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The Painted Veil

 The Painted Veil
type
TVTItem
 The Painted Veil
label
The Painted Veil
 The Painted Veil
page
ThePaintedVeil
 The Painted Veil
comment
The Painted Veil is a 2006 American romantic drama film based on the 1925 novel of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham, directed by John Curran and starring Edward Norton and Naomi Watts.Kitty Garstin (Watts) is a shallow socialite who decides to marry boring bacteriologist Dr. Walter Fane (Norton) when she finds that she's out of suitors and her mother pushes her to make the match. Walter's work takes him to Shanghai, and there Kitty settles into married life and embarks upon an affair with Charles Townsend (Liev Schreiber), the married British vice consul. After Walter discovers the affair he offers Kitty two options: divorce on the grounds of adultery, or she can go with him to a small village out in the country where a deadly cholera epidemic is in full swing. Realizing Charlie won't leave his wife for her, Kitty accompanies Walter to the village, where she is forced to confront her previous illusions about Walter and herself.
 The Painted Veil
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2023-04-21T06:43:21Z
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2023-04-21T06:43:21Z
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Dropped link to StealthInsult: Not a Feature - ITEM
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Dropped link to ThePlague: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Painted Veil
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DBTropes
 The Painted Veil / int_11b01fc7
type
Happy Marriage Charade
 The Painted Veil / int_11b01fc7
comment
Happy Marriage Charade: Part of Kitty's punishment is she must go along with Walter publicly taunting her by pretending to be a happy, loving couple.
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The Painted Veil / int_11b01fc7
 The Painted Veil / int_19fe3478
type
Daddy's Girl
 The Painted Veil / int_19fe3478
comment
Daddy's Girl: Kitty is implied to be closer to her father rather than to her mum. Her father introduces her to Walter, sends her memorabilia while she's in China and is implied to look after his grandson once Kitty is widowed.
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The Painted Veil / int_19fe3478
 The Painted Veil / int_23473ae7
type
Adaptation Expansion
 The Painted Veil / int_23473ae7
comment
Adaptation Expansion: The movie adds a subplot where Kitty begins falling in love with Walter for real, with Walter gradually reciprocating. This doesn't happen in the novel, which is generally more about Kitty's internal Character Development; while she does come to see Walter's worth and regrets her actions, she cannot bring herself to love him as a man. Walter, meanwhile, remains consumed by bitterness throughout the novel though it is ambiguous whether he manages to finally forgive her on his deathbed.
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 The Painted Veil / int_2abb2153
type
Old-Fashioned Rowboat Date
 The Painted Veil / int_2abb2153
comment
Old-Fashioned Rowboat Date: Returning to the village by boat turns into this.
 The Painted Veil / int_2abb2153
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The Painted Veil / int_2abb2153
 The Painted Veil / int_2dc0d2bf
type
Hidden Depths
 The Painted Veil / int_2dc0d2bf
comment
Hidden Depths: The central story of the film is Walter and Kitty each discovering the other is much more than they initially thought.
 The Painted Veil / int_2dc0d2bf
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 The Painted Veil / int_2e8ed504
type
Beautiful Dreamer
 The Painted Veil / int_2e8ed504
comment
Beautiful Dreamer: Kitty stumbles upon Walter who has fallen asleep at his desk. This marks the point in the movie where she does start to feel affection towards him.
 The Painted Veil / int_2e8ed504
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1.0
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The Painted Veil / int_2e8ed504
 The Painted Veil / int_35e077
type
Fourth-Date Marriage
 The Painted Veil / int_35e077
comment
Fourth-Date Marriage: Played realistically. Walter has fallen in love with Kitty almost immediately. Kitty barely knows his name. The marriage is a disaster.
 The Painted Veil / int_35e077
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The Painted Veil / int_35e077
 The Painted Veil / int_38d02d44
type
Batman Gambit
 The Painted Veil / int_38d02d44
comment
Batman Gambit: Walter is determined to punish his wife. After he finds out about her affair, he sets up a situation where her only choices are to follow him into a cholera epidemic or public scandal. He predicts her every move, and Charlie's, perfectly.
