Miss Ellie kitchen scene

[the-lost-son]

Miss Ellie's breakdown in the Southfork kitchen is one of the highlights of the whole series.

But one thing always bothered me. When JR&Bobby enter the kitchen and realize their mother is mourning their father - they just leave (2:05).

It feels weird, out-of-character, cold, especially for Bobby and also for JR. I know it makes good TV when you leave the screen to BBG, but it feels unnatural to wait next door for your mother to calm down instead of trying to console her.

It's such a great scene but this small detail bugs me nonetheless.
Does anybody feel the same?

 

[Jimmy Todd]

I felt they instinctively knew that at this point Miss Ellie needed to have a catharsis by herself. It's just the sense I got.

 

[Lastkidpicked]

@the-lost-son thank you for posting that. Amazing acting by Barbara Bel Geddes.

I think @Jimmy Todd is on to something with his post. Watch the tiny details for clues:

The boys and Theresa are in the dining room when they hear the plates crash. Theresa thinks it was an accident and immediately moves toward the kitchen. Bobby knows better and instinctively says, "Theresa, wait" as the boys go toward the kitchen.

Notice they both stop when they see Momma leaning on the counter, mourning Jock. Look at their body language. It's actually J.R. who leans in and wants to approach Momma. But Bobby knows better. He knows Miss Ellie needs to be alone for this. Notice the little gesture of Bobby taking J.R. by the elbow and leading him out.

This is where the chemistry between the actors really shines through. J.R. is the older brother, but it is younger brother Bobby who makes the decision to leave Momma alone, It is one of the few times that J.R. thinks to himself, "I don't know what to do, so I'll follow Bobby's lead."

 

[the-lost-son]

Yes, I both get your points. The little details are all there. Dallas was always good at that.

Nonetheless...
When Pam was breaking down after Swan Song, it was nice to watch Cliff&Jamie around.
If a Ewing is having a hard time, the family unites, like SueEllen in hospital and JR/Bobby at her bed.
It makes great TV.

But it's impossible for me to imagine that a son who loves his mother is stepping out of the room in such a situation.
It would have been more realistic for me if she had left dinner and destroyed the bedroom without her sons entering.

 

[Chris2]

I would have left her alone. Plus the fact that who knows what kind of damage she would have done if Bobby’s pretty face had been hit with some flying china.

 

[DallasFanForever]

Remember that Miss Ellie was in denial over Jock’s death for many months. Everyone knew she was going to break down eventually. It was inevitable. I think that’s why the boys left her alone. It was quite expected of her at some point. You can only hold in grief for so long.

 

[Rove]

Does anybody feel the same?

Not me. I love the scene as it is. From start to finish the actors, directing and music here is top notch. At the 1:05 mark we witness a slight quiver in Miss Ellie's bottom lip. There is the subtle shot of Bobby when he realizes Momma is not quite right. When Miss Ellie walks into the kitchen notice the slight anger when she requests Teresa, " see if they want anything." The word want is emphasized. Barbara Bel Geddes should have won both an Emma and Golden Globe just for that moment right there.

This was Dallas at its finest. It's funny how many years later another kitchen scene during the screening of TNT Dallas mirrored the above clip. I'm speaking of course the epic showdown between Sue Ellen and John Ross. We often speak how infamous staircases generally make for good drama but Dallas had some good ones in the Southfork kitchen. There is the above clip. Miss Ellie offering sage advice to Sue Ellen to think carefully about the future of the family...and who could forget the creepy Lady Jessica Montford deciding whether to chop the tomatoes or Miss Ellie.

 

[the-lost-son]

We often speak how infamous staircases generally make for good drama but Dallas had some good ones in the Southfork kitchen.

