The greatest ship that never sailed: Ivanhoe and Rebecca (1982 version)
Oh boy. I just rewatched the 1982 tv movie adaptation of Ivanhoe for the first time in years, and was transported back to the ninth grade when this film first broke my heart. Our history teacher showed it to us in class, and it completely transfixed me. (Since the movie’s about as historically inaccurate as was the original novel, I think our teacher just straight up liked it. No complaints here.) I obsessed. I bought it on VHS. I read the Walter Scott book, which today is still on my short list of favorites in spite of its being all kinds of ridiculous.
Let me be upfront and say that this movie has some incredibly cheestastic moments, and that it’s not much to look at. But in my estimation it’s elevated above many more sophisticated films by the amazing and poignant performances of Anthony Adams and Olivia Hussey as Ivanhoe and Rebecca.
Ivanhoe and Rebecca are not strictly cannon. They do not marry. They do not even declare love for one another (thogh they do have one gentle kiss). They’re separated not only by the dictates of their society but by their own beliefs and convictions (he’s a Christian and she’s a Jew in twelfth century England.) He cherishes and eventually marries another (his childhood sweetheart Rowena.) And yet they share an unspoken bond that is one of the most moving and sad I’ve ever encountered in a book or film.
I don't want to recap the whole film, so let's just fast forward to the end, which is one of the saddest and yet most perfect movie endings ever. Suffice it to say that throughtout the entire film I'm basially hanging on to the Ivanhoe/Rebecca sip. Surely they must acknowledge their love for one another. Surely he's not going to marry the vapid, childish Rowena. Otherwise, it would just be too sad. But life is sad and unfair sometimes. The divsions between Christian and Jew run too deep for either of them to cross. Which is why, towards the end, after he saves her from being burned at the stake, they just look at each other, from a distance, for an intense moment, like this:
Until, she sadly turns and walks away without speaking to him, leaving him just looking after her. And then it cuts to his WEDDING TO ROWENA! With Rebecca looking on like this:
And the ship dies a slow, agonizing death. BUT there’s more painful bitter-sweet wistfulness in to come in the final scene. Rebecca pays a humbling visit to Ivanhoe’s new wife to acknowledge the debt she owes them for Ivanhoe saing her life (even though she did save his first). How tragic is it that she couldn’t bear to say this to Ivanhoe himself? Or that she, knowing that they are Not Meant To Be, has deliberately cut herself out of his life? She sort of accidentally kind of lets slip to Rowena that she loved him (“I thank God I leave Ivanhoe with such goodness of heart.”) And even though that’s the closest she ever gets to referencing her love out loud, her eyes say it all:
But, wait, there’s more. Ivanhoe sees her leaving and calls after her, but she doesn’t let him catch up to her. She joins her father outside, and just before she rides off to leave England forever, the two have another one of their soulful gazing matches, expressing with their eyes a thousand things that they can never say out loud:
And just before the credits roll, a voiceover says, “It was told by all that Ivanhoe and fair Rowena lived long and happily together. Yet one can’t help but wonder if fond memories of Rebecca did not reoccur to Ivanhoe’s mind until the very end of his days.” Gaaaah, this movie is such a doomed ship tease. And that's why I love it.
I think the most common reaction people have to Ivanhoe is “He should have married Rebecca.” William Thackery even wrote a novella-length continuation of the book (Rebecca and Rowena) for the sole purpose of making that happen. And while nobody can appreciate that sentiment more than I, at the end of the day I like Walter Scott’s ending because it’s true to the characters. Scott even said himself that Rebecca was more deserving of Ivanhoe’s love, but that doesn’t mean it was ever going to happen. Neither of them would ever compromise their values, nor even consider giving up their faith for the other. And that’s as it should be, even though it breaks my heart.
Although this adaptation is my favorite for the performances of Andrews and Hussey, the longer 1997 version also bears mentioning. Whereas the 1982 one really does a good job of capturing the Ivanhoe/Rebecca relationship, the 1997 one is especially good for the Rebecca/Guilbert relationship, which is another fascinating element of the story that is not as powerful in the 1982 version. Once again, it comes down mostly to the performances, as the 1997 one has an awesome anti-hero in Guilbert (played by Ciaran Hinds) and a rather bland Ivanhoe. In the 1997 one Susan Lynch makes for a very different Rebecca from Olivia Hussey, but I like both. Maybe I’ll do a longer post on that version with some caps.
