I don’t think there is anyone to blame in the Virgin Suicides. Not the girls, not their parents, not Trip or any of the other boys. Coppola never tries to put blame, she never tries to sensationalize (although there is no doubt the media does). The reason is essentially unimportant, as it’s the idea of the Lisbon girls and the imaginary world of adolescence that sustains and drives the film. Like most of Coppola’s work, the film is driven my mood and atmosphere rather than plot or character, and in the end the film feels more like a dream than a true account of a tragedy that strikes a small town, which is exactly what it should be.
Most films about adolescence have little appeal to me, not only because they fail to capture my own emotions and lack the self conscious realization that so much of this period of our lives lies in the mind. There is no sense of fantasy and, even in the films that set out to show the “truth” fall short because they forget the magic (the only other film that comes close in my mind is Fast Times at Ridgemont High). The boys fascination with the Lisbon girls is immortalized by their suicide. Like many cult heroes of today (namely James Dean), they are preserved forever in a youthful, idealized state. They are the image of innocence and youth, and in this they lose their sense of humanity. Reflecting over the film, the only daughter who stands out is Lux. The others symbolically, are almost nameless and shadows… while Lux is beyond human. She is the image of beauty, youth and passion; she’s every boy’s dream girl. She’s not robbed of emotion, but she is robbed of personality and true distinction.
While, perhaps, the direction of the film is not as confidant as Coppola’s later efforts it still stands out as ambitious and understanding of the subject matter. The film falls together so beautifully because of her sense of fantasy. The most memorable images of the film are like commercials, or fashion shoots. They’re often shot in slow motion and are repeated as motifs. They exist only in the minds of the boys who are recounting the story, a reminder that the film is not to be taken at face value, as it’s an impression of adolescence not a true account. Coppola even treats the tragedy with an air of indifference, while events like Lux waking up alone in the football field are dealt with more significant emotional potency. The last half hour, once the girl’s have been locked away, I think we drift fully into the minds of the boys. Here events are muddled and speculative, even their supposed involvement in the suicide, is in my esteem a far cry from what really happened; it’s a further perpetuation of the mythology of the girls.
