from [log in to unmask] Dennis, I can't explain these people; i really only have feelings about the whole situation. first, how could Ada not be pissed off all the time. Frankly, an inteligent woman is still SOL in the world, but the late 18th early 19th centuries would never be my choice for a time to live. NO control over you life, your body, your future, your children--NO matter your class circumstances. Most men (even today) find headstrong, intelligent women a bother and a pain; most women (even other intelligent women) loathe them simply because they won't accept their place and they are somehow always causing a fuss (not making any grand claims about my intelligence, but i *still* experience this in spades everytime I visit my family in the South--i feel just like Liz in GIANT). Even Ada's darling daughter thinks conforming might slow things down a bit (when she calls him "daddy" I died a thousand deaths with Ada; and her jealousy of Baines is hilariously Oedipal). Is Ada angry with Stewart? well, yeah, and probably her father too, and maybe even the father of her child. Carted off like the chattle she is (by law), he immediately sums her up by her size (too small), refuses her demand/request, then he trades away her piano without even trying to understand its significance to her (though by law, it is *his* to trade). And, geez, as much as I love her, Ada is *so* different--a strange stranger in a strange land. Does she "taunt and tease Stewart"? Or is it somehting else? Maybe she wants to give him a chance, but she wants to control the pace of what happens; Baines surrenders; can Stewart? well, he doesn't. Remember, women are supposed to be passive in the sack, or they are thought abnormal.When she reaches beneath the blankets, he reacts uncomfortably. Can we imagine the uptight and angry (though in Neill's performance, somehow always pitiable) Stewart ever surrendering, baring his body and soul? Personally, I think the man would really rather watch. (and damn if he isn't always building fences and acquiring more land, never understanding the concept of anything like a sacred place). Why does she need Baines? Let's just say a woman without a man in this time period is like a fish without water (to ravage that old saw)--you can't LIVE. She needs a dad, a brother, a father, a son, a husband. Why does she want and choose Baines, why does she surrender her heart? He never pins her down, fences her in, locks the doors, bars the way--he admits to his extreme reaction to her presence--he is open to her, naked to her, he is willing to be hers. (extremely personal reaction--I have never loved Harvey Keitel any more than in this role. He always exudes something on screen that makes me roil inside--though I hear he is really an asshole as a person). WWhat is her thinking? What is her problem? Like I said, I only know what I feel about what I see. Ada is an extreme woman living in an age when there was no place for extreme women--modesty and moderation in all things. She is reborn into a situation where her desires matter, where it actually makes a difference whether or not she has a voice, a place where she can say no or reach out for what she desires. Many have bitched about the ending--a fairy tale its been called. Well all I have to say is go back and read the fairy tales Ada would have read. In this film we get to see both endings--dead under the deep blue sea (The Little Mermaid) and the heterosexual feminist dream ending--sunlight, a sensual partner, a happy child, and a job doing what she loves. For some odd reason, it all makes sense to me. But then, all of her films do. I've felt "the cold" too. Thanks for forcing me to try to articulate some answers to your questions! Donna Cunningham