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S1:E15 - The Sobbin' Women & Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
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Hi-ho, the gang’s all here,
To talk of tales both old and dear!
From The Sobbin’ Women by Stephen Vincent Benét,
To the technicolor charm of a musical great!
It’s our first-ever musical episode—oh, what fun!
We’re singing, we’re laughing, we’re on the run.
From pioneer tales to big-screen tunes,
We’re dancing under rustic moons!
Is it romantic? Is it absurd?
You’ll have to listen to catch every word!
We’ll sing, we’ll dance, we’ll chat, we’ll jest,
It’s an episode you simply can’t miss!
So grab your saddle, or your Sunday best,
Join us as we dive into the west.
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers—it’s wild and zany,
And yes, we’re discussing the Stockholm-y, brainy!
🎵 Don’t miss this delightful affair,
Where books and movies fill the air! 🎵
Hosted by Crystal with co-hosts Keri and Lindsey.
Content Warnings: Kidnapping and coercion, gender stereotypes, patriarchal themes, romanticized abduction, violence, isolation, outdated cultural norms
Books & Adaptations Mentioned:
Questions of the Episode:
- If you are trapped in a mountain cabin for four months with zero communication, do you think you could make it, or would you go stir crazy
- Which fictional character do you wish would take you away?
Share your opinions with us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube, or email us at basedonabookpodcast@gmail.com
Don't miss an episode! Subscribe to "Based on a Book" on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!
Send us a Book Adaptation Request!
Intro/Outro Music: Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!)
Thanks for listening to “Based on a Book” - see you in the next chapter!
Chapters:
(00:00) Introductions and Synopsis
(01:26) Ratings and Non-Spoiler Reviews
(06:00) Book vs Movie Breakdown
(49:20) Final Verdicts
(50:47) Questions of the Episode
Recommended
Transcript
00:00:10
Speaker
This is Based on a Book. Welcome to our podcast where we read books and we watch movies. Follow us, like and subscribe. And thank you for joining us for our first ever musical episode. My name is Crystal. Unfortunately, I will not be debuting my interpretive dance moves this evening.
00:00:34
Speaker
I'm Carrie, here to bless our beautiful listeners wherever they may be. And I'm Lindsay, and I'm here to unravel a tale of isolation, abduction, and a battle for survival in the wilderness. Oh wait, nevermind. This is a musical about finding a wife.
00:00:52
Speaker
It is. Today's episode is the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers based on the short story, The Sabine Women by Steven Vincent Benet based on the Roman tale of the abduction of the Sabine women. That was a lot for me to remember.
00:01:13
Speaker
Yep. This tale is basically about a whole bunch of men living up in a mountain that need to find themselves some wives and go about it through, well, questionable means, but excellent dance numbers. So let's start with some thoughts and ratings. Let's go ahead and do the book is so short. It's like 30 pages. So let's just talk about how we feel about the movie.
00:01:42
Speaker
and let's start with Lindsay because I have no idea where she's going to go with this. Okay, so I gave this one three birds flying into the backdrop. oh Okay. I thought that this one was a lot of fun. It had some really memorable numbers, but I don't necessarily think it was the musical for me. That's fair.
00:02:11
Speaker
It's pretty old. make it It was done in, um what, 1954, according to my notes. So the material is definitely dated. Carrie, what did you think?
00:02:25
Speaker
Okay. Surprise, surprise. I actually love a musical. Okay. So, I mean, questionable means is like an understatement here. Okay.
00:02:40
Speaker
But I give it three panopis. Oh, oo which three, though? You'll have to find out. Oh, OK. I mean, honestly, even the short story. I actually found it. I mean, I'm not going to sit here and say that it was entertaining because I don't find the subject matter entertaining. Right. But it was like so crazy and so shocking and so like out of pocket that and unexpected that I was like, I just can't I can't believe this. This is insane. And it's like it's entertaining in that sense. Yes. And because of that, I will be probably rewatching this in the future. Oh, well, that's exciting for me. I will say this is a musical that I have watched
00:03:38
Speaker
i countless times in my life, countless times. I saw it for the first time ever, probably when I was like five or six, because my my mom's watched it. you know my My bio mom, my stepmom, and even some other mother figures in my life. like This was a go-to for a lot of the women in my life. And so I got exposed to this super young and I know all the songs and the dance moves. And so for for the that you know those reminiscing moments,
00:04:08
Speaker
You know, it it definitely hits for me, but like trying to take that out of the equation, this is pretty messed up. Oh, so messed up. So messed up.
00:04:22
Speaker
it's It's wild. It's wild. So I give this a solid two and a half because I love musicals. I do. And, and again, this one was done in the fifties. Um, and it got rave reviews at the time. It was very well received. There's no way, even if they updated this with like new music and, you know, better choreography, this, this is still,
00:04:52
Speaker
messed up. yeah The behavior is unhinged to ultimate proportions. Including the the book, that you know the short story is short. It's a very fast read. I literally read it in its entirety on one lunch break, on one 30-minute lunch break. It's a very fast read.
00:05:12
Speaker
it's messed up too. yeah But I will say it is based on that Roman tale from Plutarch, and I'm sure I'm pronouncing that wrong, but I'm pretty sure it's Plutarch. The Sabine women were abducted by the Romans and forced to to marry them.
00:05:35
Speaker
yeah And it's the same in in the, I will say the Saaben women get gaslit in the book. and I'm not sure it's gaslighting so much in the musical. I think it's more of a, it's not even a Stockholm syndrome. It's just a- It's like reverse psychology situation in the book. Yeah, it's the weirdest thing ever. The whole thing is messed up. So without further ado, full on spoilers.
