The Archivist — Welcome to the Archive. As home video formats have evolved over the years, a multitude of films have found themselves in danger of being forgotten forever due to their niche appeal. Thankfully, Warner Bros. established the Archive Collection, a Manufacture-On-Demand DVD operation devoted to thousands of idiosyncratic and ephemeral works of cinema. The Archive has expanded to include a streaming service, revivals of out-of-print DVDs, and Blu-ray discs (which, unlike the DVDs, are factory pressed rather than burned). Join us as we explore this treasure trove of cinematic discovery!
If there is one lingering problem that seems to flow throughout the majority of children’s films, it is that its makers usually tend to undermine the very subjects their films are about. Most movies featuring children as the main focus tend to stereotype them to no end, making them either bullies, scaredy cats, or nerds and place them all in over-the-top situations in an effort to garner cheap laughs and/or eyerolls.
Very rarely do films featuring children at the center of its plot paint these young people as actual characters or place them in situations grounded in reality where said kids are forced to call on their natural instincts and discover the strength and will within them which will later come help define them as human beings. In this edition of The Archivist we look at two films, 1973’s The Hideaways and 1967’s Our Mother’s House, two polar opposite titles with kids at the center which tellingly showcase the continuously underestimated, yet always miraculous resilience of children.
The Hideaways (1973)
Based on the award-winning novel From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, The Hideaways is the whimsical tale of pre-teen Claudia Kincaid (Sally Prager), who is fed up with all the responsibilities her mother thrusts upon her, from taking out the trash to watching her youngest brother. Inspired after finding an unused train ticket, she recruits her brother Jamie (Johnny Doran) to run away with her to New York City where they will live in the greatest place on earth: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Once there, Claudia discovers an enchanting statue that looks as if it may be an original Michaelangelo. Desperate to know its validity, Claudia decides she will go to any lengths to discover its origins, even if it means going to the home of the statue’s original owner — the wealthy and reclusive Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Ingrid Bergman).
The Hideaways is a film that overflows with magic, yet not the kind that comes from any otherworldly force. The magic in The Hideaways comes from the endless rambunctiousness of the two young lead characters. Claudia and Jamie possess so much of what makes youth so precious: curiosity, bravery, and a belief in one’s own ability to turn dreams into reality. Watching them execute their plan of living in the museum (which includes sleeping in beds on exhibit and bathing in the fountain), eating by consuming free samples from Macy’s vast food department to the point of sickness, and wandering the city throughout the day, gives off nothing but pure joy as they take full advantage of the kind of wonder children should have at that stage in life. Bergman’s Mrs. Frankweiler doesn’t show up until the last half hour of the film, but is still given just enough time to make her rich eccentric a worthwhile character, bonding so much with the children and revealing herself to be, in many ways, an older version of Claudia. Not as well known as its source material, The Hideaways captures the one-of-a-kind excitement and liveliness of childhood like few other movies ever could.
Our Mother’s House (1967)
Many will surely never have heard of this obscure little late-‘60s British curio, but those who have seen it definitely remember it. When their religious mother dies after a long illness, seven children from a London suburb (ranging in age from 5–13) carry on as if she were still alive after burying her in the back yard. The older ones cook and take care of their younger siblings, they forge their mother’s signature on notes for the bank, dodge the local doctor, and go to school each morning. It seems that the children’s secret will remain safe until their long-lost father (Dirk Bogarde) suddenly returns, threatening the new existence they have made for themselves.
Our Mother’s House is not the easiest film to categorize. Its main characters are children, but this is far from being a movie suitable for the very audience the film is about. Some have commented on the slightly creepy nature in the movie, effectively shown in the scene when a brother accuses his younger sister of acting like a whore by accepting a ride on a motorcycle from a stranger. The act leads the children to cut off their little sister’s long hair after believing they have been instructed to by their deceased mother. Yet the children never forget that they are indeed children, like when two of the kids dress up in costumes and put on an act for their brothers and sisters, allowing themselves to embrace the time of life they’re in. Things get dark when their shady father turns up, forcing the children to grow up even more in ways they never anticipated. But this is when Our Mother’s House works the best; by showcasing a child’s power to adapt to the harsh changes life inevitably inflicts upon everyone and reacting with the kind of courage most adults can never summon.
Get them at Amazon:
The Hideaways — [DVD]
Our Mother’s House — [DVD]