 The Painted Veil / int_38d02d44
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The Painted Veil / int_38d02d44
 The Painted Veil / int_3b113b7
type
Character Development
 The Painted Veil / int_3b113b7
comment
Character Development: In spades- Kitty gets to see Walter at work, and sees how respected and liked he is. In turn, Walter sees Kitty volunteering at the orphanage and sees that she isn't as shallow as he first thought.
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The Painted Veil / int_3b113b7
 The Painted Veil / int_3bd384bf
type
Parasol of Prettiness
 The Painted Veil / int_3bd384bf
comment
Parasol of Prettiness: Being an upper-class girl, Kitty protects herself from the sun.
 The Painted Veil / int_3bd384bf
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The Painted Veil / int_3bd384bf
 The Painted Veil / int_3ebc57ac
type
Going Native
 The Painted Veil / int_3ebc57ac
comment
Going Native: Waddington can speak Chinese and has a better understanding of their culture and lifestyle than the Fanes, and lives with a native woman.
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The Painted Veil / int_3ebc57ac
 The Painted Veil / int_3f45f1e6
type
Adaptational Heroism
 The Painted Veil / int_3f45f1e6
comment
Adaptational Heroism: Walter Fine is more of a jerk in the original novel; while he is rightly upset and betrayed by his wife's infidelity, he is depicted as utterly consumed by bitterness and unable to forgive her despite her Character Development and clear efforts to atone, and while Kitty gradually comes to respect his better qualities she never really likes him, much less loves him. Furthermore, the novel suggests that Walter, in marrying someone he clearly didn't really know or understand, have some responsibility for the collapse of the marriage even if he was otherwise the wronged party. In the film, he gradually softens up as Kitty engages in Character Development and comes to forgive her, and they fall in love for real. He's also generally depicted as a lot more humane and caring, whereas in the book his approach to the cholera epidemic is more cold and analytical.
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 The Painted Veil / int_44606d14
type
Becoming the Mask
 The Painted Veil / int_44606d14
comment
Becoming the Mask: Kitty starts out following Walter to Mei-Tan-Fu to play the devoted wife who can't bear to leave her husband even in the face of nearly certain death. By the end, it's true.
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The Painted Veil / int_44606d14
 The Painted Veil / int_46c1dc8e
type
Someone to Remember Him By
 The Painted Veil / int_46c1dc8e
comment
Someone to Remember Him By: Kitty regards her son as Walter's child and names him Walter Fane Jr.
 The Painted Veil / int_46c1dc8e
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The Painted Veil / int_46c1dc8e
 The Painted Veil / int_49d59be9
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Scenery Porn
 The Painted Veil / int_49d59be9
comment
Scenery Porn: The scenes beautifully shot in rural China.
 The Painted Veil / int_49d59be9
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The Painted Veil / int_49d59be9
 The Painted Veil / int_4ef92d0b
type
The Atoner
 The Painted Veil / int_4ef92d0b
comment
The Atoner: Kitty gradually becomes motivated to make amends for her betrayal of Walter on realising both her own superficiality and his better qualities that she had been blind to. The novel plays this with as bit more complexity, as Kitty nevertheless continues to improve herself even after realising that Walter will never forgive her, but more for the satisfaction of her own self-improvement and discovering meaning in her own life than for his sake.
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The Painted Veil / int_4ef92d0b
 The Painted Veil / int_516f986d
type
Loving a Shadow
 The Painted Veil / int_516f986d
comment
Loving a Shadow: Walter loves Kitty at first sight, though he comes to realize he has no idea who she actually is after her affair. She calls him out on this and he eventually agrees with her. Kitty loves Charlie, but when it comes right down to it, he doesn't actually love her back.
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The Painted Veil / int_516f986d
 The Painted Veil / int_56dd38a0
type
Leave the Two Lovebirds Alone
 The Painted Veil / int_56dd38a0
comment
Leave the Two Lovebirds Alone: At least as well as can be accomplished with a nun and a couple dozen little girls watching. But when the Mother Superior recommends Kitty play something "a little more soothing" she takes the hint and plays something to seduce Walter instead. Her choice of the song that was playing when they met effectively leaves them "alone."
