Study of London through Match Point, by Woody Allen

Résumé du document

London. The British capital was at a time when the population was separated between the haves and the have nots. The sole bridge was the relation of economic, financial and political subordination. There was no means by which the working-class could climb the social ladder; neither school nor money was effective.
Does the class system still exist? It seems that it is still in operation. But a difference has to be noticed: the upper-class had to mix up with some of the middle-class to survive due to a problem of reproduction and creation of heirs.
The city itself underwent this transformation: the poor districs became more and more expensive, and their inhabitants were evicted to the suburbs. London became the place to make money and one's dream come true.
Still, London is said to be ambivalent. But what does it mean?
ambivalence:
Ø conflict of ideas or attitudes; presence of two opposing ideas, attitudes or emotions at the same time;
Ø a feeling of uncertainty about something due to a mental conflict;
How could it be applied to London?

The analysis of Woody Allen's movie Match Point (2005) should illuminate the meaning of ambivalence, which could then be transposed to London.

Extraits

[...] Ambivalent London Based on Woody Allen's Movie : Year 2007-2008 London. The British capital was at a time when the population was separated between the haves and the have nots. The sole bridge was the relation of economic, financial and political subordination. There was no means by which the working-class could climb the social ladder; neither school nor money was effective. Does the class system still exist? It seems that it is still in operation. But a difference has to be noticed: the upper-class had to mix up with some of the middle-class to survive due to a problem of reproduction and creation of heirs. [...]

[...] But it is hardly possible to tell what London will become. Too many ambivalences are dangerous an can lead to explosion. But still, Match Point is just a movie, and most of the actors are not British. Woody Allen tried to transpose the atmosphere he could feel into his characters, but this is ambivilent in it's self The City of London today is a mixture of cultures and classes, where many modes of thought co-exist. Therefore Allen can be forgiven for his foreign cast, and we can enjoy his creation, which explore the more traditional stereotypes of this city. [...]

[...] He can pretend to belong to the world of the haves, but he cannot leave his haunting past. That makes him an ambiguous and blurred character whose luck will save him from his vices. C. The role of Nola She is an American middle-class woman who wants to succeed in her life by being an actress. She is frank but naïve: she gives the impression that she is hard to convince and to that she is independent. But she is not self- confident after all her failures in her career, having been manipulated by men. [...]

[...] the camera is fixed on a ball in suspension, which then hits the the top of the net. A voice wonders whether the ball will pass over the net or fall down on the side it came from. The outcome of the match depends on this ball. Allen makes a comparison between tennis and life. If the player is lucky, the ball will pass over the let and make him win. If a human being is lucky, his life will turn out to be better. [...]

[...] She is the disturbing element of the movie, the one who makes everything collapse. Nola is there to remind Chris of his origins and his feelings. She brings out another ambivalence in Chris's dimension: this woman will be the object of love and passion, and later on, of anger and somehow reject. She represents the working-class, which Chris can not bear to be associated with anymore. She will become the victim. D. The upper-class family and the power of women Tom's family is the perfect cliché of the British aristocracy: they own a country mansion, hunt, go to the opera and buy art. [...]