The hair stroking

Discuss Lukas Moodysson's first feature film Fucking Åmål (Show me Love).

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The hair stroking

Postby Ian » Sun Apr 06, 2008 3:27 am

There's a nice visual thing going on in SML with Elin and Agnes, specifically Elin's apparent thing for having her hair stroked. She dreams about Agnes doing it to her, she does it to herself when she's in bed with Johann (perhaps a signal to the audience that in her head she's somewhere else entirely) and it is, spontaneously and wonderfully, Agnes reaching out and stroking her hair in the last act that seems to drain the fear out of her and give her the courage to open the door and step out into a new life. It's almost like that little gesture is the final confirmation for her that Agnes is the one.

Anyone else notice this? Or am I just completely and totally out of my mind?

:wink:
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby lobabu » Sun Apr 06, 2008 10:07 am

codyw1 wrote:There's a nice visual thing going on in SML with Elin and Agnes, specifically Elin's apparent thing for having her hair stroked. She dreams about Agnes doing it to her, she does it to herself when she's in bed with Johann (perhaps a signal to the audience that in her head she's somewhere else entirely) and it is, spontaneously and wonderfully, Agnes reaching out and stroking her hair in the last act that seems to drain the fear out of her and give her the courage to open the door and step out into a new life. It's almost like that little gesture is the final confirmation for her that Agnes is the one.

Anyone else notice this? Or am I just completely and totally out of my mind?

:wink:

You know you're right?! This is the kind of thing wich seems evident after someone has noticed it. Of course, the risk is to interprete everything, but in this case, it's really curious...(ah, the "dream scene", my favorite one!)...
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Postby eiger » Sun Apr 06, 2008 12:31 pm

This hair-stroking is, bedside the kiss, the only sexual element in the whole movie. Perhaps the most gentle gesture Moodysson could choose. It's worked out brilliantly. :arrow: ........love it!
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Postby Agnes&Elin Forever! » Sun Apr 06, 2008 6:13 pm

You're just completely and totally out of your mind :lol:

No just joking :wink:

And the dream scene is so beautiful :)

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Re: The hair stroking

Postby mpox » Sun Apr 06, 2008 8:01 pm

codyw1 wrote:There's a nice visual thing going on in SML with Elin and Agnes, specifically Elin's apparent thing for having her hair stroked. She dreams about Agnes doing it to her, she does it to herself when she's in bed with Johann (perhaps a signal to the audience that in her head she's somewhere else entirely) and it is, spontaneously and wonderfully, Agnes reaching out and stroking her hair in the last act that seems to drain the fear out of her and give her the courage to open the door and step out into a new life. It's almost like that little gesture is the final confirmation for her that Agnes is the one.

That's great and it does fit perfectly but I'd bet that it isn't something Moodysson did intentionally. If he did it seems like the sort of thing he'd have mentioned on the commentary track, or maybe he did and forgot about it. From the transcript of that he seems almost surprised it held up as well as it did and certainly didn't seem to hold it in as high a regard as we all do.

Anyway next time I watch it (and I've been holding off because I don't want to burn out on it) I think that's how I'll think of things. :)
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby kant1781 » Sun Apr 06, 2008 11:58 pm

codyw1 wrote:It's almost like that little gesture is the final confirmation for her that Agnes is the one. Anyone else notice this?


No. Beautiful observation. Kudos to you Ian! _O_
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Postby Ian » Mon Apr 07, 2008 3:41 am

I mainly noticed it because of all the music videos of it I've been watching.

But it really is almost like it's a moment from her dream becoming reality, and that's just when she calms down and accepts it. And Agnes does it completely spontaneously and unknowingly, which is incredibly romantic if you think about it!
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Postby Alyson » Wed Apr 23, 2008 7:52 pm

Wow! Amazing observation, codyw1! :D

Things like this show how special FA is, cause a simple gesture can be so powerful and sensitive. There´s so much emotion only in it.

In most of films i feel lucky when the movie is able to make this special moment (or connection) even if it´s a single one. But in FA it happens from the beginnig till the end no matter how many times i see!
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby PackDude » Thu Sep 17, 2009 4:14 am

Yeah, that is a great observation that I kind of picked up on, but not to the degree that you've interpreted it. Thanks for the additional insight!
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby Ian » Thu Sep 17, 2009 11:07 am

Aw shucks. :wink: :D
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Re:

Postby Irishman » Sat Feb 19, 2011 10:35 pm

Ian wrote:But it really is almost like it's a moment from her dream becoming reality, and that's just when she calms down and accepts it. And Agnes does it completely spontaneously and unknowingly, which is incredibly romantic if you think about it!

I agree with this. Moodysson establishes early in the film that Elin's hair is important to her. When she goes to the elevator mirror to change to her skirt, she spends most of the time playing and fixing with her hair. Then later we have the dream. Freud wrote in The Interpretation of Dreams that all dreams are the mind's method of wish fulfillment. "Wish fulfillment" (in psychology) is the satisfaction of a desire through the subconscious. Freud believed that when the desires of the unconscious are unacceptable to the ego and superego (because of feelings of guilt, taboos, or other societal/cultural restrictions, etc.) that these desires manifest themselves in dreams. In Elin's dream, she desires to be close to Agnes and to have Agnes stroke her hair. Then she spends much of the film's second half denying those desires, probably because of feelings of guilt, taboos, societal restrictions, etc. It really all ties together nicely. I'm not sure Moodysson had all of this in mind, but that was my take.

Hair is also the first thing I notice on a woman, so...maybe I am practicing a bit of eisegesis. ;)
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby Ian » Sun Feb 20, 2011 12:43 am

I am not sure what that is, but I suspect I may have it too. :wink:

Yes, I think it's a lovely touch and, again, a very sweet - and affirming, for Elin - moment when Agnes spontaneously reaches out and does it in the bathroom. :oops:
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby Irishman » Sun Feb 20, 2011 1:01 am

Ian wrote:I am not sure what that is, but I suspect I may have it too. :wink:

Yes, I think it's a lovely touch and, again, a very sweet - and affirming, for Elin - moment when Agnes spontaneously reaches out and does it in the bathroom. :oops:

Eisegesis is the importation of one's own ideas into a text (usually in the context of Biblical interpretation) in place of the text's actual meaning.

In our case, I think the word we are looking for is "hair fetish", and yes, I know it's two words. ;) :lol:
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Re: The hair stroking

Postby fish » Sun Feb 20, 2011 8:23 am

Ian wrote:...Agnes reaching out and stroking her hair in the last act that seems to drain the fear out of her and give her the courage to open the door and step out into a new life...

Another favourite scene.

However it's described it's just such a beautiful, gentle, loving, empowering gesture. *:)*
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