00:06:07
Speaker
Yeah, if it honestly, it's a good laugh. It's a solid laugh. Can we all at least admit that? that like Oh, trust. I was cackling the entire time. Yeah. I mean, there were definitely moments where I was like, this is so cringe. This is terrible. This is really cringe. And then I was like cracking up at the high knee dance numbers that was going on in here. The 20 minute dance battle.
00:06:30
Speaker
Oh, yeah, the 20 minute dance battle between the old timey frontier men dance battle. But I can completely understand like if when something like this unhinged behavior, this type of story upsets you and then like that's you can't even like I don't want to say get past it, right? You can't get past it, but It sometimes that's going to affect your overall experience watching or reading the story. Absolutely. You're not going to care about any of that and you don't want to do go through with that. And I get that. Right. Absolutely. So if that's something that you're super sensitive to or even just a little bit sensitive to, this probably is not the movie or the book for you. Yeah, which is totally understandable. If you think you can make it through that, it's freaking hilarious. It's so cringe. It's one of those that you can't help but laugh. Yeah.
00:07:25
Speaker
My brother makes fun of us, my sisters and i and my my parents and all the time for singing these songs because he's like, you realize what that movie's about, right? yeah Like, yes, dude, we know. yeah So yeah, if you want to watch it for the laugh, it's out there in the public domain and super easy to stream online somewhere, I'm sure. And you should, or if you want.
00:07:49
Speaker
Maybe. I don't know. yeah yeah It's up to you. We're not forcing you. We're not forcing you. Yeah. We, unlike the men in this story, will not force you into anything. Exactly. Exactly. So let's move ahead with full. We start our, we set our scene in the mountains. The movie is set in Oregon. I don't think the story is, although it doesn't specifically state where they are in, in the story.
00:08:16
Speaker
It does mention like further east, you know, out here in the east. And so I don't think it's Oregon. But yeah in the movie it's set in Oregon, these are frontier men that are, have settled an area at the time. It was called like something, they didn't have a name for this valley. It is, currently it's the Pontope Valley. Cause that's the family that settled the area. Right. And they have a big.
00:08:46
Speaker
mountain settlement up there. it's mom in the In the book, it's mom, dad, a hired hired girl, and nine kids. No, wait, eight kids? In the book, it was not seven, was it? I don't remember. Hold on. It's so short, I can look this up. like It's the skinniest little story in the world. Okay, wasn't it? Was it seven? It was okay it was seven kids, but 10 people total because mom, dad, and the and the hired girl.
00:09:15
Speaker
the The book tells us kind of what happens to mom and dad. like Dad ends up dying because he felled a tree on himself. mom they I don't think they said how mom passed, but she passed.
00:09:30
Speaker
And then the hired lady did too. Now they, for the most part, this family kept to themselves. They came into town once a year to go to church and to get supplies when they needed to, but they didn't really talk to many people. They came and they left and that was that, uh, kind of same in the movie, but the movie starts after mom, dad, and the the hired girl have already passed. These boys are grown. They're men. They're all red headed.
00:09:55
Speaker
In the book, their names all start with an H. In the movie, they're ABC order names. Yeah. Which I thought was adorable. Yeah. um And they now that they've realized that you know they're up there on their own, no mom, dad, or hired girl, they decide Adam needs to go get himself a wife, Adam the oldest. Yeah. Because they can't take care of themselves. Exactly. They can't take care of themselves. Even in the book, I think it's hilarious that they like We get a little bit of an insight into the conversation of the brothers being like, we need us a woman up here because we can't figure out how to sweep. We can't figure out how to do our own laundry and make our own meals and these pancakes are greasy. like We need a woman. There must be some woman magic, you know?
00:10:41
Speaker
but No no it's not magic guys it's just being a grown-up. And they draw straws in the book too. Right they draw straws as to who's gonna who's gonna go to town and get bring back a wife. And of course it's the oldest one. Of course it's the oldest. Yep. Us old oldest siblings always get the shaft.
00:11:03
Speaker
but Adam heads on into town. And that's where our movie starts, is Adam's heading into town to find himself a wife. And of course he sings about it. Yeah, he's singing a song, which is not in the book. it's not There are no songs in the book. There yeah are no songs or dance numbers, sadly, because they were lit.
00:11:23
Speaker
ah
00:11:26
Speaker
so Adam shows up in town, he heads into the the grocery store or the the market or whatever it's called, and he's selling his pelts, trading for a new plow and some flour and a barrel of tobacco or whatever. i you know and Then at one point he says, you ain't got a wife back there, do you? Yeah. yeah
00:11:51
Speaker
And the shopkeeper is all like, well, there's not a lot of women around that aren't already spoken for. And the shopkeeper's wife is like, you can't talk like that. Our girls are, they're not going up in that mountain with you, you boys. Like, she's all up in arms. And he's like, calm down, lady. I'll treat her right. Like, I didn't really, like I knew that this part happened, but watching it again.
00:12:16
Speaker
I just I was laughing so hard because I couldn't remember how like just straight country bumpkin the whole situation is Anyways, he's like seven feet tall or she is he's very tall for some reason. I'm not gonna lie. He's handsome man Oh, yeah. Yeah, he was handsome. He's a handsome man and and so, you know, he leaves the shop and he kind of he's singing as he's walking down the street, you know, bless your beautiful hat. Oh, I've been singing that song for days. All day. When Karen mentioned it earlier, I've been singing it all day. I'm just running around. Yes, this musical gets stuck in your head and it's it nothing to do with the subject matter. It's every bit the songs. Yes.
00:13:01
Speaker
So he's walking down the street, kind of eyeing up all the girls that pass him by. And they're like, everybody's kind of like, the women are kind of scared of them, but like also intrigued. Like they're known as like these mountain men. Like in the book, it's like rumored that there's like, they're all like bears, like living up in the woods. They can transform into bears. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like because the town in the book, and this is the only quote in the book,
00:13:28
Speaker
in the story that I made a point to keep because I thought it was particularly good. The Pontepees were willing enough to let other folks alone. In fact, that was what they wanted. But because it was what they wanted, the town couldn't see why they wanted it. Towns get that way sometimes.
