Melodrama is one of the most popular cinematic genres, especially loved by the female audience. Such films reveal the sensual and spiritual world of the heroes in especially vivid emotional circumstances and, as a rule, on the basis of contrasts: good and evil, love and hate.
Instructions
Step 1
There are many ratings of the best melodramas in the history of cinema, but they often include films that do not quite fit the genre definition. Sometimes you can see here adaptations of Shakespeare's tragedies ("Romeo and Juliet" by Franco Zeffirelli), and genuine dramas ("Atonement" by Joe Wright), and romantic comedies ("Four weddings and one funeral" by Mike Newell). Nevertheless, real melodramas, loved by more than one generation of viewers, also take a large place in them. In addition, the high quality of these films has been confirmed by numerous professional awards.
Step 2
Perhaps the first of the melodramas that won the hearts of the audience was the film Gone With the Wind, filmed in 1939 in Hollywood. Frivolous and eccentric, but at the same time persistent and cheerful Scarlett O'Hara, whose image came to the screen from the pages of the novel by Margaret Mitchell, became the favorite heroine of many young and adult readers and spectators. And the beautiful Englishwoman Vivien Leigh, who played this role, turned into a world-class movie star overnight.
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Much later, in 1983, the screen version of another bestseller - "The Thorn Birds" was released on television. Of course, Colin McCullough's novel is much weaker than "Gone with the Wind", many plot moves of the mini-series shot on it are easy to calculate in advance. Nevertheless, the duet of handsome Richard Chamberlain (Ralph) and charming Rachel Ward (Maggie) left few people indifferent.
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Numerous adaptations of classic English novels by Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters can also be attributed to the genre of melodrama. Perhaps the best of them were Peter Kosminsky's Wuthering Heights and Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility. In the film adaptation of Emily Bronte's novel Wuthering Heights, a dark tale of ruinous passions, the brutal Ralph Fiennes (Heathcliff) and the charming Juliette Binoche (Katie) brilliantly played the leading roles.
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A truly English adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, which tells the story of two different in character, but devoted to each other sisters, was awarded the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. In addition, the film delighted viewers with a whole constellation of great actors, the most striking of which were Emma Thompson (Eleanor Dashwood) and Hugh Grant (Edward Ferrers).
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Among the melodramas with historical plots, two films with the participation of the magnificent Jodie Foster can be distinguished. One of them - "Sommersby" - takes place in the United States a few years after the end of the civil war. The main role of Jack Sommersby, or rather the impostor living under his name, was played very subtly and soulfully by the wonderful actor Richard Gere. Together with Jodie Foster, they told the audience a wonderful love story that turned out to be longer than life.
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The incredibly beautiful film "Anna and the King" transports the viewer to exotic Siam (now Thailand). Jodie Foster plays here the smart and daring English governess Anna Leonovens, who dared to contradict the king himself and love, despite the absolute impossibility of happiness. The role of the main character's son was played by young Tom Felton - the future Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter series.
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The most famous melodrama of the late 20th century was the Oscar-winning "Titanic" by James Cameron. The story of the death of a luxury liner that crashed on its maiden and only voyage became the backdrop for the beautiful and tragic love of a young man and a girl from different social strata, whose roles were played by very young Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.
