The Children's Hour: A Look into Past Perspectives on Lesbians

In the 1961 movie The Children's Hour, a student accuses two teachers of being lesbians (without actually saying the word). This child (Karen Balkin as Mary Tilford) is a troublemaker and a liar in school. However, this doesn't stop the town from believing that what she says is true. The town is so fearful of the women being lesbians that they pull their children out of the school without having any proof. The Children's Hour is based on a play by Lillian Hellman. It features prominent stars of the time, with Audrey Hepburn as Karen Wright, Shirley MacLaine as Martha Dobie, and James Garner as Dr. Joe Cardin. I think this movie is a great example of the actual perspectives on lesbians in the time period in which it was made.

People in the 1960s generally did not really understand lesbianism and therefore they feared it. One thing I really liked about this movie, was how well that fear came across. Not once in the movie did anyone use the word lesbian. Instead, they spoke of the women being "unnatural." Homosexuality was feared and dispised. Women could hardly even speak of such a thing without nearly fainting. Even the child, Mary, whispered the accusation to her grandmother despite being in privacy when she told the lie. Lesbianism wasn't talked about, so even when the girls were all pulled from school, most initially had no idea what was going on. It didn't bother the town that there was no actual evidence of the teachers being homosexuals, they shunned the teachers (Karen Wright and Martha Dobie) as if they were witches. Even Dr. Joe Cardin, who was planning to marry Karen Wright, eventually started to believe the rumors. I think that in today's time, such a movie could not be successfully pulled off, because even in a small town it wouldn't be believable that people were so afraid of lesbians. However, for the time period (and before then, as the first movie based on the play was actually done in the 1930s), the fear really shows through to the audience.

Mary made a very serious accusation, but the film isn't all about her. As it turns out, Martha Dobie actually is a lesbian. Martha and Karen were never more than friends, as Karen didn't feel the same way (sorry to disappoint everyone, but there were no sex scenes in this film). After Mary's accusation, Martha finds out that this so-called lie was actually the truth, although there was no way that Mary could have actually known that. In a dramatic coming out scene, Martha confesses her feelings to Karen. While Karen didn't share these feelings, she still wanted to live with Martha. Unlike the rest of the town, Karen wasn't afraid of Martha no matter what her sexual orientation was. By this point however, the school was already ruined. Karen and Martha were unlikely to ever teach again, despite Mary admitting to her lie. Martha knew she had no real future in such a town (or anywhere else during that time period), and therefore she hanged herself. Karen's marriage to Dr. Joe Cardin was also off, leaving the audience to wonder about her future.

Overall, I was very impressed with the movie. Being in black and white really added to it in showing the time period. There was also some phenomenal acting in this film. I was most impressed by Shirley MacLaine's performance as Martha Dobie. Her acting was so good, that far before the coming out scene my gaydar went off and I thought that the accusations were actually true. I watched this movie because I am an Audrey Hepburn fan, but I ended up enjoying Shirley MacLaine's performance the most. This movie was an excellent example of real life issues of the time period being portrayed on screen.

I would highly recommend watching this film. If you think there has been no progress in the gay rights movement, look back in time and see how people used to view lesbians. Even though this movie is nearly 50 years old, there are still lessons to be learned from it. Some of the issues in the film closely parallel issues of our own day. If you're looking to enjoy a classic, this is definitely a great one.