00:13:46
Speaker
It was like, yeah, ain't that the truth? Accurate. You know, they really did just want to leave everybody alone and be left alone. But the minute the town figured out they wanted to be left alone, they were like, they must be hiding something. No, no, they're just introverts. Yeah. So, so he's eyeing up all these girls. They're kind of being a little bit giggly, but kind of running away in a very like, you know, mysterious men comes to, handsome men comes to town sort of thing.
00:14:15
Speaker
And then he he catches sight of Millie, who is some sort of, I don't know, like in the book they explain that she's a hired girl for one of the, like the tavern or something. hu And in the movie, she works at the tavern But she's somehow like not a hired girl. She lives in this town by herself as a single woman, which we all know is not possible out in Frontier World. But anyways, that was just the case of it. And he was like, hey, how about you marry me? And she was like, why would I do that? And he's like, well, I'd love to court you if I could, but that's just not the world we're living in.
00:15:00
Speaker
you know, let's pretend I did all that already. he yeah know he's He says some sweet nothings and she's like, all right, I guess, got I got to do my chores first, which is really honestly something I would probably say.
00:15:13
Speaker
way He's also intrigued by her because she's feeding like she's like cooking and feeding like a ton of yeah people. and she's And that's what he's like kind of looking for as well. And they're like dishing out some sass at the tavern or whatever, and she's dishing it right back. So he's kind of like, ooh, she's spunky. So she's sassy, that's the line in the song. yeah he's He's as sassy as can be. Yeah. And he's not telling her that he has, you know, his siblings at home. So she, because she's not really from there, she has no idea. Everybody else in town knows that she's heading on up to, you know, um a mountain full of nothing but these bare men. Bare country. yeah And nobody warns her that like, you know, he's got six brothers at home, right? So she says yes, she marries him.
00:16:10
Speaker
They get on up in the in the cart and the wagon and they're heading on home and they're going through, that it's about 12 miles from town, he says, they're heading through the mountain pass. They pull over and she's talking about how excited she is to you know have a place to be where she can enjoy the quiet. Guess what comes next. Then she sings, and this is my favorite song. This is my favorite song. Another song. Yeah, because she starts out, she's telling him how excited she is to be alone and how it might could get lonely, but she could deal with being lonely.
00:16:40
Speaker
And then she sings the song and starts out, ding dong, ding-a-ling-dong. And I'm over here like, yeah, you ding dong. There's seven men up there. Also, whenever the songs would come on in the movie,
00:16:56
Speaker
It would never, you know, when you're like listening to or like watching a musical and like the music would like slowly come in and you're like, oh, a song is coming on. No, it would not happen. It was just like all of a sudden she is full volume singing or someone is full volume singing. It would scare me.
00:17:14
Speaker
Yep. It's a jump scare. Oh my God. Surprise, surprise. Yes. Except it's like, surprise, surprise. I'm like, oh my God. So here she is singing about how excited she is to be married and set up, you know, a home with her, with her husband, nice and alone and get settled. And he's not saying a word. I think that song is called One Man or Something. It's One Man to Love. and Yeah.
00:17:42
Speaker
He has said nothing to, he says nothing. So right away start out lies here, buddy. So red flag they get there, a couple of guys come out and he goes, this is my brother. This is my other brother. That's the other brother. And she goes, y'all live around here? No, we live here. And they say not around here.
00:18:06
Speaker
And she's just like, oh. And it's like boys doing dumb boy things. Oh my God. Yeah. They're fighting and wrestling around and she's like, you're going to break them up. And he's like, yeah, they'll figure it out. And she's just kind of like, okay. They're dirty. Yeah. There's piles, there's clothes everywhere and dirty dishes and knocked over things and everything's super dusty. And he goes to the kitchen. Yeah. And and he can just keeps saying, but now that you're here, now that you're here,
00:18:36
Speaker
you know, and she's like, yeah, I got it. So he he finally leaves and is like, you know, let us know when dinner's ready. I'm telling you. Oh hell no. If this were me in this moment, I'd have hitched those horses back up to that wagon and I'd have been gone. I'd have been like, nope. But it's like back then, like, what do you do?
00:19:04
Speaker
You leave. I'd have i have i to become a mountain bear woman and just lived on my own. In this movie, she had like her own like she had her own thing going on before. Yeah. So she could have left. She could have left. She could have gone back home, gone back to the preacher and been like, why didn't y'all motherfuckers warn me?
00:19:25
Speaker
That whole town said nothing to her about it. Anyways. I know. That's what I was so confused about. like No one brought it up. answered. All of this whole like family was so so many rumors about this family. Yup. No one was like, really? like What are you doing, girl? like Nope. Not a one. Nope. Nobody cared. But you know in true Millie fashion, she's like, you know what? This is the boat I'm in. Yep.
00:19:50
Speaker
you know she She pushes up her sleeves and she gets to work and she makes dinner for those idiots. And they all come in and start grabbing at stuff and she dumps the food on them and says, you're gonna act like pigs, you're gonna eat like pigs, which I also would have done that. h So then of course it's their wedding night and the brothers are all like, giving giving Adam the look because they know what's about to go down. Adam goes upstairs to the bedroom thinking he knows what's about to go down. and and There's Millie sitting in the rocking chair going, well, if you're going to treat me like a hired hand, hired hand gets their own bed.
