Apted sets Spacek’s home background and insists that despite her poverty she was not mistreated. Indeed, he depicts a kind of community full of social desperation but not sadness. However, what is paramount in this film is the gradual way in which a young woman, quite dependent on her husband, is encouraged by that husband to find her own voice, literally and metaphorically. As Spacek finds her dream coming true, the more she realizes that her self-fulfilment is possible and so seeks more control over her own life even though Jones resents this a little. Thus, there is a crucial point in the movie when, after her father’s death, Jones asks her to choose – between returning home to take care of the kids or to take the time to pursue her dream of being a singer. Perhaps in part to honour her father (although this is merely suggested as a possible factor), she chooses her career. Jones has the means to support her and does so to a staggering extent, in part building his sense of purpose out of his dedication to his wife’s own potential, hence his fear of his own obsolescence once she attains success. The film is honest about the role of the husband in this situation but sees marriage as perhaps, at that time, the initial stabilizing factor needed for a woman to later find independence and fulfilment beyond it. Although it is with the initial support and urging of Jones it is ultimately Spacek’s decision to pursue the path.
Just as the film chronicles Spacek’s self-confidence, maturity and independence, all with the support and encouragement of her husband, so to it charts the feelings of loneliness and irrelevance that Jones feels once his wife has attained what he sought for her. Although he never states it outright he must reckon with his own sense of pride and must adjust to a newly defined interpersonal association. For so long he has dominated the relationship, and when forced to realize that Spacek no longer needs him (at least professionally) he begins to resent not being in charge. Perhaps this is a function of traditional male pride threatened by the prospect of feminist independence: interestingly enough a variance on themes inherent in Spacek’s debut role in Ginger in the Morning. Hence, the film builds to the point where she defies her husband’s wishes, asserting her right to be fully in charge of her own destiny: such is the character journey depicted in this film. The more freedom and independence she has, the more Jones has to bend his macho ego and accept that he is no longer the dominant figure – he must adjust to equality and more. So too Spacek must face the feminist issue of the age: career versus marriage. The gradual reversal of gender roles and expectations and their corresponding effects on the individual ego make for dynamic viewing in this thoughtful film biography. read more