The Upside of Anger

Okay, maybe you could say I'm taking the easy way out (you'd be half right), but I'm going to use my 'Upside of Anger' film journal as my last blog. Why you ask (besides the fact I'm taking the easy way out)? Well, I think you can see from the progression of my blogs (save for the 'death' topic) the effects of misplaced anger and the way it can make a person think and feel. So for that reason, I think this is pretty relevant stuff. Anyway...

I watched ‘The Upside of Anger’ by myself, in secret, as to maintain some semblance of masculinity. And, like most every other ‘chick flick’ I have ever watched, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I admittedly harbor an affinity for these things and I have done so since I was a teenager. However, if I admitted the reasons why I would be completely contradicting the ‘cold-hardened cynic’ facade I have worked so hard to perpetuate. With that being said, I responded to this film in a deeper sense than just the warm, fuzzy feeling I felt inside. I was actually able to identify with it…specifically, I identified with Terri’s character. Even more specifically, I identified with her anger, bitterness, and resentment and the toll these things can have on a person. As Terri’s daughter points out, these things can turn one into something they are not…I know that feeling all too well. I suppose that is the source of these ‘fronts’ I feel the need to put up. But it is undoubtedly why- despite the obvious differences between her and me- I related to Terri’s character as opposed to her daughters, who are actually much more similar to me in terms of ‘stage of life.’

The ‘Upside of Anger’ is virtually a film without a discernable plot; it is structured more as a three year glimpse into the life of a suburban, upper-middle class family. It is narrated, perhaps with unrealistic poignancy (not unlike a recent, popular little film called ‘Juno’) by a fifteen year old girl, Popeye, who is the youngest of four daughters of the Wolfmeyer family. The story focuses on this family which is comprised of the middle-aged mother, Terri, and her daughters: Hadley, Andy, Emily, and the aforementioned Popeye. The family lives in suburban Detroit, and it struck me that this is one of the few portrayals I have seen of Detroit on film that did not depict this city as essentially being ‘Murdertown, USA’. The current family structure is left as such by the disappearance of the father, who has presumably left the country with his Swedish secretary. The primary character outside the family is Denny Davies, a burnt-out former baseball player depicted by Kevin Costner, who has basically become Hollywood’s go-to guy for the middle-aged, baseball-playing types. Denny, the Wolfmeyer's neighbor, has his own radio talk show in Detroit and becomes Terri’s drinking buddy and eventual romantic partner. Despite his obvious flaws (alcoholism and, seemingly, a sense of complacency and lack of direction in life), he serves as a protective factor in that he is practically her lone cohort and he fills the emotional void left by her husband’s disappearance.

The primary life event and risk factor which has led to Terri’s emotional turmoil and alcoholism (and the change in life trajectory from a happy suburban housewife) is, obviously, the perceived abandonment by her husband. However, her daughters also present as risk factors for Terri, though it is important to point out that they also serve as protective factors as- if for nothing else- they give Terri a much-needed sense of responsibility and purpose. However, Terri’s oldest daughter, Hadley, seems to be somewhat detached from the mother; a reality which visibly pains Terri a couple of times throughout the film. Furthermore, another daughter, Andy, aspires for a career in broadcasting and, much to the Terri’s dismay, has a relationship with a much-older radio producer in what presumably is an attempt to further that career. Finally, Emily is an aspiring ballet dancer whose drive and focus, though admirable, is much to her detriment as it creates severe health issues. All of these stressors collectively and undeniably complicate the already-strained environment created by the absence of Terri’s husband.

As mentioned previously, I related to Terri more than the other characters. However, that is not to say that I identified with her in every capacity, as I certainly could not. She is obviously, a female in middle adulthood, whereas I am (happily) in early adulthood. Additionally, it appears that she and her daughters are from an upper-middle income family- something with which I cannot identify in the least. However, though I have never experienced something as traumatic as abandonment by a spouse, I have experienced a change in life perceptions due to anger and resentment. Those feelings have been created by various life events, whether it was family hardships or failed relationships. But they are very powerful emotions which will genuinely turn you into something you are not, and this is something I have been trying to overcome for much of my life, from adolescence through early adulthood. So I guess you could say that certain emotions affect one is certain ways, regardless of one’s stage of life. However, as the film showed when it was discovered that Terri’s husband had actually committed suicide rather than run off with his secretary, the source of these emotions is often unfounded. And then what are we left with, and for what reason?