00:20:33
Speaker
And he's just like, fine, all huffy and puffy and goes downstairs and the brothers are all like, hey. And he's like, she was thirsty and he gets the water and then he goes back in and then she's all like, what are you doing back in here? And he's all like, well, I guess I'm sleeping in the tree. Dramatic. Very dramatic. Drama queen. Let me tell you, let me tell you this man. Pepper tantrum at its finest. It was i like really a tree. You're going to sleep in the tree.
00:21:02
Speaker
like And then Millie comes to the window, and she's all like, I guess it's not real great if a married man is out on on a tree on his wedding night. I'm like, girl, you gave in so easily. Like, what? Let him sleep in that tree. Like, you didn't tell him he had to sleep in a tree. You just said not in my bed. And then he's the one who chose the tree. Like, mm-mm, that's not him. Yeah. Now, in the book,
00:21:31
Speaker
Millie's like, well, first of all, in the book, in the story, Millie knew about the brothers like before she married him, and she Millie's got her own agenda. She's like, well, now that we're married, you need to buy me some fabric so I can make me some nice clothes. like Before they even left town, she's like, Millie is very different in the book than in the movie. Millie in the book is the schemer. She's yeah like, I got a plan. She's a scammer. yup she's She's like, I got a plan. He walks into that you know saloon, tavern, whatever, and is like, you want to marry me? And she's like, OK.
00:22:06
Speaker
Like I see you got some pelts over there. You've made some money for yourself I know you've got a bajillion brothers up there in some land. So you want someone to cook and clean fine. I'm coming but You better give me some fabric. I need some new shoes. We got to fix up this place Like she's like I'll do it, but it's gonna cost you. Yeah, and and I use that I Was like, this is my girl but then later in the book. I was like you crazy. Yeah, no, she's Yeah She's a schemer. Yeah. She was a dreamer and then she was a schemer. That should have been a song. but So they, wedding night goes on. we We see that she's getting kind of settled in there and she's going to teach these, these men.
00:22:54
Speaker
how to have some manners, how to like, they're gonna wear clean clothes from now on, they're gonna stay clean shaven, they're gonna eat at the table like gentlemen, and then they all kind of- I thought this part was cute. It was. Whenever all of them- It's like a montage of- Yeah, they kind of start loving her, loving Millie, and just like,
00:23:18
Speaker
Learning manners kind of thing they ask her like how do we talk to a girl? And how do we know there's a dance number for that part exactly which was a quick step I will say Alona Mar and Alan's quick step on dancing with the stars where they went around behind the judges was like when when Millie and Gideon quick stepped behind the table on the brothers, I was like, oh, I've seen this before. Yeah. I feel like I know this dance. Yeah, I know this one. Yeah. So apparently they're like in the movie, I think it was like four of the actors or the brothers were actual professional dancers. Oh, they are. Yeah. Yeah. they And they had to be because honestly, some of these dance numbers like Oh, I know. I was thinking like, okay, so are these, are they doing like stunt double things here? And then I realized, I was like, no, these are the actual actors doing this stuff. So one of them was a gym or gymnast or something. And this is what I love about musicals.
00:24:25
Speaker
back in the 40s, 50s, 60s, is that you had these actors who were actors, singers, dancers. You had to be all three. You're not going to get cast if you did not know a quick step, if you did not know how to tap dance, if you didn't, you know, like, you had to do it all. and And so they're all incredibly talented people in this cast. I think Gideon was like an acrobat or something. Yeah, yeah. but And then one of the brothers was a professional baseball player.
00:24:54
Speaker
Yes. I didn't even find that out. That's awesome. They put him in the back so he didn't have to dance. That's fair. I mean, that and and legit, I didn't really read up on whether or not they dyed their hair because I didn't want to know. I want to live with the idea but they all redheads that they somehow found a whole bunch and not just red, because, you know, like red hair can vary in shade, but they all had very, very similar red hair. And I want to live thinking that they found seven actors that had that same red shade of hair. Okay.
00:25:28
Speaker
But yeah, I'm gonna live with that delusion, if you don't mind. Okay, we'll let it go. So now even in the book, in the story at this point, the brothers are really just enamored with Millie. Millie has come and made them feel like family and taking care of them, and they'll do anything for her at this point. And we definitely see that. Which is kind of in the book as well. Yeah. Just like a smidge. They just kind of say that the brothers... That they would do anything for her. Yeah, they kind of like mention it.
00:25:59
Speaker
And so I think they did a really good job of showing us that in in them in the musical in the a few of the dance numbers in particular where they like.
00:26:09
Speaker
They show her a lot of respect, right? like yeah they this She's the lady of the house. They don't want to disappoint her. They don't want to disappoint her. Even at one point, they go to town. And they're like, well, Gideon right away jumps it up. And he's like, i'm not you know I'll go with you so you don't have to carry all the bags. But then, of course, all the other brothers are all like, this is an excuse to go to town. And so they all jump in. And of course, they start a fight when we get there. Which leads to the how do we talk to women if we want to talk to women. Because one of them was up in the dam Wagon because she says you guys stay here. I'll be right back And then he likes one of them slaps one of the other brothers is like look girl I know I cracked up like oh my god. It was so friggin funny
00:26:56
Speaker
So anyways, they all get back home. They're doing the dance number about how to treat girls and how to go courting. Going courting. I'm going to sing through this whole episode, y'all. I love it. I love it. It's our musical episode, so just wait until I make you do more. It's going to happen. Okay. So they used to pray. I wonder if that one's based on a book.
00:27:18
Speaker
We they're they've learned how to go court now like they've learned all the the words to the song and the dances and now they're gonna go to a barn raisin and a picnic and Millie's got them all dressed up in color-coordinated rainbow shirts. Yeah The brightest shirts. The brightest color shirts. Now, when they get to the barn raisin, all the other men are wearing jackets and they're all like gray and, you know, black or brown. They're all definitely like dark earth tones. And here come the Pontepee brothers yeah in their they're like technicolor,
00:27:59
Speaker
Like, I don't know what was happening. Who made those shirts? They were double-breasted shirts. yeah Like, okay. So anyways, this is where we have the 20 minute dance battle.
