"Piccadilly": Illuminating Desires

This film exposes the tension between public and private and the realm of spectacle. There is the division of backstage and the dance floor, the club patrons and the performers and the club restaurant and the kitchens. There is the choreographed, self-conscious realm of the public and the individual, desire-driven space of the private. This idea of hidden or private spaces is also seen through the use of newspapers, screens and closed doors. The news print is indicative of public knowledge and mass production and hiding behind this medium is an allegory for the private lives of topical characters or the real stories behind topical events. In the opening scenes both Vic and Mabel step out from closed doors as though they are entering their public persona's. The private space of Mabel can be seen to encourage the tension between these worlds as she is always dressed as though for performance. She seems to conduct herself as though she is being watched even in the privacy of her room. There are parts of her character which do differ from public to private. When performing she wears very little and shows a lot of skin. She is highly energetic and outgoing. Backstage she is covered with scarves and hiding behind newspapers and her face is shadowed.

The coat room can be seen as an in between place where the ladies are both preparing and performing. They are seen by the other ladies and themselves and yet they are combing their eyebrows (?!) in a mixture of composure and freedom. Their images are multiplied and illuminated in the mirrors. This use of mirrors is followed at the bar with fragmentation and reflection of the customers.

In the first scene of the club the couples dancing appear kaleidoscopic in the centre of the room. From this perspective the cinema audience is looking down on the balcony and dance floor and in turn the people on the balcony are watching the people on the dance floor. It is like taking pictures of people taking taking pictures.

This layering mirrors the layering of public and private domains in the movie. It highlights the spectacle of this space.The exposure of the private exposes the suppressed desires of the characters. For Shosho this is her want of dancing which she can express in her space in the scullery at the beginning of the film. Being discovered and reprimanded begins the pattern of exposing desires and their consequences.
The witnessing of the personal/ private space is reflective of the witnessing of desires. Arguably the film encourages the separation of public and private as the intrusion of the two prove deadly.

The concept of mirroring in the film can be discussed in terms of the film imitating life. As Shosho outshines Mabel in the club, Anna May Wong is seen as the lead instead of Gilda Gray. Wikipedia lists Anna May Wong ahead of Gilda Gray in their entry on the film. Most images of the film feature Wong where there would usually be the protagonist. This is arguably because of the expectations of the cinema audience. This 'ugly duckling' or 'underdog' style plot always captures the imagination and interest of the audience because of the character who is transformed not the one who starts on top. This sounds clichéd and old fashioned but this years Academy Award winner for Best Film, Slumdog Millionaire, had this same age old story line proving this pattern is still a favorite for cinema audiences. The reason, i believe, is that it encourages that desires are attainable and it is always uplifting no matter how many times it is repeated.
Unfortunately for 'Piccadilly' the exploration of desire does not lead to a happy ending but the development of Anna May Wong's character is what makes her the favorite above Gilda Gray.