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 The Painted Veil / int_5e2e55e4
type
The Casanova
 The Painted Veil / int_5e2e55e4
comment
The Casanova: Charlie is implied to have had a number of affairs, Kitty merely being his latest conquest.
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The Painted Veil / int_5e2e55e4
 The Painted Veil / int_6532850f
type
Her Heart Will Go On
 The Painted Veil / int_6532850f
comment
Her Heart Will Go On: Kitty mourns deeply Walter's death but give years later she looks a happy and fulfilled mother.
 The Painted Veil / int_6532850f
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The Painted Veil / int_6532850f
 The Painted Veil / int_6ae4dedd
type
The Unfair Sex
 The Painted Veil / int_6ae4dedd
comment
The Unfair Sex: Averted. The film is pretty much on Walter's side and makes Kitty earn her forgiveness. Granted, he is depicted as a bit overboard with his punishment. The novel is a bit more ambiguous; while treating Kitty unsympathetically for her betrayal and the selfishness and superficiality it's based on, Walter ends up consumed by bitterness and contempt for her, and the point is made that he shares some responsibility for willingly entering into a marriage with someone who he clearly didn't understand and who was so utterly incompatible with himself.
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 The Painted Veil / int_6c7136b7
type
Tactful Translation
 The Painted Veil / int_6c7136b7
comment
Tactful Translation: The Funny Moment in an otherwise mostly serious movie comes when Walter, with his government-assigned translator Col. Yu, goes to a local warlord to request his cooperation in fighting the epidemic. When the warlord responds with an angry tirade, Walter tacitly invokes this trope to let Col. Yu take over negotiations. The Colonel proceeds to "translate" an insult into a tactfully-worded threat that gets the result they need:
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The Painted Veil / int_6c7136b7
 The Painted Veil / int_72ce3f54
type
Adaptation Relationship Overhaul
 The Painted Veil / int_72ce3f54
comment
Adaptation Relationship Overhaul: The main couple, unexpectedly so. In the original novel Kitty does regret her previous shallowness but never comes to love Walter romantically. Also Walter in the novel is definitely less likable.
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The Painted Veil / int_72ce3f54
 The Painted Veil / int_75538142
type
Friend to All Children
 The Painted Veil / int_75538142
comment
Friend to All Children: Walter is fond of babies, which makes him more sympathetic in Kitty's eyes and causes her to realize that maybe she has misunderstood him.
 The Painted Veil / int_75538142
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The Painted Veil / int_75538142
 The Painted Veil / int_79729e6d
type
Uptight Loves Wild
 The Painted Veil / int_79729e6d
comment
Uptight Loves Wild: There's definitely an element of this in Walter's attraction to Kitty.
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The Painted Veil / int_79729e6d
 The Painted Veil / int_8797239c
type
Bait-and-Switch
 The Painted Veil / int_8797239c
comment
Bait-and-Switch: During the Chinese play, Charlie flirts with Kitty translating what the main actor is singing, which should be a sad story about slavery and a loveless future that obviously parallels Kitty's unhappy marriage. Kitty is moved by these words and asks if that's really what the song is about. He then confesses that he actually has no idea of what the actor is singing at all.
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 The Painted Veil / int_9aebded4
type
Mighty Whitey and Mellow Yellow
 The Painted Veil / int_9aebded4
comment
Mighty Whitey and Mellow Yellow: Seen with the Fanes' neighbour Waddington and his Manchurian lover Wan Xi, whose family he has saved during the 1911 Revolution.
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The Painted Veil / int_9aebded4
 The Painted Veil / int_a55ab01e
type
Jerkass Realization
 The Painted Veil / int_a55ab01e
comment
Jerkass Realization: Kitty gradually comes to disdain her earlier superficiality and frivolity and becomes a more compassionate, centred person. A key moment is a conversation with Waddington about Charles, Kitty's former lover, and his wife. Waddington, not realising that Kitty had an affair with Charles, off-handedly comments that Charles's wife knows about his frequent infidelity and looks down on the other women as "second-rate". Kitty, who had always disdained Charles's wife and viewed her as a boring, dull-witted frump when compared to her, is clearly rather jolted by the realisation that she was actually considered the "second-rate" one in the whole dynamic.
