The Bell Jar

This movie is one of the few I actually bought several copies of. Though it is circa 1979, it is not dated, and so much more effective than the recent "Sylvia" film, which is dominated by Gwyneth Paltrow's persona.

Marilyn Hassett plays the principal role, and does an excellent job. She does not overshadow the personality of Sylvia Plath, who was an interesting, conflicted and brilliant individual.

The story follows Sylvia at Smith College, where a young Donna Mitchell ("Mona Lisa Smile" mother to Kirsten Dunst), plays her best friend. The scenery invokes New England autumn, promise and hope. Julie Harris is perfect as Aurelia Plath, Sylvia's mother. We can almost feel Sylvia's disdain, as her mother reminds Sylvia ...""you got nothing but straight A's....oh, except for deportment"... Her mother is always at her, and this mirrors Sylvia's eventual faltering self-image.

The story progresses as she wins a scholarship to NY where ..."ëvery one envied me that summer"... However, there is the fateful backdrop of the Rosenbergs, the Eisenhower era, and Sylvia's doubts about her future. We see fashion shows, jewelry, cosmetics, and the fear Sylvia has of what awaits her. One should also read the book to get her true impressions, which are quite astute, reflecting women's roles in the late 1950's.

Since it was the late 50's Sylvia was expected to marry, but does not see this as a viable solution, indeed it is a hindrance to her writing career. She is on the brink of decision, when she has the ultimate breakdown; I will not delineate the detail, you must watch the brilliantly constructed story, which leads her to her decision. The main issue I liked was that her life was shown, not in conjunction with a man (like the more recent movie) but how SHE was affected, and what life meant to her.

This is one of the worst films I've ever seen. I looked into it mainly out of a morbid curiosity since I loved the novel, and I wish I hadn't. I turned it off after a little less than an hour, though I wanted to turn it off after five minutes. I wish I had. It disregards the novel a lot and changes all sorts of factors. Unless the film managed to redeem itself in the last 50 or so minutes (which would be impossible) I would in no way recommend this. Its an insult to one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. I don't think, as many people say that it is, that "The Bell Jar" is necessarily unfilmable, but this particular rendition could have been done without. I'd almost like to see this one day in the hands of a director and screenwriter who can do it justice.

I saw this movie when it first came out, before I had read the book. It's impossible to capture the immensity of Esther's pain as she staggers toward oblivion, but watching the movie gave me a definite sense of a life in utter chaos. Yes, the film is flawed, but in my mind it stands alone as a separate entity. Marilyn Hassett's portrayal of Esther is terrifying--I haven't empathized so completely with a character on the brink of dementia since Kathleen Quinlan as Deborah in "I Never Promised You A Rose Garden." The supporting cast is equally solid--it's not their fault that there's just too much ground for one little movie to cover. Donna Mitchell stays in my mind as creating, in Joan's character, a young woman as doomed and in as much mental disarray as Esther. Mitchell is an amazingly underrated (and under-used) actress. I'm not sure if our boys would have given it two thumbs up, but it remains one of my closet classics.

Jameson Parker And Marilyn Hassett are the screen's most unbelievable couple since John Travolta and Lily Tomlin. Larry Peerce's direction wavers uncontrollably between black farce and Roman tragedy. Robert Klein certainly think it's the former and his self-centered performance in a minor role underscores the total lack of balance and chemistry between the players in the film. Normally, I don't like to let myself get so ascerbic, but The Bell Jar is one of my all-time favorite books, and to watch what they did with it makes me literally crazy.

I greatly enjoy the novel and the poetry of Sylvia Plath, but this movie does a great disservice to the book. I had seen the movie a number of years ago at the theater, and at this moment I am sort of half watching it on late night broadcast TV (which has done nothing to improve my opinion of the movie). The lead character comes across as whiny and irritating. The acting of the cast in general is pretty poor. It seems a shame that such a fine novel by such a complex and tragic author received the mediocre treatment given it by this film. Read the book!