable in general. Maru's Gilbert showed more anger, and when he cried, he wailed. So it did surprise me a bit but then I understood the theater's Gilbert. For theater you do need bigger emotions, bigger reactions. And for Maru's Gilbert it's more like he couldn't show a vulnerability to others, he can't show a weakness that is displayed through tears. Which is in a way like the novel but also Maru's own way. If I were director I would probably keep Gilbert as more emotionless but it was interesting to see Maru's Gilbert as a little more emotional.
What I didn't like so much: Amy's voice was SO ANNOYING to me! It sucked too because Amy was like the mother of the family and one of those women I really sympathized with but her voice was...too much...for me. I was also hoping to see Becky as a little more strange and out there, since that's how she was like in the novel, but I guess I didn't mind in the end. Although she definitely looked too old to be 15 XD But I did appreciate the concept of dressing her all in white since to the small town of Endora she was a new face, a person who stood out, so the white dress helped convey that image. So in the end, I didn't have much to complain about XD
We gave them a standing ovation and they came back for two curtain calls after the first one. Maru also gave a little giggle at the end which made the audience laugh since I'm sure the theater was packed with Maru fans LOL. For goods there was a pamphlet and a poster. The poster came in this cute bag that said "Maruyama Ryuhei" in front and had cute orange handles. I almost wanted to buy the poster just for that XD
And now...pictures!
And a couple of pics from the pamphlet!
Sorry for the flash in the center XD This page has a plastic page that shows tears on Gilbert's face and when you turn the plastic page you can see the picture underneath.
The picture underneath.
So yeah all in all it was fun XD Too bad I can't see it again XD
What I loved: Okay I'm going to go theatre geek on you and say how I loved the staging of the play. It was a small, intimate theater and a simple set. Lamson's Grocer was staged by setting wooden chairs on the floor with boxes of grocery items on top. The small cast played multiple characters and also helped move the props/set in a well choreographed sequence (not dancing, just moving in an organized fashion XD). Gilbert's inner thoughts were displayed on the back wall of the set, which was a clever way to portray what he's thinking without him saying it out loud. His thoughts throughout the play were quite important so I was glad it was done that way. A sheet was used to convey different poignant parts of the story--the caving floor from where Momma always sat, covering Mrs. Betty Carver as she did you-know-what to Gilbert while he was on the phone with her husband, and used as a medium to convey Mrs. Carver's fluctuating emotions about her troubled marriage/family, and her growing troubled relationship with the emotionally detached Gilbert. The water tank which served as a pond/lake, Arnie's bathtub, and Momma's casket.
I will go off on a separate rant about how they portrayed Momma. I was worried about how she'll appear--if it'll be some thin Japanese woman stuffed with pillows and bright clothing. But this was done very respectfully and fit well in the simplistic theme of the set. There is a curtain with a light in the back. A woman who portrays "Momma" sits behind the curtain and her shadows act out Momma's actions. I think the lighting helps emphasize Momma's size. The actress who was Momma's voice sat in front in a chair as she said Momma's lines. At one really emotional moment when Momma died, the actress who was her voice laid on top of the water tank. For a woman who never wanted her face to be shown in public, she was shown in a vulnerable state, completely exposed and alone. If you couldn't tell I really loved that moment XD Momma was done so well and her actress was amazing.
Nakao Akiyoshi-san was very great as Arnie too. One of the parts where I teared up was when Gilbert finally snapped and beat up Arnie who got into the FoodLand cake and refused to take a bath. Arnie was truly a symbol of unconditional love for Gilbert and when Gilbert recognized this the tears just filled up in my eyes XD I think he portrayed Arnie respectfully too without going too over-the-top and without any physical gags at the expense of his mental retardation/autism. Sure in the movie and in the play it wasn't portrayed perfectly accurately, but it wasn't exaggerated to the point of becoming absurd. And that's why I liked it :)
Gilbert's little sister Ellen was not as annoying as she was in the novel and in the movie which I greatly appreciate. Tucker was also pretty funny. There was one sequence where he was standing on the floor by the audience and tried to jump up on the stage multiple times but failed, so then he just stayed down and said "here is fine". It just summed up the essence of Tucker I think XD Tucker also included his "how do you say this" for bigger words he didn't know but Gilbert readily supplied, although the word wasn't that complicated XD His Burger Barn moments like when he offered his apron to wipe Gilbert's tears at Arnie's birthday party was great too. My smile widened when I saw Lance too. He was exactly like I envisioned Lance to be. The whole scene about being chased by the mob was fabulous too. I'm so glad they kept that in! I'm sad that Bobby wasn't there but he would complicate the storyline by adding his stuff in so it makes sense that they cut him out. I was glad to see Crispin Glover's adaptation of him anyways XD It was wise to cut out Janice and Larry too, because as mentioned before, they'd just complicate the storyline more.
I also liked the random obasans from Lance's interview who acted like a manzai combi for a bit XD
What was surprising to me: Maru's Gilbert is more emotional than the novel or the movie version which threw me off a bit to be honest. Because the main feature of Gilbert to me was that he was emotionally detached from the world and from his relationships, and found humor in making fun of other people who are supposed to be close to him--like his mother. He's supposed to resemble his father Albert who showed no real emotion on his face--just a smile. Whereas for Gilbert he's just unreadable in general. Maru's Gilbert showed more anger, and when he cried, he wailed. So it did surprise me a bit but then I understood the theater's Gilbert. For theater you do need bigger emotions, bigger reactions. And for Maru's Gilbert it's more like he couldn't show a vulnerability to others, he can't show a weakness that is displayed through tears. Which is in a way like the novel but also Maru's own way. If I were director I would probably keep Gilbert as more emotionless but it was interesting to see Maru's Gilbert as a little more emotional.
What I didn't like so much: Amy's voice was SO ANNOYING to me! It sucked too because Amy was like the mother of the family and one of those women I really sympathized with but her voice was...too much...for me. I was also hoping to see Becky as a little more strange and out there, since that's how she was like in the novel, but I guess I didn't mind in the end. Although she definitely looked too old to be 15 XD But I did appreciate the concept of dressing her all in white since to the small town of Endora she was a new face, a person who stood out, so the white dress helped convey that image. So in the end, I didn't have much to complain about XD
We gave them a standing ovation and they came back for two curtain calls after the first one. Maru also gave a little giggle at the end which made the audience laugh since I'm sure the theater was packed with Maru fans LOL. For goods there was a pamphlet and a poster. The poster came in this cute bag that said "Maruyama Ryuhei" in front and had cute orange handles. I almost wanted to buy the poster just for that XD
And now...pictures!
And a couple of pics from the pamphlet!
Sorry for the flash in the center XD This page has a plastic page that shows tears on Gilbert's face and when you turn the plastic page you can see the picture underneath.
The picture underneath.
So yeah all in all it was fun XD Too bad I can't see it again XD