MovieChat Forums > Sunshine Cleaning (2009) Discussion > Was Norah supposed to be a lesbian? Etc....

Was Norah supposed to be a lesbian? Etc...

posted 15 years ago by SonnyNStitch626
18 replies | jump to latest

In that candy necklace scene she looked very uncomfortable & nervous, and it's said she has a b/f. But yet we never see her really interested in anyone.And When Lynn said something along the lines of 'And to think I thought you were interested in me'. She never said "I'm not gay." So I was wondering if she was or wasn't.This movie isn't very clear about things. Like the above, Oscar's Dad, Is Rose into Winston now? The symbology of the binoculars, The Dad & the shrimp thing he had going on. I mean, what did he ever do for a living in general anyway? Etc, etc, etc. Many unanswered questions. Like if Mac dated Rose all through HS, Why would he go & marry somebody else and yet continue sleeping with Rose? He sure took being dumped in stride. He walked off like he couldn't care less. Very odd. IDK. STAY GOLD. "MY BUSINESS IS TO CREATE"

[–] rayedge 15 years ago

Not only did you see her 'with' a guy, you saw her with a guy inside her. I think it might have been the same night, right after the party with the candy necklace. She is getting humped on a couch and is totally not into it. Then she gets a call from Rose and tells the guy to get off her so she can leave.

But that really just adds to the ambiguity, since she looks like she would rather have her hands cut off than be there with the guy.

[–] SonnyNStitch626 15 years ago

Riiiight!!! I totally forgot about her disinterested ''Get off me'' sex scene when she's staring at the tv. lol!STAY GOLD. "MY BUSINESS IS TO CREATE"

[–] rayedge 15 years ago

You are right though, they did leave it up in the air. The necklace scene was uncomfortable, but I still felt that it wasn't so much that Norah wasn't into her, but was really nervous.
When they had the conversation in the restaurant, I thought Norah might say she liked her, but she just let her leave and then the movie ended with her going on a road trip alone.
I think Norah just wanted to connect with someone else who had lost their Mom and the other girl took it as dating interest.

[–] Nizzemancer-1 11 years ago

What I took from those scenes was that she was nervous about Lynn kissing her or of the prospect that she might be gay, so she decided to affirm her percieved heterosexuality by having sex with a man fast as possible despite not actually being into it.

Light travels faster than sound,
that's why people seem bright,
until you hear them.

[–] minkajane-1 15 years ago

Why does it always have to be one or the other? No one seems to remember that there are more choices than just gay or straight. Maybe she was bisexual. There's every reason to believe that she was into guys, had a boyfriend, but was also into girls.

[–] sfnprincess81 15 years ago

They cut a lot out of the original script. I think Norah was bisexual. She and her bf really didn't care about each other, and they broke up because he cheated on her with a neighbor or something. But Norah didn't really care because she liked Lynn. They kissed and had some intimate scenes and that was when Lynn found out about her mother, etc.

I figured Joe (their father) was just into get rich quick schemes. Maybe he did it because he had to be the primary breadwinner after their mother died.

[–] Desertman84 15 years ago

Norah is bisexual.

[–] Noir-82 15 years ago

Norah wasn't bisexual.

Yes she allowed Lynn to eat her candy necklace but Norah didn't respond back to it.

As for the disinterested sex scene. Norah just has to stop dating d0uc#ebags. It seems to me from her character build that due to her surroundings, that's the type of men her environment provides. That's all.

[–] bigsoundp 15 years ago

I agree. I saw nothing to indicate she is bi sexual.

[–] TimmyAnn 15 years ago

"Douche" isn't a dirty word, Noir-82. It says it right on the packaging.

I do not have attention deficit disor...Ooh, look at the bunny!

[–] cmr1188 14 years ago

I thought Norah looked awkward and nervous AFTER the girl bit her candy necklace. When she went to bite it and put her hand on Norah's neck it looked like Norah's eyes kind of fluttered in pleasure. Was I just looking too hard?

[–] lubin-freddy 14 years ago

Her sexual identity was just part of her larger problem with her own sense of self, and who she is. That's why, even though I'd hoped for a happier ending, it seems clear in retrospect that it was best to have her, with the cat, on the road, doing what she has to do.

When your eyes are blind with tears,
but your heart can see
Another life, Another galaxy

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Evertts3 14 years ago

"Norah wasn't a lesbian, she was trying to help somebody and messed up."

I would have to agree with this. In the restaurant scene, Norah had every opportunity to say she was attracted to the girl she was following. Norah was a "lost soul" looking for someone with whom she could identify.

[–] Screen_Queen 11 years ago

I would say in the final cut this is what they went with, but if you watch a deleted scene on the DVD, they actually filmed the scene where Norah reveals everything to Lynn in another way. Basically they start kissing, then Lynn sees pictures of her on Norah's shelf and asks why Norah has photos of her. That's when Norah reveals everything to Lynn but Lynn's so freaked out that Norah lied to her the whole time that she leaves. Norah begs her not to leave, saying that her finding the photos was a good thing because it led her to Lynn, but Lynn leaves anyway. If you watch that scene it's clear that Norah has feelings for her. But they decided to go with the more ambiguous ending, I have no idea why. Maybe it tested badly with focus groups, I don't know. Because why would they have Lynn be gay otherwise, if not to have that endgame?

You heart me? What is that? Is that like I love you for pussies?

[–] kenny-164 11 years ago

Screen,

Why did they go with the treatment they did? I would think it obvious. Lynn was supposed to think Norah was "interested" in her, but the larger story line was Norah, before she ever met Lynn, knew Lynn's mother had killed herself, as had Norah's. So she wanted to investigate or however you want to call it, probably without a coherent thought as to the approach to take, or even the point of doing so, because she IDENTIFIED with Lynn's situation. Not as a lesbian or bisexual, but as the daughter of a suicidal mother.

Now of course in the process of making the film they included scenes shot that showed at least an incipient lesbian relationship. But I can see how that might have been seen as clouding the story line about identification with others who have lost loved ones. Part of the film's power is the notion that you can't go into a situation like the sisters did without your emotions being affected. Rose indicates in her little speech at the baby shower that she thinks she's found some benefit to it, in feeling like she is helping. Norah's experience is to be frank somewhat more depressing. Rose also saw Lynn's pictures, and could have chosen to follow up. She quickly dismissed even the notion, but Norah did not. And did follow up on it.

I had some issues with loose ends in the film, and felt Lynn's character ended up being rather sketchily drawn. But the notion that Norah would finally attempt to seek a connection, as a fellow survivor of a suicidal mother, and not as one who may also have been motivated by romantic interest (really? becuase of the small picture of a grown Lynn? Really? - that alone supports the treatment used).

[–] hppg 10 years ago

No idea, she didn't seem interested in either the man or the woman!

[–] [deleted] a year ago

i don't think so.