MovieChat Forums > Beaches (1989) Discussion > They seemed to fight more than they were...

They seemed to fight more than they were actually friends.

posted 12 years ago by blacknyellowsquid
7 replies | jump to latest

I'm not here to bash the movie, I sorta like it and find myself watching it when I happen to pass on TV.

But it seems like a flaw to me that for the majority of the movie they are mad at each other and/or fighting. The ratio of mad-at-the-other to yay-we're-good-friends was too much. I suppose we're just supposed to believe they were realllly close and all because they kept saying so? We weren't privy to all the letters, so maybe they got really deep and close in them...more than we ever saw.

And it mostly seemed to be Hershey's character who was the jerk throughout the movie. The time she came back to see CC at the flamingo place...I understand CC initially blowing her off and saying she has nothing more to say to her. Friendships can end. Toxic can outweigh the good and at some point you have to wise up and bow out gracefully. Perhaps that time in Atlantic City was fun, perhaps early years of being a pen pal was fun, but people can still be jerks and bad friends...like Hershey's character was. Even when they were at the beach trip near the end, she was STILL being a resentful jerk to CC.

So...while it WAS sad at the end and all that...mostly, to me, because she was a mother dying young and we knew the kid would have to be alone/without her mom...I didn't really mourn for their 'friendship' because it always seemed competitive and toxic. CC did seem to like her, though, so I felt sorry for that aspect a little too.

I wanted to witness and feel more genuine warmth, bonding and love between them.

(And how was Hershey's character 'the wind beneath her wings?' She seemed to like insulting her and being resentful more than supportive.)

[–] bipbeepboop 12 years ago

I don't know... I think the point of the movie is to show the challenges that come with a real friendship. IMO, a real friendship with meaning is bound to have its fights, otherwise it's not a friendship but an acquaintance, that will just go away as soon as something goes wrong. Real friends confront each other on their problems because they want to stay friends.

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[–] pypsqweek 11 years ago

I agree.

[–] hilljayne 11 years ago

I don't think they fought more. Granted, their fights were huge...and major...but true friends ALWAYS come back to each other.

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[–] SenoritaTorres 10 years ago

No, I cried for their friendship. I have had the same best friend for 28 years. I'm 31 now and we are still the best of friends from nursery school. I can honestly tell you there have been so many times over the years where I have wanted to rip her head off, and I am sure she felt the same. We have argued, we have insulted each other, we have ultimately been jealous of each other. But hand on heart I know I couldn't be without her. She feels the same. We're sisters. Best friends.

[–] BrettLovesKerri 10 years ago

I agree with the OP. I also thought Hershey played her role "too forced' and not believable.

[–] fiatlux-1 9 years ago

I also thought Hershey played her role "too forced' and not believable.

I tend to agree. I like Hershey, but I've rarely found her to be a very good actress. She's always either stiff or over the top.

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[–] binaryguy1101 8 years ago

i think that when you have a friend like "CC", it is going to be volatile.

You have someone who demands being the center of attention. She is going to say whatever is on her mind - regardless of whether that is prudent.

and then you have her complement. Someone who prefers to be in the background. Doesn't want to be the center of attention. Has grown up in a family with deep reservations that hold in her inner thoughts.

So both of them are bound to one another. Each of them would have been driven crazy with a friend that was like themselves, but a friendship between them is going to be volatile. Opposites attract, but that doesn't mean there aren't explosions along the way.

I've seen a number of marriages that have this same dynamic. One is the center of attention, the other is the strong reasonable one in the background. One likes to be in bed by 9pm, the other stays up to the wee hours of the morning. When they go to parties, they go in separate cars. The quiet one would be bored to tears to be paired up with another quiet person. The center of attention one would not want the competition to be paired up with another diva.

But when they argue, it's big; It's dramatic.