00:28:12
Speaker
And when I say fighting over these girls that are there, that they all like kind of are like crushing on or something and they're just swapping partners with the girl and entire time for 20 minutes straight 20 minutes. Now, this is like OK, so like Frontier Times, there really were a lot more men out there than there were women. So you would have.
00:28:39
Speaker
four, or five, six, seven men for every girl. And so if you wanted to marry somebody, you were gonna have to show that you were worth marrying, right? So here are these girls and literally they're getting passed back and forth trying, like as all these men are trying to dance with them. yeah And it was kind of cute though. Some of those lifts were pretty iconic. Yeah, that there was one point there, I'm trying to describe it, but They had to, they like jumped over one another to get to the girls. That part was pretty cool. There were definitely moments and then I was like, okay, wrap it up, like wrap this up. Like when they're dancing on the boards and they're like just kicking their feet. Yeah, I was like, okay, you did too long. Like arm wrestling off. I was having fun. I was having fun. Now I'm bored. Wrap it up.
00:29:27
Speaker
so And of course, Millie is just sitting out on the sidelines, just glowing because she's so excited that like her boys are making their way. like Very, very funny. so youise High knees, like high knees knee to ears, high knees type of dancing. It was so it was wild. i just I can't even think of a way to describe it, but it's just high knees, man. Yeah.
00:29:53
Speaker
So then the the the dance battle is over. Clearly, the women folk are smitten with the pontepees at this point. They choose them at the end, don't they? They choose them at the end. They jump into their arms quite literally. jump Yeah. into their arms Literally do a little hop, skipping a jump into the arms. Right on into their arms. All those handsome redheads.
00:30:15
Speaker
Yep. So then they like, it's time to raise the barn now and they're going to have a competition to raise up the sides of the barn and the winning team, the team that gets their side up and finished fastest is going to win a calf. And Millie's all like, we could use that calf. And so Adam's like, you hear her boys, Millie wants a calf. And so they decided they're going to be a team and they're going to raise up one side of this barn. But all the other men folk in town are like,
00:30:44
Speaker
You can't have our girls. We're going to make you look like idiots. But here's the thing. Millie's done told these boys they cannot fight. They cannot fight. So for a while there, they just take it. like they're dropp Other guys are dropping hammers on them. They're you know knocking them with the boards as they go over. They're tripping them on purpose. And they're all just taking it. And Adam's over there. like You guys are a bunch of ninnies, fight back, don't take this. And they're all like, no, no, Millie said we're not allowed. Well, then one of the town folk guys goes after Adam and the other brothers are like, Adam wasn't part of this. And so, of course, they have a big old fight.
00:31:23
Speaker
it's It's a dance fight. It's super well choreographed. yeah It's a dance fight. I mean, it's a fight. It's not a dance battle. It's a fight dance. yeah it was I don't even know how to describe it. Choreographed fight. That's exactly what it is. They had some dancing with their fighting. had Yeah, with like a good sprinkle of like...
00:31:41
Speaker
you know interpretive dance. Yeah. All of this is not in the book. I mean, the book is like, this is a short story. So this whole section is not... There's no barn raisin. There's no picnic. There's yeah there's none of that. Yeah. So, of course, the barn falls down and Millie's sitting there with tears streaming down her face. And then we cut to them all having been at home and she's nursing them all you know all their cuts and bruises and stuff and sending them up to bed.
00:32:10
Speaker
And they're all kind of like, we're sorry, Millie. And she's like, I know, it's not your fault. We're sorry, Millie. It was just ridiculous. And then Gideon, who's the youngest? Yeah, he's the youngest. He's all, Millie, I feel funny in my tummy. Could it be love? And she's like, it could be. Ew. Yeah. And then, of course, he goes out and sits with Big Brother. And Big Brother's all like, it could be love, but all girls are pretty much the same. And of course Millie overhears him and she's just sad about it. Adam sucks. He sucks. He really, the big brother sucks. He's so handsome, but so awful at the same time. Yeah. But if you wanted to sing to me, I'd probably let him never know why. I know, I hate him for that. Yeah. I hate him for that. Pretty much. Pretty much. So now we like, we have like a montage of them like,
00:33:08
Speaker
getting ready for the winter. And then the winters come, there's snow on the ground. And the six brothers are singing their I'm Alone, some pole cat song with their interpretive axe dancing. yeah it It is, my stepmom still sings that song, like every winter, I'm alone. And then we all go, ooh. And we swing whatever we happen to be holding in our hands at the time. It was definitely interpretive axe dance.
00:33:39
Speaker
so dramatic. It's so dramatic. It's so dramatic. And they're like sawing their logs to the time of the music and chopping the wood. And they're very sad. Yeah. They're very lonesome. Yeah, because they're very lonesome their hearts just ache for the woman they saw for five seconds and did a dance battle with. It was Yeah, they're they're just heartbroken. And then, so one of the brothers, Benjamin, tells Millie he's going to leave tells millly he's goingnna leave because he can't he can't stand it out here anymore. He's going to go on. And Millie runs off to Adam saying, you can't let them you can't let them go because if one goes and they all go, and I have these dreams of everybody having their own little farmstead around here so we can all have dozens of cousins running around all the time or whatever. and it was
00:34:27
Speaker
And she's like, they're grieving their girls, Adam. They're grieving their girls. Which I thought was a weird turn of phrase for people who met these girls one time at a barn raisin. Mm-hmm. Well, whatever. So then Adam goes to talk to them to try and convince them to stay and that, you know, don't be sad. The spring's coming. We'll go down to town, whatever. And instead, this idiot walks into the barn and is like,
00:34:53
Speaker
let's kidnap those girls." Of course, he he does it in song, but he talks about this the the sobbing women, but he pronounces it sobbing. He's like, those sobbing, sobbing women, and he's all like, we got to go get them. Oh, and I have those lyrics pulled up too. well and and At first, the brothers are just kind of like, what?
