Essay/Term paper: John huston "the dead"

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Culture

The film, The Dead, directed by John Houston, is based on a short story that takes place in Dublin, Ireland around 1904. In Ireland at this time there is much conflict between the Catholics and the Protestants, whether Ireland should be part of Great Britain or not. This narrative is intended to show life in Ireland at this time as real as possible. The music during the story is a constant reminder of the mood of the film; the music is generally sad, but when needed it is in a happier tone. Everything about the film adds to the despair that all of the characters eventually feel at some time in the film.

The movie ends up being a very morbid film. All of the emotions from the characters make the film have a melancholy undertone. Even the events in the movie add to the gloomy aspect. When the woman, Greta, starts to descend the steps, and she stops because she hears a man singing, the lighting on her face and the expression that she eminently portraits give the viewer chills. The lighting around her makes her look as if she was possessed by a spirit, but she is just listening very intently to the man who is singing. Her character is very complex and is sometimes misunderstood. So, for the viewer this event will add to the confusion of what her character is all about. One does not know if she is going insane or if she is just appreciating the beautiful sound of the man"s voice.

Throughout the story, The Dead, Greta"s husband takes many aspects of his life for granted. He does not appreciate his wife and he does not respect her as much as he should. He constantly undervalues his relationship with her and does not understand the impact that she has had on his life. He never realizes how much she means to him until she tells him a story about a boy whom died for her sake. The boy was waiting outside her house one night, and he was already sick. He was waiting for her to come out to talk to him, but she never went out. When the man finds out that another man loved his wife he starts to understand his love for his wife. He finally sees that he will never share a love that strong with his wife; he knows that she does not love him as much as she loved that boy. He also understands that he does could never love her that much.

The narrative does not have a direct plot, but instead it tells a story, so all of the events are not completely understood until the final minutes of the film. The end of the movie ties all of the other events in the film together showing real characters develop into strong people. Along with the viewer realizing that all of these people will not live forever, the characters finally realize that they are mortals.