Grey Gardens has been my favorite documentary since I was in junior high. Having the opportunity to show it in class with Shayda was wonderful. One of my first thoughts since reading the books for class had been that the film was made by two men about two women, an eccentric Mother and Daughter. The idea of the “male gaze” looking at the women in the documentary could be concerning, however there is a trust and collaboration between the two sets of people is playful; for example the scene where Little Edie preforms her patriotic flag dance is one of the most memorable images of the film.
The eccentric lives of the two women living and staying in bed, performing for the camera, their living conditions and their arguments are seen by viewers as a type of spectacle and voyeurism. The example of Big Edie’s birthday best illustrates the difference between the lives of the Edie’s and their guests. The guests are quite, well mannered and wear plain clothes. The Mother & Daughter are both lively and wear colorful clothes.
As the video continues Big Edie and Little Edie discuss how they see themselves. Big Edie says that she is proud of her body and that it is “concentrated ground”. Little Edie, being in her 50s during the filming of the documentary, said that in the house she saw herself as a “little girl”, however if she left to New York she would feel like a woman. This made such an impact on me and it is so endearing that in the home that she has stayed in for a decade Little Edie feels as though she is “mother’s little daughter.”