00:35:16
Speaker
Then he's like, if you ain't better than Romans, then you ain't a brother of mine, go get your girl. It literally says, so don't forget that when you're taking a bride, sobbing fit to be tied from that riotous ride. It's just like literally this whole- It's odd and fit to be tied. Yeah. Literally, I was honestly having a good time. It's an upbeat song. Then I heard the song and I was like,
00:35:45
Speaker
I'm friggin shook right now. I'm literally sick. It's a about being about kidnapping. Okay, so can we? go to the short story at this point right now? Yes. Because I really need to talk about this. In the short story, this is not Adam's idea. This is Millie's idea. Okay. Also, in the short story, they attempt to go to town to meet women in Miriam, and it's like unsuccessful. Yes. They're not in love with anyone. they're not like Their hearts aren't aching over anybody in the short story. No. They're just any girl will do.
00:36:22
Speaker
Yeah. And basically what happens is Millie becomes pregnant and Adam, you know, in the movie, we know Adam, but his name is different in the hob. Harry or something like that. Yeah. He actually um Harry. Yeah, Harry. He realizes that, like,
00:36:43
Speaker
Also, Millie is kind of like struggling, also keeping the place together. And now she's pregnant and they need more people there to help her. And Millie is the one that comes forward with this idea. Yeah. And instead of Millie being like, we could hire a girl, like your parents did before, she's like, I'm going to need you guys to go kidnap some women.
00:37:06
Speaker
Yeah, and she brings that story forward. Yeah, and she's just like the sobbing women in roman in the Romans. like they They married the girls before they even asked. They just did it, and that way they couldn't leave. So that's what you're gonna need to do. And convinces them to get a preacher or a, a shoot, I don't know, get somebody that that can marry him. And so go kidnap these girls and a preacher and bring them up here.
00:37:36
Speaker
yeah In the movie, Adam does admit that he gets the idea from Millie's book. From Millie's book, right? yeah Because Millie has the one book with the Roman tales in it. And she even, at like later on, once the girls are up there, she's reading she's reading from that book to them, from that story. yeah But anyways, so in the movie, Adam's like, let's go down and get these girls. In the book, Millie's like, go get you some women.
00:38:07
Speaker
And they do. So the the guy, the boys, the brothers all go to town in the movie. They're they're purposely being super quiet. They're sneaking into town. They're going to connect these girls as quiet as can be. They get them into the wagon. They haul them up through the pass. At this point, the townsfolk have noticed the girls are missing, so they're chasing them.
00:38:29
Speaker
but they go through this this pass, this mountain pass, real quiet like and as soon as they get to the other side, they let the girls start screaming and they shoot off all their guns, make a ton of noise and it creates an avalanche. So now the pass is impassable until all that snow melts in the spring and these women are stuck up there. Now in the book, they go to some sort of picnic or whatever and then Millie like somehow contrives for the guys to still take their weapons in, even though it's a no weapons kind of party. And then she's like, all right, guys, do it. And they like draw guns on everybody and get the girls out and then like lock the other people up in the building so they can't get, they can't chase them and they they don't get out until the next day kind of thing. But a still avalanche killed the past. Nobody can come up here kind of thing. And then once they get to the house in the story,
00:39:26
Speaker
Millie's like, I'm sorry about this, girls. This is not okay. And those men are going to have to sleep in the bar. And all the while, she's actually scheming. Yeah, she's saying it on purpose to like reverse psychology. Yeah, she's trying to be like, she's gaslighting them. I'm like, I'm on your side. Yeah. so But in the story, or in the movie, they get back to the house and for real, Millie's like with a What the fuck did you just do? Yeah, she's pissed. She's pissed. Because she actually knows these girls, and she's very close with them, very good friends with them, and actually helped introduce them yeah to the boys. She's feeling very responsible for this. Yes, yeah. And she's like, no one's allowed in this house with these girls. Yep, so she kicks all the boys out to the barn, including Adam. Yeah.
00:40:14
Speaker
Adam at this point is pissed thinking that like, how dare you be mad at me. She tells Adam off, like lectures him and it's like, this is not okay. And then he throws a little temper tantrum. He really does. And he's like, fine. If you, like, you couldn't just say thank you. And she's like, why wouldn't that, what? And so he runs off to the trap and cabin where like they catch furs and stuff. They do set traps in the wintertime.
00:40:41
Speaker
and he's he goes up there all by himself, and he's gonna stay up there for the winter, and he'll come back. For months. For months and months. Well, he didn't know Millie was pregnant. who So he's up there. Meanwhile, the girls are like trying to sneak peeks of the boys out the window and the boys are making excuses to come inside to get a blanket or to get some tincture because they're not feeling good or some liniment for their sore muscles or whatever. So they're making excuses to come in and the girls are making excuses to peek out.
00:41:16
Speaker
Millie sees what's going on because she's not stupid, but she's like, boy, don't don't another one of you come in here and girls get away from the windows. so In the movie, she's really just like, this is not okay and I'm not letting this happen. In the book, Millie's over here like, let's go clean out the attic. oh What's this wedding dress? Then like the girls are all like, I want to try it on. and Then they start dreaming about like what it's like to get married and Millie's over here like oh no don't do that like but actually do it right she's she's still she's still scheming in the book now Millie in the movie is pregnant enough at this point that she's just kind of giving up and the girls that are upstairs singing about
00:42:05
Speaker
Who they're gonna marry and who who do you think was sleeping in this bed like oh girl Dorcas one of the girls names is Dorcas Dorcas scale So, um, so yeah the girls are you know dreaming about what it would be like to be with the boys and Millie's just like whatever I don't care anymore. Mm-hmm And of course, yeah they're going to sing about it. This is when they sing. They say, when you marry in June, you're a bride. I did not marry in June. I was not a bride all my life. This is the one song in the movie I hate more than any other song, because I'm like, no. I was not a bride all my life. I was not a bride all my life. I don't want to be a bride all my life. That sounds miserable. That really does.
