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First, the Recap:
To recount a lifetime. As a culture, we so often tend to be caught up in the NOW, what’s happening around and to us in the moment, assessing how it will impact our daily existence and carry us forward into the next day, so on, and so forth. While this is perfectly fine to take in this world one day at a time, there is something to be said for also finding those instances to ponder all that we’ve already experienced, learned, applied, and simply LIVED, perhaps more so when the fact remains it is that twilight time on the avenue towards inevitability. Along this journey, we gather all of this accumulated wealth of being, but don’t always posses the outlet to share it, release it, as there is the present mix of both happiness and struggle to contend with. Having found a career as an actress that finds her resumé highlighted by over 120 credits via stage and screen, Edith Fields HAS truly lived, loved, lost, and seen everything in between. It is a deeply personal path to reveal. It is her story uncovered–candid, grounded, inspired, and relatable.
Next, my Mind:
Once more, the unadulterated reality of our actual world, with all of its triumphs and travails, gets showcased through the unique lens that is documentary filmmaking thanks to this newest indie short film effort from director/editor/cinematographer Stacey Stone and executive producer Diane Mellen which maintains their patented focus on exposing truths about life’s influence and reverberations as it relates to individuals or grander subjects in the expected affecting and thought-provoking manner, but then diverges on a more acutely intimate approach by centering on one person alone this outing–veteran actress Edith Fields. One could easily wish to claim “I’m sorry, WHO??”, but let this critic state from the start that it is precisely the fact that the name may not ring a bell that allows for this project to speak so emphatically to the importance of realizing one thing about ANY whose career has lead them to be in the realms of entertainment–yes, they possess skills and talent to be successful, but they are still just like us–PEOPLE.
How this gets conveyed here is wonderfully simple, straightforward, uncomplicated, yet filled with a level of complete accessibility, raw emotion, fully engaging whimsy, and a defining vulnerability which provides us as the viewer with an unexpectedly all-encompassing perspective of one woman’s life, how she came into acting, the varying roads travelled to find such an elevated magnitude of achievement and accolades while really remaining under the proverbial radar when it comes to how we typically see and gauge “accomplishment” via social media presence and other more conspicuous forms of exposure this society seems to
“need” and hunger after, to the extent of virtual “worship” of celebrity, which I feel is dangerously misguided more often than not. Rather, Edith Field’s odyssey through the arena of the industry has been one of undeniably credible, amazing, and fulfilling fame, but in an equally, admirably humble way that in almost all respects has garnered her the notoriety WITHOUT the perceived pressures and constant weight of scrutiny.
Quite the opposite, she’s managed to navigate this generally chaotic business, do so with sought after dependability, well-established credentials, unshakable self-confidence, and a longevity that an overall small number of those who’ve pursued this particular course can even claim to have gained. Having found parts stating back in 1975 all the through to as recently as 2021, Fields’ credits illustrated throughout this film include a mix of TV, stage, and film that includes titles we just might be a little familiar with such as “NYPD Blue”, “Seinfeld”, “Picket Fences”, “Six Feet Under”, “St. Elsewhere”, “General Hospital”, “The Closer”, “No Way Out”, “Next”, and this is BARELY scratching the surface. When realizing how many of Hollywood’s known actors she’s had a chance to act opposite of when digging into her body of work, it’s just plain incredible, and again, something not all thespians will ever be able to say. It’s a testament to the beauty of staying the course, evolving as needed, remaining relevant without being pretentious, and just trying to LIVE.
That last part leads me to now comment on the grander manner in which Fields leads us across time and through an ever-fluctuating passage that begins in Poughkeepsie, NY and ends up in Los Angeles, with an early marriage and kids, inspiration in seeing “Death of A Salesman”, a serendipitous meeting with Mildred Dunnock that would change her world, learning at co-founder Theodore Mann‘s Circle In The Square Theater School, laying aside a growing momentum in NY for the sake of love, attending HB Studio studying under Uta Hagen and William Hickey, getting to play an iconic role in the aforementioned play that altered her career aspirations, and maintaining a 61-year relationship with the love of her life all contained in the mix. And after ALL of this–there was the COVID-19 pandemic that brought a sobering, massively challenging, isolating blow to Fields’ mindset, causing a gathering storm of reflection that was ultimately both painful, exhausting, but cathartic when looking a the sum of her life and all that had come–and was yet to. The charm, affability, transparency, and sheer, affecting sincerity she comes across with is so heartfelt and, as it should be, REAL.
Let’s then point out that following THAT, Fields found fitness, music, and a context about everything she’s experienced, endured, and persevered through that now continues to fuel her outlook on what she’s attained, secured, lost, and discovered, an appreciation of life that we should all strive to realize and acknowledge. At 91 1/2 when this documentary was shot, I more than feel that Fields’ story should compel us all to sit back and contemplate our own scope of what has transpired and, ideally, obtain a more realistic viewpoint about what’s important, how to seize opportunity, be willing to WORK for what we desire, and overcome all obstacles to have a life worth fighting for. Plus, the literal final moment of this film is absolutely fantastic when we see revealed a classic, even somewhat ICONIC, commercial Fields was a part of!! It all so magnificently epitomizes the whole of what we’ve seen and heard Fields share throughout it.
So, in total, “The Nona” marks an excursion into a tale of distinction and notability that isn’t typical of standard explorations of fame, but rather a soul-searching foray into the heart, mind, and soul of one person’s entire being that provides a necessary glimpse into the side of stardom that seems ignored far too much–the HUMAN side. It isn’t glitz and glamor, but a portrait of pursuing one’s dreams, encountering the accompanying success that hard work can bring, while being wholly firm on sustaining integrity and lasting legacy while confronting the truth we’re all fallible, will confront moments of weakness and doubt, but can STILL come out the other side wiser and better for it. I embrace Fields’ mentality demonstrated here, and may it be a driving force for all of us to just BE ourselves no matter what it is we’re chasing so that we will get there in a manner that echoes our hearts rather than only outward appearance and recognition. Fields proves you can BE famous yet stay normal, right? And honestly, I think that’s what counts more.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
