Black Narcissus : The red dress ***Spoilers***

The red dress ***Spoilers***

Yes, I know they showed the delivery of the package that Sister Ruth was looking out for and intercepted before the other nuns could see it. But does anyone else wonder how she could have obtained the money and made the arrangements to not only buy a gorgeously-tailored, perfectly-fitted boutique creation like that, but also to have it shipped 8000 feet up in a very remote area of the Himalayas? That would be some feat even now, and would presumably have required help from Mr Dean.

Wouldn't it have been easier for her to get some lovely Indian garb from down in the village below, pretending it was for Kanchi or the pupils? Did anyone else find this garment distractingly unlikely?

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Yes. But then again, the movie had a whole slew of unlikely or implausible actions (or inactions) in it. Not the least of which was the failure of any of the nuns to see about installing a guardrail in place where the bell tower was situated - right on the very edge of an impossibly sheer cliff!

It's a wonderful movie that makes you ponder such weighty themes as culture clash and personal identity, but boy is it peppered with charming little absurdities!




“If there's no room at the Hotel Genius, I'll take a room at the Hotel Imbecile.” — Roberto Benigni, "Night on Earth"

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

But remember as well that this was set in the days of the Raj, when people thought nothing of shipping the unlikeliest packages to the furthest reaches of the Empire. The Young General got his Black Narcissus scent from the Army & Navy Store in London. I don't think he went there and got it in person.

As for money, these were Anglican nuns. Nobody said that they took a vow of poverty. As for how well the dress fits her, she was a clever nun, she was a teacher. I presume that she could use a tape measure

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

I'm guessing you've never had a garment custom-made. It's difficult to measure yourself correctly in every relevant dimension, you know damn well she wasn't about to ask another nun to help, and she'd still need additional alterations after they created the outfit. Plus, wasn't she losing weight there because of illness? Any measurements she sent would be outdated by the time the dress arrived.

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Who says it was custom made and not off the shelf?

As for illness, the nuns developed some spots on their arms. There is no other mention of illness - or not of physical illness

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

There's no way that dress was "off the rack". A high-couture item, that fits without a wrinkle, is just plain not gonna happen without a high-price-ticket order and custom tailoring.

And Ruth was ill even when they left for the new place. I believe they mentioned early on that she'd lost more weight since they got there.

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

I've never had a dress custom made for me, I buy all of my dresses off the shelf and they fit perfectly
Some people just happen to have a figure that fits an off the shelf item. Someone must.

When Sister Briony goes to see Sister Coldagh on the first night and they talk about their spots, Briony says that Ruth is ill "She's sick. She has violent pains in her joints, a boil on her finger, and headaches." but not all forms of illness affect your weight.

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

I will concede that I may be misremembering whether or not Sister Ruth lost weight. And you're absolutely right that there are people who have off-the-rack standard figures. But that red dress with the carefully pleated neckline was a sharply-styled, high-couture, high-end item. Please just take the word of a woman, that was no ordinary outfit that could be ordered from a catalogue or would normally be waiting around on a store rack.

Which is why I found it so distractingly unlikely that a nun in a remote location would be able to obtain it. You'd be better off arguing that she left a few of her favorite old things with a friend or relative, just in case she left the Order, and had that person ship the dress. Still bloody unlikely, but less of a stretch.

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Another thought, how do you think the leading ladies in tough situations get their frocks? All those women out in the wild west or fighting their way through the jungle thousands of miles from the nearest haute couture

Or is it really that you found everything to be quite believable in this film, apart from that one thing?

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Oh, there are MANY old films where the dresses are not believable. (And of course there are tons of surreal and unlikely things about this film.) It's just that I have an extra layer of incredulity when 1) there's zero possibility the dress might have been brought along for special occasions, as nuns wear the same garb all the time, 2) the location is even more bizarrely inaccessible than the Wild West, and 3) between the language barrier and the Holy Order, there are no other women around who could realistically be asked to lend a hand with the fitting or dressmaking.

Strangely enough, I actually buy the crucial lack of a railing by the bell more easily than I believe in that red dress.

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

What about all the white actors playing Indian characters (Kanchi, Angu Ayah, The Old General)? Or the Himalayas being built on the back lot at Pinewood film studios?

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

The Indian characters you mention weren't on screen much--and they wisely chose to have Jean Simmons play Kanchi as a mute. Even so, her blue eyes were distracting. They did use an Indian actor for the Young General, which helped.

Angu Ayah was chiefly distracting not because she was played by an Anglo, but because her portrayal was hammy unto deranged.

The sets were not a problem for me because I have not been to the Himalayas and therefore am unlikely to notice geographical discrepancies. :)

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Angu Ayah was meant to be a bit deranged, having been alone in the building for some years. She was still dreaming of the glory days when she was running "The house of women" for the concubines.

Rumer Godden didn't like Sabu in the role of the young General because he was southern Indian, not from north-east India where it was meant to be set. She also recognise that he was of a low caste and she didn't like him portraying a prince.

Even when you know that the backdrops of the Himalayas are just paintings they are still impressive. I saw it once at The Arts Club in London with an audience of artists. They all knew that the backdrops were paintings and there were murmurs of approval as each one was seen for the first time.

But then when Sister Ruth went out to ring the bell for the first time and there's that vertiginous view down into the valley - that generated a spontaneous burst of applause from the assembled artists

Steve

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

The sphynx:

That had always bothered me and add to that the makeup continuity errors.

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Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

jean simmond's eyes weren't so hard to believe actually, north indians have blue/green eyes so its not quite so unusual to think that the character is from there

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

Dear magilune68:

Interesting; as I have seen Koreans, (full Blooded), have green/blue eyes.

Re: The red dress ***Spoilers***

there are lots of africans and asians with blue/green/grey eyes, its much more common than people think
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