Hinds and Lynch:
Let me be upfront and say that this movie has some incredibly cheestastic moments, and that it’s not much to look at. But in my estimation it’s elevated above many more sophisticated films by the amazing and poignant performances of Anthony Adams and Olivia Hussey as Ivanhoe and Rebecca.
Ivanhoe and Rebecca are not strictly cannon. They do not marry. They do not even declare love for one another (thogh they do have one gentle kiss). They’re separated not only by the dictates of their society but by their own beliefs and convictions (he’s a Christian and she’s a Jew in twelfth century England.) He cherishes and eventually marries another (his childhood sweetheart Rowena.) And yet they share an unspoken bond that is one of the most moving and sad I’ve ever encountered in a book or film.
I don't want to recap the whole film, so let's just fast forward to the end, which is one of the saddest and yet most perfect movie endings ever. Suffice it to say that throughtout the entire film I'm basially hanging on to the Ivanhoe/Rebecca sip. Surely they must acknowledge their love for one another. Surely he's not going to marry the vapid, childish Rowena. Otherwise, it would just be too sad. But life is sad and unfair sometimes. The divsions between Christian and Jew run too deep for either of them to cross. Which is why, towards the end, after he saves her from being burned at the stake, they just look at each other, from a distance, for an intense moment, like this:
Until, she sadly turns and walks away without speaking to him, leaving him just looking after her. And then it cuts to his WEDDING TO ROWENA! With Rebecca looking on like this:
And the ship dies a slow, agonizing death. BUT there’s more painful bitter-sweet wistfulness in to come in the final scene. Rebecca pays a humbling visit to Ivanhoe’s new wife to acknowledge the debt she owes them for Ivanhoe saing her life (even though she did save his first). How tragic is it that she couldn’t bear to say this to Ivanhoe himself? Or that she, knowing that they are Not Meant To Be, has deliberately cut herself out of his life? She sort of accidentally kind of lets slip to Rowena that she loved him (“I thank God I leave Ivanhoe with such goodness of heart.”) And even though that’s the closest she ever gets to referencing her love out loud, her eyes say it all:
But, wait, there’s more. Ivanhoe sees her leaving and calls after her, but she doesn’t let him catch up to her. She joins her father outside, and just before she rides off to leave England forever, the two have another one of their soulful gazing matches, expressing with their eyes a thousand things that they can never say out loud:
And just before the credits roll, a voiceover says, “It was told by all that Ivanhoe and fair Rowena lived long and happily together. Yet one can’t help but wonder if fond memories of Rebecca did not reoccur to Ivanhoe’s mind until the very end of his days.” Gaaaah, this movie is such a doomed ship tease. And that's why I love it.
I think the most common reaction people have to Ivanhoe is “He should have married Rebecca.” William Thackery even wrote a novella-length continuation of the book (Rebecca and Rowena) for the sole purpose of making that happen. And while nobody can appreciate that sentiment more than I, at the end of the day I like Walter Scott’s ending because it’s true to the characters. Scott even said himself that Rebecca was more deserving of Ivanhoe’s love, but that doesn’t mean it was ever going to happen. Neither of them would ever compromise their values, nor even consider giving up their faith for the other. And that’s as it should be, even though it breaks my heart.
Although this adaptation is my favorite for the performances of Andrews and Hussey, the longer 1997 version also bears mentioning. Whereas the 1982 one really does a good job of capturing the Ivanhoe/Rebecca relationship, the 1997 one is especially good for the Rebecca/Guilbert relationship, which is another fascinating element of the story that is not as powerful in the 1982 version. Once again, it comes down mostly to the performances, as the 1997 one has an awesome anti-hero in Guilbert (played by Ciaran Hinds) and a rather bland Ivanhoe. In the 1997 one Susan Lynch makes for a very different Rebecca from Olivia Hussey, but I like both. Maybe I’ll do a longer post on that version with some caps.
Hinds and Lynch: