The film ‘Albert Nobbs’ reveals that gender identity is not only today’s phenomenon since the situation described in the film occurred in the 19th century. The film’s protagonist works as a butler at the Irish Hotel ‘Morrison’, Dublin. The events are set at the end of the 19th century. The main character has been living for over 30 years as a man, although he was born a woman. The reason for the sex change was the situation when Albert was raped by a group of men when he was 14. After this incident, Albert was interviewed for a job as a waiter at Morrison’s as a man, thus starting a completely new life. The movie also features hotel workers keeping secrets, such as Hubert Page, who is in charge of painting at the hotel. After discovering Albert’s secret, Hubert tells him that he also has been living as a man for a long time, having escaped from an abusive husband. One afternoon, Albert visits Hubert’s home, where he meets his wife, Cathleen. There, Albert also tells a rather touching story of his life.
Joe Mackins, the boiler operator, and Helen Dawes, the hotel maid, who have become secret lovers, also play an important role in the film. Dreaming of becoming financially independent, Albert saves up money to open a tobacco store. As part of this idea, he notices Helen as a possible wife and store manager. Helen was initially reluctant to start a relationship with Albert, but after Joe persuades her to create an affinity for the sake of getting money in the future to immigrate to America, she agrees. After a series of events, Helen finds herself pregnant by Joe, and Hubert’s wife dies unexpectedly. The climactic scenes are when Albert and Hubert go for a walk dressed as women and when Albert reveals the selfish plans of Joe, who wants to go to America alone. The film ends with Helen giving birth to a child who will soon be weaned from her. She meets Hubert, and they have one last cynical dialogue about the sad future.
There is one important scene in the movie that is coherent with one of the textbook’s concepts. For instance, Gibson et al. (158) state: “Indeed, determining who is and isn’t part of the LGBTQ community is not as simple as it might seem on the surface.” This idea is demonstrated when Hubert Page, the hotel painting decorator, reveals his real identity to Albert Nobbs that who is also a woman who escaped from a severe husband. By stating this, Hubert was quite nervous, but his emotions are incomparable with Albert Nobbs’ ones. Consequently, it is critical to understand that transgender identity is not demonstrated through physical appearance but through psychological self-consideration and society’s identification.
When it comes to my opinion, I strongly recommend watching this film to my classmates and any other people that would like to broaden their world vision. The film majorly concentrates on two aspects of our life: the perception of transgender people and their global and everyday problems. By watching this film, the viewer will have the opportunity to see how transgender people live and how they perceive themselves. On this basis, the film allows us to see the perspective of transgender representatives on their lives, which will also help develop a viewer’s personal opinion concerning this phenomenon.
Work Cited
Gibson, Michelle, et al. Finding Out. SAGE Publications, 2013.