00:42:53
Speaker
especially when you're talking about these frontier brides. like I ain't going to get trapped with your six brothers. Nope. Just doing like the jazz square all the time. No thanks. Yeah. Uh-uh. Hard pass.
00:43:05
Speaker
So they sing their song about the boys and it turns into a like passage of time and we see the snow starts to thaw and then it starts to be spring. And then Millie has the baby, Gideon goes up to the the cabin. Adam is still gone. Adam is still gone. He was gone for a really freaking long time. He really was. So Gideon goes up there and is like, dude, your daughter was born. And he's like, I don't believe it. I'll come back when the pass is open.
00:43:34
Speaker
and Gideon like grows a pair and is like, listen, I know you can whoop me, but if I didn't tell you exactly how I was feeling right now, I wouldn't be any kind of brother, and I wouldn't be any kind of man. You're being an idiot, and you need to go take care of your wife, and pops him in the face, and Adam is just like, get on your horse and get out of here, and like throws him up on the horse, and sends him on his way, and stays at the f freaking cabin. Well,
00:44:03
Speaker
We go back to to the house where everybody's living. And now at this point, even though the guys are clearly still sleeping in the barn and the girls are clearly still sleeping in the house, they've definitely paired off. And they're all out doing chores together, feeding the chickens and taking care of the goats and whatever. And then Adam shows up.
00:44:25
Speaker
And everybody's like, what's he doing here? And he's like, I told you I'd come back when the past was cleared. Shut up, Adam. And now they're all in a panic because the past is clear. And that means their families are gonna come get them. But the girls are in love with the boys, which is ridiculous. But then Adam takes a moment to tell.
00:44:44
Speaker
Millie, I was thinking about what I would do if someone came and took this baby, the baby that he's just now met for the first time. Mm-hmm. And he's like, and and I'd have been right mad, so I think you might have been right about us taking those girls. And then they kiss and make up. They kiss and make up. I just, I don't... Hell now no. No. Mm-mm. You missed the whole pregnancy?
00:45:10
Speaker
you you You left me here with literally 12 other mouths to feed by myself. yeah It was all your fault. yeah And now I have this baby and you wanna just show up and kiss and make up? That's all you gotta say. Okay, Adam. I was so mad. And she was fine with it. She was like, okay. So anyways, now the townsfolk are coming to get their girls back and they're like sneaking up the mountain.
00:45:37
Speaker
And the girls are like, we ain't going with them. So they like run off and try to hide because they want to stay up on the mountain with the with the brothers at this point. And the the boys are like, wait, no, we got to take you back to your families. This is the only way we're going to be able to like save face and actually do this the right way. And the girls aren't hearing none of it. And of course, they start screaming and crying as they're getting found and putting the wagon to take back home.
00:46:07
Speaker
And the townsfolk hear the screaming and crying and they think something's going wrong. They think these girls are being tortured, which is obviously not the case. Well, in the in the story, in the book, Millie just lets them walk right in. The girls are in the house still.
00:46:24
Speaker
theyre doing chores or cross stitch and churning butter and you know. They're like humming. They're like humming and like the gate is wide open, the garden's wide open and the townsfolk just walk right up and they're already kind of off kilter because they thought they were gonna have to fight their way in and here's Billy like come on in guys you're staying for dinner right preacher you're gonna bless my new baby aren't you?
00:46:47
Speaker
You know, because again, she's still playing mind games. And they're like, what about our babies? What about our girls? And Millie's like, well, don't you hear them? They're right here. They're happy. there They're doing fine. they're They're thrilled to be here. And the townsfolk were like, oh, all right, I guess. And that's that. They get married and all the brothers and townsfolk girls get married and they live happily ever after. The end. Millie's scheming worked.
00:47:16
Speaker
in the movie, so like all the townsfolk are are like running up and and they're hearing the girls screaming, and the girls are just screaming because they don't want to go home, but then suddenly the preacher hears a baby cry, and he says girls Now we're all fathers here. Don't be afraid to tell us the truth. Whose baby is that? And all the girls kind of look at each other sideways and they go at all of all six of them. Mine. Yeah. And of course the then there's shotgun weddings because they they all have to get married now, I guess, because there's a baby involved. And the movie ends. I don't. The end. That was it. The end. Shotgun wedding, the end.
00:48:07
Speaker
Mm hmm. It just. What? Yeah. The way they all look up to at the at the guys like mine. Yeah. OK. It was so creepy. It really was creepy. I like the book ending better, but I did too, honestly, because like, don't get me wrong, it's still gas lady and manipulation and... Oh, 100%, yeah. But like these girls like were clearly comfortable and happy and well-fed and safe and you know what I mean. So like I really feel like in that moment, if they had wanted to go home, Millie wouldn't have stopped them. You know what I mean? Yeah. And also, all the boys wanted them to go home.
00:49:01
Speaker
Yes, because they were they were like, no, you're supposed to go home because that's what you originally wanted. And they started to like realize that it was a bad thing that they did. Right. And that if they did fight to keep those girls, they were going to end up fighting the girls, brothers and dads and yeah uncles and friends, you know, like you don't win when you shoot somebody's dad. Yeah. So that was.
