Thelma And Louise Details

What colour are my eyes?

It seems odd to me that, given my fondness for Ridley Scott films, I'd never seen Thelma & Louise. Unfortunately, I already knew the ending, thanks to it - like the 'girl' in The Crying Game - becoming a cultural reference point for the 1990s. That reminds me; I've not seen The Crying Game either. Should I bother, since I know its big secret?

Well, it looks like I wasn't missing much. It's an entertaining enough adventure, I suppose, but it's entirely unnecessary. They didn't have to run away after Louise's killing of the would-be rapist; Thelma's bruises would have borne witness to what happened when giving testimony. 'They'll think I was asking for it,' is a pretty weak excuse to run away. Thelma's later actions didn't have to take place either; it was still possible to go back. Unhappy relationships aside, there was nothing which really explained why the two women went off the rails. Louise's past in Texas was alluded to, but that was still insufficient reason. Hailed as a paean to women's power and emancipation it's anything but. Look at how it ends, dammit! Yup, ladies, you kin have yore freedom, but this is the price you'll pay.

All told, the movie felt contrived. Okay, so all movies are, by their very nature, contrived, but at least some of them make an attempt at a natural, plausible progression to the story. Perhaps I'd have been more sympathetic to it if I didn't already know how it was going to end. Maybe if I'd seen the film ten years ago, before the renaissance of the Bad Girl clich? hadn't taken place, it wouldn't have seemed quite as hackneyed.

Still, it was an enjoyable enough ride and, plot holes aside, pretty slickly put together. The cinematography was gorgeous, particularly when the story moved out west, towards the Grand Canyon. It certainly beats that execrable Biker Boyz. Anyone want to hand me the keys to a 1966 Thunderbird?

I can finally see why the world loved this girl power fest of a film extremely enjoyable.