Just a glance

'Family Plot' opens with introductions to the two couples who we will
subsequently follow the entire film. We begin, 'in medias res', with
Blanche doing her act (conning an elderly woman) .. meet her boyfriend,
actor George .. before the 'jump' to the female partner of the other
couple, Fran, who herself is pretending she is something she is not (a
tall blonde) and, finally, her partner, Arthur.

Now, at this point, we're watching Fran and Arthur congratulate
themselves in his car as he drives home. She takes off her make-up
(fake skin, a wig and six-inch heels), to which Arthur says, "Has
anyone seen a tall blonde?".

Fran then says smilingly, "Oh, pwoof! Who needs her?" and Arthur
replies, "I do .. just one more time."

Obviously, he's talking sexual fantasy .. and her subsequent glance to
her right is very telling; she's, at the very least, uncomfortable with
this.

sawakatoome wrote:

> Fran then says smilingly, "Oh, pwoof! Who needs her?" and Arthur
> replies, "I do .. just one more time."
>
> Obviously, he's talking sexual fantasy .. and her subsequent glance to
> her right is very telling; she's, at the very least, uncomfortable with
> this.

Isn't Fran's relationship with Arthur more than a little strained?

Okay, she appears to actively flirt with him about the location of the
diamond ("Where did you hide the diamond?", "You'll have to torture me
to find out", "Oh, I intend to .. in a minute") .. but both the fact of
the above-mentionned uncomfortable glance and her later protestations
to Arthur over their criminal doings (her extreme discomfort in the
jewellery store where she runs out, knocking a chair over as she goes
and her unwillingness to go along with his intention to harm Blanche in
the garage) make me see her as being maybe a little closer to
'Vertigo''s Judy Barton (and, to a lesser extent, 'North By
Northwest''s Eve Kendall).

In which case, she would be a woman who, at some stage, had simply been
bored with life and made the decision to go 'looking for love' (similar
to Eve's 'I had nothing to do that weekend .. so I fell in love').

Fergal #.