MovieChat Forums > Woman in Gold (2015) Discussion > were the flashbacks necessary?

were the flashbacks necessary?

posted 9 years ago by sunchick116-872-583383
9 replies | jump to latest

i've seen this film a few times lately since it's all showtime is playing (LOL) and a thought just crossed my mind of 'were so many flashbacks necessary?'. especially the ones of her husband, as there's no mention of him or what happened to him in present time. the film was about Adele's painting, so her scenes were necessary but do you think it was necessary to show the fleeing of austria and all? i hope i'm not coming off anti-semitic or anything, i just feel like we didn't need to SEE scenes of them fleeing, we know they fled Austria. they could have filled the story with other things, like what happened to the husband present day, or did maria have children? more about her life NOW.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] amdew717 8 years ago

Excellent reply BetterThanThis! The flashbacks were many but they WERE absolutely essential to the story.

[–] bpoz 8 years ago

Agreed. They were essential to helping us feel why this crusade was so important to her. And I thought they were perfectly placed within the movie. Each flashback informed the moment in the present that it connected to.

[–] amy_hildenbrandt 8 years ago

For a first generation American whose father grew up in refugee camps in Austria for 6 years...yes. It gives more context. Since I've been to the remnants of camps, yes. It also builds context for my tween son for an upcoming trip so he can appreciate the history and gravity that history cannot repeat itself.

[–] AtoZ2014 8 years ago

A lot of the movie is about Mrs. Altman's emotional journey in going back to Vienna.

I'm not sure how that could have been adequately conveyed without the flashbacks.

[–] SceneIt22 8 years ago

The flashbacks were absolutely necessary. It helped us to understand Maria's past, where she was coming from, and why this all meant so much to her. It wasn't just about one painting. It was about her history and her family's history and the objects most precious to them that helped to connect her to her past. One of the final things her parents told her was "Remember us". The flashbacks gave us a glimpse into this world she once belonged to.

If anything, the flashbacks were more compelling to me than the present-day story.

[–] Arisuta 8 years ago

And they were so beautifully executed. The Nazi parade almost looked like early colour film from the Nazi era. I wasn't sure until the camera panned to the characters walking behind the crowd. Excellent period feel throughout.

The thing that irritated me about the Austrian bureaucrat's position was their total inability to grasp that, without Maria's uncle who commissioned the paintings, they would never even have existed to become a 'National Treasure'. So shortsighted and selfish.

"Which it will be ready when it's READY!" Preserved Killick, Master and Commander

[–] Sugarminx 8 years ago

were the flashbacks necessary?

oh yes. Without them there would be no Max Irons! 

Do the P-I-G-E-O-N

[–] nikkiten1979 8 years ago

LOL yes, of course the flashbacks were necessary... seriously this is not a story about a painting alone, but the journey of one woman who lost everything and who wanted to reunite with a piece of her history. This was her way to remember and not forgetting her family.

I agree that I wish we knew what happened to her husband and whether she had children... seems like she didn't have children and maybe her husband left her. We won't know until someone tells us... anyone??

can't outrun your own shadow