00:49:24
Speaker
Yeah, that was it. That was seven brides for seven brothers or the sobbing women or the sobbing women. I think that's, there's a ton, there was actually a television show based on the musical. It didn't do too well. There were, the musical was based on a stage play based on the book. So there are other adaptations out there of the same story.
00:49:50
Speaker
And people love it. People love this. And I'm like from the mask of childhood. I loved this musical because I loved the music and I loved the dancing.
00:50:05
Speaker
But when I actually know the story, it's like, ooh. Yeah. It's just icky. The story is bad. The story is bad. The story is cringe and really, just really, really bad. It's just kidnapping. It's just. Yeah. And it's not even Stockholm Syndrome because Stockholm Syndrome is when the kidnapped victims start to see and understand the their captors, like they they the side of their captors, the ideology of their captors. This was literally kidnapping and forcing women to marry you, which is a little different. i mean So yeah, but that does lead us to the question of the episode. I have two, whether you like it or not. The first one is if you are trapped,
00:50:55
Speaker
in a mountain cabin, and there are other people around. You can go outside between the barn and the cabin. you know It's not like you can't get out, out, but you can't go back to town, and there's no communication, no cell phones, no internet. For four months, do you think you could make it, or would you go stir crazy? Hmm, hmm.
00:51:18
Speaker
Is there food? There's plenty of food. There's tons of food. youre All your needs are met. You have plenty of food, plenty of water, plenty of toilet paper, you're warm, plenty of firewood, whatever. Who's like, do I have my cats? That's the second question. Are my cats OK? Yes. And you're not necessarily alone. Like, you know. I don't care about that. Is there food? Are my cats OK? And are there books? Yeah, plenty of books. yeah Done. Done.
00:51:45
Speaker
done Are you kidding me? Honestly, to me, that sounds amazing. I would love that. Like, give me a winter. And I grew up like in northern Michigan where you couldn't do outdoor activities for a huge chunk of the year unless you were going to ski or snowshoe. You know, where we were stuck inside playing board games back before there was internet in the house, back before we could get cable out there. You know what I mean? And yes, towards the end of the winter, you're a little stir crazy, but like also
00:52:16
Speaker
you get left alone. Wouldn't that be amazing? Isn't that like just the quiet and the snow? I love snow. So yeah, no, I think that would be amazing. Yeah, I would probably enjoy that. And then my next question of this episode is, which fictional character do you wish would kidnap you?
00:52:41
Speaker
and take you away from all the year your hard work and your horrible job and all the men in town making your life miserable and take you up to their beautiful winter cabin.
00:52:55
Speaker
It sounds really familiar. I was gonna say, this kind of sounds like someone I know. I mean... And he's from the night court. I'm just kidding. I was gonna say, I'm pretty sure we've seen this in many stories. Um, I don't want to be kidnapped by anyone. Okay, so to be fair, Millie was not kidnapped. Millie went voluntarily. So let's say you are not technically kidnapped. You have the option to leave. It's just...
00:53:27
Speaker
It's just they come across to me and they're like, do you still want to work at your current job or do you want to come away with me? Because honestly, I feel like you wouldn't take much at this point. and That's the case. Like they're not just snatching me off the street. Yeah. Yeah.
00:53:42
Speaker
Okay. If they're not snatching me off the street, because if you're snatching me off the street, no, absolutely not. who Like we're going to fight. Carrie's a fighter. Yeah. I'm no ride or die. Like I literally, I'll be asking you a million questions. Where are we going? What are we doing? No. Who are you? Who are you? What are we having for dinner? Like are there snacks? I'm hungry.
00:54:05
Speaker
me Okay, but if you were like giving me the option like do you want to stay here? Do you want to go away to my winter cabin with me? I'm gonna pick and we all know who I'm gonna pick. It's gonna be Roman Whitethorn.
00:54:20
Speaker
from Throne of Glass and we all know it. And he's gonna come in like a hawk and he's gonna immediately be a full blown fey man. He's like, guess what, Carrie? I got a winter cabin out here for us, let's go. I'll be like, peace, let's go. I gotta start phrasing these questions better and just like like instantly blocking out any Sarah J. Mask characters. That's all of Carrie's answers. I love it.
00:54:49
Speaker
I mean, I'm over here thinking Hondath a lot or so. Hello. Hello. Exactly. And he can fly you out. Exactly. He could fly me out. Exactly. And he's gorgeous. What you got, Lindsay? She's like, no. I don't think I have anything.
00:55:08
Speaker
But honestly, if somebody was like, I will take you away from your job right now, you'll never have to work another day in your life. i I'd go with just about anybody at that point. Captain Hook, I'm i'm gone. Like, ah you know. I'm trying to think, you know, romancey and the only romance books I've read recently are going to be Akatar, so. Fair. Give me a understand. She's like, Davy Jones, let's go. Pretty much. Well, get me out of here. I don't care. I don't have to work anymore. could just full time? Like where's the rub Jack Sparrow? Oh, I don't like the ocean. I can't do that. I mean, island somewhere be all right. You know, I'm with Davey Jones. I'm seasick.
00:55:58
Speaker
They really would send you back. you well
00:56:03
Speaker
she You'd come back with just a note that says, you know, no thanks. Return return to sender. yes Oh, Lord. So, well, I guess on that note. Yes, on that note. On on that note.
00:56:22
Speaker
Just a reminder, we are taking January off this year. So only one more episode after this until our season break. Don't forget to join us on our next episode of John Grisham's Skipping Christmas and the movie Christmas with the Cranks. We're very excited to share that with you for our Christmas episode. Don't forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Apple Podcasts, Spotify,
00:56:52
Speaker
Like, share, subscribe. The more followers we have, the more episodes we can do, because maybe one day we won't need a man to kidnap us and take us away from our jobs, and we can just put it as full time. So, having said that, thank you so much for joining us, and we can't wait to see you on the next chapter of Based on a Book. Bye!