Part 8: Yellow
After the beautiful connection of the film’s last segment, the distance immediately snaps back in these scenes. It’s disappointing, but it shouldn’t be too surprising. It is common for people who don’t share easily to feel some combination of guilt, shame and frustration after sharing something difficult — this can lead to lashing out against the person with whom they shared the vulnerable moment.
It starts off with an ominous reflection of Calum against the table, as if his shadow self is eager to come out now that his hurt feelings about childhood have bene revealed. Soon after, Calum and Sophie are sunbathing. Sophie tries to put on her own sunblock, but after struggling to get it on her back, Calum helps out. He then suggests they do something to get the day going. Sophie doesn’t like the idea of playing waterpolo, saying she doesn’t swim well enough. Calum tells her that she swims great, but she still hesitates.
Calum then lifts her off the lounge chair and tells her they’re going swimming — presumably he threw her in the water, although we don’t see it. What we do see are images of a waterpolo game featuring Sophie trying to compete with a bunch of grown men. She seems to be trying as best she can, but the sight is ridiculous and she was right to complain about it ahead of time.
Next we see the pair at a table, listening to an older man in a very shiny jacket sing “Unchained Melody.” Calum has already drank two pints of beer and has asked for another. Sophie asks Calum if he’s excited for tomorrow. He gives out a snort of a laugh and says yes.
They are now at a different location watching people perform karaoke. The emcee — who is wearing a yellow shirt —beckons Sophie and Calum to come down as “Losing My Religion” begins to play. Calum whines about singing, Sophie reminds him that they’ve done it on holidays always, since she was five. Calum refuses to sing. Sophie struggles terribly through what is a really hard song for karaoke because it’s all about the vocal adornment you add to it — R.E.M.’s melody says within a handful of notes, controlled, which just further accentuates the heartbreak of the song, which is all about losing faith in an illusion.
The song ends and there’s a smattering of applause. Calum, probably drunk by now, makes a passive=aggressive insult, telling Sophie they’d be happy to get her singing lessons if she’d like. She responds appropriately by asking if that’s an insult. After a few more half-critiques, Sophie then unloads on him: telling Calum to stop offering to pay for things he clearly can’t afford.
With this, Calum briefly laughs to himself, then calls it an early night for them both. But Sophie refuses to go up with him, tells him that she’s going to stay a little longer. She meets up with some older kids who are involved in some very heavy drinking. Sophie doesn’t join in, stays on the periphery, mostly in silence. One boy in a yellow shirt with stripes asks if she’d like help finding her dad. She shakes her head no.
Finally, another young woman comes up to Sophie and takes off the yellow bracelet for all-you-can consume food and drink, saying that she’s leaving tomorrow, and fits it on Sophie’s wrist. Sophie orders a lemon Fanta — the yellow Fanta — with her newfound power.
Sophie continues to find support and comfort from the color yellow, even if she is no longer receiving it from her father.