Of course, the kitchen was a great location. Such a casual place for so much drama. Here are two other examples:

And here JR at his best:

Slurping that chilie

 

[Sarah]

She was one of the strongest characters on the show and for them to see her break down, which she rarely if ever did, as her children regardless of their age would have been a frightening thing to witness. Not only did they know to leave her alone to get it out of her system, but they probably didn't know what to do. It totally works that she is on her own. When a parent dies there is so much denial, and seeing Miss Ellie's reaction would have hit home that Jock was really gone, which no one was willing to accept yet, especially JR.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

who knows what kind of damage she would have done if Bobby’s pretty face had been hit with some flying china.

Yes, I'm guessing Gary would have warned him to keep well clear, since he'd been in the line of fire of a wife's grief-struck outburst himself just a few months earlier:

 

[stevew]

@the-lost-son thank you for posting that. Amazing acting by Barbara Bel Geddes.

I think @Jimmy Todd is on to something with his post. Watch the tiny details for clues:

The boys and Theresa are in the dining room when they hear the plates crash. Theresa thinks it was an accident and immediately moves toward the kitchen. Bobby knows better and instinctively says, "Theresa, wait" as the boys go toward the kitchen.

Notice they both stop when they see Momma leaning on the counter, mourning Jock. Look at their body language. It's actually J.R. who leans in and wants to approach Momma. But Bobby knows better. He knows Miss Ellie needs to be alone for this. Notice the little gesture of Bobby taking J.R. by the elbow and leading him out.

This is where the chemistry between the actors really shines through. J.R. is the older brother, but it is younger brother Bobby who makes the decision to leave Momma alone, It is one of the few times that J.R. thinks to himself, "I don't know what to do, so I'll follow Bobby's lead."

I think JR did know what to do - help his mother let it go. Gary would have helped her cry and she would have let him. JR would have ended up like the dishes and been beat on - something he'd gladly do because it was who JR was. Gary was Miss Ellie favorite and JR was Miss Ellie's go to child to do what needs to be done, including giving his mother a target to vent that anger stage of grief. But Bobby was the peace maker, and what he did was for JR not Miss Ellie - in my opinion. It's those little things in those days that really made the show to rich with detail.

 

[stevew]

Not me. I love the scene as it is. From start to finish the actors, directing and music here is top notch. At the 1:05 mark we witness a slight quiver in Miss Ellie's bottom lip. There is the subtle shot of Bobby when he realizes Momma is not quite right. When Miss Ellie walks into the kitchen notice the slight anger when she requests Teresa, " see if they want anything." The word want is emphasized. Barbara Bel Geddes should have won both an Emma and Golden Globe just for that moment right there.

This was Dallas at its finest. It's funny how many years later another kitchen scene during the screening of TNT Dallas mirrored the above clip. I'm speaking of course the epic showdown between Sue Ellen and John Ross. We often speak how infamous staircases generally make for good drama but Dallas had some good ones in the Southfork kitchen. There is the above clip. Miss Ellie offering sage advice to Sue Ellen to think carefully about the future of the family...and who could forget the creepy Lady Jessica Montford deciding whether to chop the tomatoes or Miss Ellie.

I think that was the BEST scene in Dallas TNT and for Bobby to just get her out of where John Ross put her seemed to erase the impact of the scene. Unlike Miss Ellie, Sue Ellen wasn't going to keep it together and her anger was dangerous to herself (as we saw by the fire) and others. Where Bobby knew Miss Ellie needed to get that anger out and then pull it together.

 

[stevew]

Yes, I'm guessing Gary would have warned him to keep well clear, since he'd been in the line of fire of a wife's grief-struck outburst himself just a few months earlier:

I don't think she would have done such to Gary, but yes to JR. She would have just held onto and cried with Gary, suppressing it when she needed to get it out. JR would have take it and never once tried to get away from her. She might have been better off for it - though I doubt JR would have been. Imagine her hitting him, "Why weren't you there! You should have been there! What did you do! I hate you!" Certainly explain who JR was.

