Elvira, Mistress of the Dark
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The statement, "A film doesn't just stop, it ends," indicates the need for closure, for a resolution, for a thematic conclusion, rather than simply for the plot of the film to come to an end and for the film to be over. Whether a film has ended or not is dependent entirely on the degree to which the ending relates to what has gone before, for it is in the unfolding of the film from the beginning that the seeds of the ending are planted. Issues are raised in the course of every film which need to be addressed and not left hanging. A film might leave its plot hanging by omitting important details or plot resolutions--we see this too often with mystery or suspense films that do not answer the questions they raise. Other films may not be quite so overt in what a resolution would be, but they leave the viewer dissatisfied because there is no resolution just the same. The comedy Elvira, Mistress of the Dark is a minor film by any measure, amusing but not particularly strong as comedy or as an example of filmmaking. The film does have a resolution of its plot and its thematic content, however, though it arrives at this point through some questionable means.The ending of the film finds Elvira fulfilling the dream she expressed at the beginning of the film--she is playing Las Vegas. This is a simple act, and yet it resolves the stated theme directly by including a song which also speaks to the viewer and says that your dreams can come true. That statement is not a great phil
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reflect the specific personality of the driver. The act Elvira does in Las Vegas is again representative of the persona that has been created--it is showy, tasteless, excessive, suggestive, and related to what has gone before in its statement that dreams come true. It can also be seen as a demonstration of the supremacy of personal expression, even tasteless personal expression, over repressive conformity such as was represented in the town.
The style of the ending is colorful, evoking a sense of Las Vegas without showing more than the stage--no audience, nothing of Las Vegas except the marquee. The film to this point has been plot and character driven, and the resolution in Las Vegas carries the theme in terms of character, building on the character of Elvira and taking her to a new level. She has sung and dance before in the movie, when she was entertaining at the movie theater (other than this, it was never clear what specifically she wanted to do in Las Vegas--only that she needed $50,000 to mount an act). Elvira is always a flamboyant and expressive character, the epitome of personal freedom and self-reliance. These concepts are also expressed in the ending--she mounts her show on her own, and that show is itself clea
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Approximate Word count = 1714
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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