As a cinephile who’s spent countless hours immersed in the silver screen world, I can confidently say that Maggie Smith leaves an indelible mark on cinema like few others before her. Her performances, particularly those that showcase complex, unconventional women, have been a breath of fresh air in an industry often starved for such characters.
In the movie “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie,” released in 1969, Maggie Smith portrays a character who addresses her students as her top priority. She reveals that she would turn down any marriage proposals for them and her personal growth. Adding, “And my summer in Italy,” she expresses that this experience has confirmed she is at the pinnacle of her life. If told differently or performed by another actor, Miss Jean Brodie’s dedication to her students might be seen as heartwarming and selfless. She could act as a substitute mother for an orphaned student, Mary MacGregor, providing warmth and unwavering support reminiscent of our nurturing role models. However, this is not the case with “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie,” and it deviates from the intense characters crafted by Maggie Smith.
The artist Smith, who passed away on September 27 at the age of 89, skillfully encapsulated something both unsettling and liberating in her depictions of women living beyond the confines of a typical nuclear family structure. Her characters were women whose roles often hinted at their own successors: teachers, past romantic interests, outdated relics of the past. However, Smith’s work was not about glorifying or condemning these figures; instead, her portrayals evolved into intricate and captivating portraits of women who remained steadfast in their personal goals and desires. These seemingly minor characters refused to fade into insignificance or blend into the background; they continued to exert a powerful presence.
Minerva McGonagall, one of Harry Potter’s most recognized characters for younger audiences, is generally recognizable. She’s an older, unmarried teacher who serves as a stern yet fair authority figure, somewhat like a parent but not a nurturing one in the traditional sense. She won’t pamper you like a mother would, and she doesn’t hand out praise lightly. However, when she does give approval, it carries significant weight due to its scarcity. Harry hesitantly hopes that she cares about him, but he knows better than to take advantage of this potential affection. In comparison to her work in other roles, Maggie Smith’s portrayal of McGonagall might seem like a particularly convincing recreation of a character largely defined by J.K. Rowling’s writings. It’s a depiction of McGonagall that aligns well with the character as already established in the novels, and it’s not her most unique portrayal among her other performances.
As a film enthusiast, I’ve noticed that the role of Mrs. Medlock in “The Secret Garden,” portrayed by Maggie Smith, seems like an extension of characters she’s played before. Her performance as the stern, overprotective nurse and housekeeper is simply extraordinary. She masterfully conveys a domineering caution that fuels the self-pitying tendencies of her ward, Colin Craven.
In the movie “Hook,” while Diane Keaton’s character, Wendy, may not have a prominent role, her portrayal significantly molds the emotional journey of the film. As the mature Wendy opposite Robin Williams’ Peter Pan, she symbolizes the struggle and disillusionment that comes with growing up. Her acting suggests that being Wendy is an unfair burden, as she is prematurely thrust into a maternal role, struggling to mold her sons – who are irritatingly immature adults – into responsible adults. As time passes and she relinquishes her own dreams of Neverland, Peter continues to live his carefree life. The original Wendy from J.M. Barrie’s work is wistful and longing. Keaton’s Wendy, however, has a hidden strength beneath her soft sweaters and white hair. She no longer endures Peter’s antics patiently; she is weary of them. She cherishes her daughter and granddaughter and yearns to shield them from her own destiny. Similar to characters like Mrs. Medlock and Minerva McGonagall, Wendy is no longer primarily a mother figure but a complex, prickly individual who remains just off-stage center. Many of Keaton’s most impactful roles are similar: seemingly secondary characters who captivate the audience despite not being the main focus of the story.
The character played by Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey, the sharp-tongued Dowager Countess of Grantham, comes across as overly sarcastic and somewhat caricatured. She’s like a simplified version of Smith’s usual, subtly non-nurturing persona, storming into rooms, making sweeping judgments, then departing abruptly, leaving the younger characters momentarily speechless before resuming their lives. However, she remains effective due to Smith’s impeccable delivery of her lines with a stern sincerity that never wavers. Although Smith likely recognizes the comedic potential in her lines like “what is a weekend?”, she keeps her own humor hidden beneath the surface on screen. This formidable character does not find humor in herself, refusing to be reduced to a catchphrase or a heartwarming toast during Christmas. Instead, she maintains an unnerving presence, ensuring everyone remembers her serious demeanor.
Miss Jean Brodie remains the most complicated and frightening version of Smith’s near-maternal characters. By the end, the viewer is stuck with the horrified realization that Brodie’s influence has been irredeemably damaging. It’s not a story about a kindly older woman supporting her young students; it’s about a woman who cannot squeeze herself into the social role she’s expected to play, with tragic results for her students. She tells them early in the film that she will not submit to “petrification,” and Smith’s performance makes it impossible to cast Brodie as either villain or martyr. Like all of Smith’s best roles, she is sharp and irrepressible, most especially because she’s pushing against a system that insists she be something more gentle: a traditional, conformist role model. Smith’s characters are fueled by the friction between the vague female archetypes we expect her to fulfill and the constant awareness that she is always also a person underneath, with all of her energy and intensity coming through. She is unignorable, and it has made Smith unforgettable.
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2024-09-27 23:55