 

[Sarah]

I think that was the BEST scene in Dallas TNT and for Bobby to just get her out of where John Ross put her seemed to erase the impact of the scene. Unlike Miss Ellie, Sue Ellen wasn't going to keep it together and her anger was dangerous to herself (as we saw by the fire) and others. Where Bobby knew Miss Ellie needed to get that anger out and then pull it together.

Of course it was. Look who is in it.

 

[stevew]

Of course it was. Look who is in it.

Good point. Don't get me wrong, Larry Hagman brought a good game considering what he had to work with (I think the wrong direction for his character) but he was ill. Dallas TNT's best asset was Sue Ellen Ewing (and while I wasn't thrilled she returned to drinking and would have made it very short lived) she brought the best in every thing she did. I was happy with John Ross and pleasantly surprised with Judith Ryland/Brown but the rest I just wanted to fast forward - then Sue Ellen. if they had taken that passion we saw in that scene and have Sue Ellen say to Bobby, "Write or wrong, John Ross is my son, just as you seem to do with Christopher. And I know you think highly of him and of yourself, but I'll burn this damn ranch to the ground, oil and all, before I left you keep it from my son." I wanted more Angela Channing and less Jackie Kennedy.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

I think that was the BEST scene in Dallas TNT and for Bobby to just get her out of where John Ross put her seemed to erase the impact of the scene. Unlike Miss Ellie, Sue Ellen wasn't going to keep it together and her anger was dangerous to herself (as we saw by the fire) and others. Where Bobby knew Miss Ellie needed to get that anger out and then pull it together.

It would have been awfully nice to have had a nuDALLAS for the last decade. But, sadly, this scene wasn't typical of the show they gave us.

 

[stevew]

It would have been awfully nice to have had a nuDALLAS for the last decade. But, sadly, this scene wasn't typical of the show they gave us.

So true. Imagine:

Judith Ryland: "If you want to make a play for that grand frontier, you're gonna have to deal with us," holding John Ross's arm and looking up at him like she's his long lost momma (replace just a bit what we saw because we don't need a lovers spat but a mother and son situation).

Sue Ellen looks on Judith with contempt.

Bobby says, "Well you can partner with the devil all you want, it won't make a bit of difference," his face broadening with with a smug grin. "I'll always see it comein'. In a life time your daddy never got the best of me, and he was twice the opponent you'll ever be."

Sue Ellen looks on Bobby with disgust.

John Ross responds, "You see that's just it Uncle Bobby, the last few months, no matter how much like my old man I try to be . . ."

Judith looks on John Ross with the admiration of a mother watching her son become a man right before her eyes.

John Ross looks at his mother, "Everybody keeps telling me, you are just like your father."

Sue Ellen looks down in shame.

Turning back to Bobby, John Ross says, "I've done some soul searching and I finally found the answer." Stepping up to Bobby, in his face so that Bobby can feel his breath, "I am NOT just like my father."

The t on the not so pronounced it gives Judith cause to grin herself.

"I'm WORSE. I don't care about you anymore than you care about me." (it needed that explanation that was missing to explain how he was worse so it wasn't an empty threat type statement and so it came back to define Bobby and who his character had become).

Bobby's grin disappears.

Sue Ellen looks up at John Ross and then at Bobby, horrified.

Judith takes his arm and walks away with a smug smile of her own, proud of man who's arms she takes as they swagger off together. Bobby and Sue Ellen watching the elevator doors close.

Sue Ellen steps away from Bobby, turning to look up at J.R.'s portrait (instead of the demure look we saw with her arm on Bobby's shoulder as if she were a helpless Jackie Kennedy standing)

Bobby turns and put his hand on her shoulder. "It's gonna be OK Sue Ellen. I can handle him."

"We've turned him mad," Sue Ellen says with utter fear in her voice. (I believe like the original had a Romeo and Juliet story they kept playing up, TNT had a Hamlet story that they didn't realize they had - Bobby as the Uncle and Sue Ellen the mother and John Ross as Hamlet listening to ghosts).