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The Painted Veil / int_a55ab01e
 The Painted Veil / int_b352e864
type
Sexless Marriage
 The Painted Veil / int_b352e864
comment
Sexless Marriage: When Walter discovers Kitty's adultery and takes her to Mei-Tan-Fu. They eventually make up, resulting in a Sexy Discretion Shot
 The Painted Veil / int_b352e864
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The Painted Veil / int_b352e864
 The Painted Veil / int_c2c92862
type
Unwanted Spouse
 The Painted Veil / int_c2c92862
comment
Unwanted Spouse: Walter is this when he marries Kitty, but then Kitty assumes the role when her adultery is uncovered.
 The Painted Veil / int_c2c92862
featureApplicability
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The Painted Veil / int_c2c92862
 The Painted Veil / int_d2b59903
type
Cool Old Lady
 The Painted Veil / int_d2b59903
comment
Cool Old Lady: The Mother Superior, along with being extremely snarky and helpful with advice to Kitty. Being played by Diana Rigg does this to you.
 The Painted Veil / int_d2b59903
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The Painted Veil / int_d2b59903
 The Painted Veil / int_daee232f
type
Who's Your Daddy?
 The Painted Veil / int_daee232f
comment
Who's Your Daddy?: Kitty is unsure of whether her unborn child is Walter's or Charlie's, but Walter agrees to raise the child as his own, and ultimately Kitty treats the child as his. In the book the baby was definitely Charlie's.
 The Painted Veil / int_daee232f
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 The Painted Veil / int_db2f3581
type
All Girls Want Bad Boys
 The Painted Veil / int_db2f3581
comment
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Kitty is much more attracted to shameless flirt and womanizer Charlie than her devoted husband. Gradually subverted in the film, where she gradually falls in love with Walter the more she learns her true character, and comes to regard Charlie as contempt. Played with in the original novel; there, she comes to respect and admire her husband but cannot love him, and though she later succumbs to Charlie's advances again towards the end she is thoroughly disgusted with both herself for doing so and him for their shared superficiality.
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 The Painted Veil / int_e1311c40
type
Romancing the Widow
 The Painted Veil / int_e1311c40
comment
Romancing the Widow: Charlie tries this years later in London. Kitty shoots him down.
 The Painted Veil / int_e1311c40
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 The Painted Veil / int_e9f0ad4d
type
Nuns 'n' Rosaries
 The Painted Veil / int_e9f0ad4d
comment
Nuns 'n' Rosaries: The French order running the orphanage in the village.
 The Painted Veil / int_e9f0ad4d
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The Painted Veil / int_e9f0ad4d
 The Painted Veil / int_ec40626
type
Love Martyr
 The Painted Veil / int_ec40626
comment
Love Martyr: Walter married Kitty knowing how selfish she was, but he still loved her and thought she would change.
 The Painted Veil / int_ec40626
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 The Painted Veil / int_f6a9024b
type
Altar the Speed
 The Painted Veil / int_f6a9024b
comment
Altar the Speed: Walter wants to marry before he returns to Shanghai, even though he and Kitty barely know each other.
 The Painted Veil / int_f6a9024b
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 The Painted Veil / int_ff2ceef1
type
Old Maid
 The Painted Veil / int_ff2ceef1
comment
Old Maid: Kitty's fear that this and years more of living with her mother will be her fate drive her to marry Walter.
 The Painted Veil / int_ff2ceef1
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 The Painted Veil / int_fff371b4
type
Death Seeker
 The Painted Veil / int_fff371b4
comment
Death Seeker: Walter. Kitty follows suit when she realizes her husband doesn't intend for either of them to live.
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The Painted Veil

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 The Painted Veil
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The Painted Veil
 The Painted Veil
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Beautiful Dreamer / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Empathy Doll Shot / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Morning Sickness / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Old-Fashioned Rowboat Date / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Really Dead Montage / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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Tactful Translation / int_be2323f8
 The Painted Veil
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The Painted Veil
 The Painted Veil
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Translation: "Yes" / int_be2323f8