"It's not your fault, Sue Ellen. J.R.'s in the boys head. But J.R.'s gone now."

Sue Ellen's jaw clenches as strength rises up within her until she turns to face him. "He's J.R.'s son. And I'm J.R.'s woman (reminding everyone of Miss Ellie). But this isn't J.R.'s fault. This is yours. You did this!"

"Sue Ellen I know you . . ."

"You've treated my son like shit! South Fork is yours, but you knew full well that Miss Ellie gave him half. That's why J.R. gave it back to you, isn't it?" The look at Sue Ellen's face turns to realization, "Wait a minute. When you're gone, he get's it all, doesn't he?"

"He won't take care of it."

"It's HIS! You tried to sell it out from under him. And that bitch! When would Bobby Ewing ever be with a girl that was with J.R., let alone one J.R. loved, proposed to. Did you even say anything to Chris about her or was it just OK because it was Chris and who the hell cares about John Ross?"

"It's none of my business."

"But my loan that she couldn't bother to pay back, that was your business? You defended her right up until she blacked mailed you for some supposed sin of J.R.'s."

"What, you don't think J.R. did what she said?"

"I think it's way to convenient for Cliff to use that stupid girl. And where was I when he needed me? Back to the bottle. Listening to you. You're taking everything away from my son. Including me."

"That's not true."

"You know as well as I do we need that oil. That Chris's methane drilling is important but we've got to get the company off it's feet first. I let you and that bastard of yours talk me into betraying my son."

Bobby puts he's hand on Sue Ellen's shoulder in an attempt to clam her down. "Sue Ellen you're upset."

"Take your hands off me!" She backs up. "Let me be clear, Bobby. He may be wrong, he may be right, but he's my son and I'll stand by him That's what'll make us unbeatable." Bobby recognizes his mother's words thrown into his face. Sue Ellen walks toward the elevator, into it and turns around to face Bobby. "Ask yourself. Why did Carlos DelSol loan you the money to buy half of the company?" The doors close.

Bobby looks like a man facing a reckoning, que music as Bobby turns to face J.R.'s portrait.


Instead of:

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

Miss Ellie's breakdown in the Southfork kitchen is one of the highlights of the whole series.

But one thing always bothered me. When JR&Bobby enter the kitchen and realize their mother is mourning their father - they just leave (2:05).

It feels weird, out-of-character, cold, especially for Bobby and also for JR. I know it makes good TV when you leave the screen to BBG, but it feels unnatural to wait next door for your mother to calm down instead of trying to console her.

It's such a great scene but this small detail bugs me nonetheless.
Does anybody feel the same?

No, they did the right thing.

Ellie was finally coming round to the idea that Jock wasn't coming back. The realisation of that in her grief made her lash out at anything sitting in the kitchen, the crockery etc.

The reason she says "Why did you leave me! Why" isn't just because she knows he's not coming back but because she now feels alone and vulnerable. Her soul partner and the Father of her children is dead. She's not unhinged in any way (which the Cyntax TNT Dallas would have us believe) instead she has a deep sense of overwhelming grief which is visibly upsetting her. Bobby & JR do not go near her when they see her reaction to Jock's death because they want her to retain her dignity. Ellie wouldn't have wanted them to witness her at her most vulnerable, by leaving her alone and allowing her the time to cry & mourn she get's to keep her dignity. God Bless her.

 

[Snarky Oracle!]

Miss Ellie really fell apart because the kitchen didn't make any sense architecturally, and she just couldn't hold it in anymore.

 

[Luke_Krebbs_Ewing]

Miss Ellie really fell apart because the kitchen didn't make any sense architecturally, and she just couldn't hold it in anymore.

View attachment 28947

Plus she didn't like the crockery either. She hated it.

Like those awful porcelain dogs! She hated those too!