Sarah Jones

Professor Clauss

Honors 211B

13 March 2020

Hippolytus

This film, based on the myth of Hippolytus and play of the same name by Euripides,

takes place in the town of Troezen, Greece and is set in antiquity. The first scene opens with

various shots of the nature surrounding the town. There is a slight breeze seen rustling the leaves

of trees and the sun is shining on a beautiful day. Peaceful music plays in the background

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6UazdAlqhs). Next, various shots of the townsfolk going

about their average day are shown including people buying and selling in the markets, kids

playing tag in a nearby field, and then a beautiful woman sitting on the edge of a fountain among

the shops. The woman is Phaedra, wife of Theseus, and she happily watches the people go about

their day and sits surrounded by her attendants; these attendants are all young women who look

just as content as she is. The peaceful music slowly quiets down and a child’s cry is heard

offscreen. Phaedra turns to see a distressed child crying in the crowd of market goers. Phaedra

gets up to walk to him, but one of her attendants warns her not to go for it could be dangerous.

Phaedra smiles, tells her not to worry, and continues on. As she leaves, another attendant

comforts the worried one by saying that Phaedra is the light of the town and nobody would hurt

her. Now focused on Phaedra, she can be seen picking up the child and promising it that she will

find its mother. Before going into the market, she grabs a clump of grapes from a basket one of

her attendants had brought and hands them to the child, who takes them happily. While

wandering through the markets, she smiles at everyone she makes eye contact with, and they
smile back, recognizing her. Finally she finds the mother, who is frantically searching for her lost

boy. The mother is extremely grateful and insists on giving Phaedra some type of reward, but she

refuses and explains how she is just happy the child is safe again. The mother and child exit and

Phaedra looks around the shops and stands and buys a few trinkets, flowers, and a cake, noting

how it will be perfect. The shot then fades out to the next scene.

Scene 2. It fades into a shot of Phaedra’s home in Troezen then to her standing with a

woman looking over the cake she just bought. The woman, one of her attendants and a cook,

helps Phaedra cut the cake into the shape of a deer. Once finished, Phaedra thanks her and looks

quite pleased, noting how it will be perfect for Hippolytus and how she hopes he will like it.

Immediately after, two teenage boys, Phaedra’s sons, enter and ask how the women are doing

and if they need anything before they head out for the day. They say no, but Phaedra calls them

over to give them the trinkets she bought earlier at the markets. The sons thank their mother and

exit. Hippolytus enters next, rushing through the room to the back door where a man with a bow

is visibly waiting. Phaedra calls him over, and he decides to comply but notes how he has to

leave in a moment. She hands him the cake and tells him he can use it as an offering to Artemis

as she knows how he loves to bring her items for worship. He exclaims that it will be a great

offering, takes it, and leaves without any thanks to her. Once he leaves, Phaedra looks happy but

concerned, and her attendant comforts her by saying that it was a great gift and she is sure

Hippolytus is grateful, even if he doesn’t show it. Phaedra thanks the attendant once again and

exits.

Scene 3. The camera pans over a peaceful scene in the woods that is interrupted after a

moment by a deer sprinting into the shot as intense chase music begins

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ODbE6OY0s8 ). Hippolytus and his friend from earlier

are seen chasing after the deer, shooting arrows at it until one finally lands in its side. The two

men start whooping and cheering and approach the deer slowly as the music fades away.

Hippolytus leans over the deer and slits its throat, thanking Artemis for the great hunt while

doing so. Throwing the deer over his shoulder, his friend notes that they should go make their

offerings now. They are seen approaching a temple for the gods, and they both make their

offerings and praise the statue of Artemis first, and the cake Phaedra gave Hippolytus is seen.

The friend goes to finish his praises with Aphrodite, but Hippolytus does not join. He insists that

Hippolytus join him, explaining that as mortals they are responsible for giving thanks to all of

the gods, for mortals’ lives are subject to the fates the gods choose for them. Hippolytus still

refuses and denounces Aphrodite as a goddess because of what she stands for, ranting about the

evils of lust and how mortals are better off without the distractions and evils that sex and love

bring and how he wishes men could procreate without them. He compares the goddess to

Artemis, praising Artemis once more for chastity and values which far surpass the morals of

Aphrodite. His friend tells him how much he respects Hippolytus’s choice to be chaste and all

that he stands for because he believes it is important to make your own decisions and have your

own priorities and values; however, one must be grateful for all facets of life, including the

fertility Aphrodite brings, especially considering they are both the result of it. Hippolytus still

stubbornly disagrees and shouts how lust is what led to the rape of his mother, resulting in his

bastard title, and that he will only devote himself to the right cause and the right gods. His friend

concedes, and they leave to go home through the woods. As they exit, the camera pans back to

the statue of Aphrodite, and then a crack forms in her head.

Scene 4. Hippolytus and his friend are still walking through the woods when it starts to

rain. They agree to get home quickly by taking a shortcut through some brush. As they are
running, we see from Hippolytus’s perspective as a bush in the distance glows and grows roses.

We see his face for a moment, which is confused, but he does not slow his pace and runs through

the bush anyway. His friend also runs through the bush and gets out of the brush unscathed.

Hippolytus falls, however, as his leg was cut up by the thorns. His friend helps him up and states

that he has a bad feeling in his stomach all of a sudden. The camera remains stationary at ground

level with their calves in view. The men run away, and a drop of blood from Hippolytus’s leg

falls into a puddle on the ground and turns it red as it diffuses.

Scene 5. Phaedra is seen standing in a doorway looking out at the rain. Her expression

turns from content to one that suggests pain. She turns to her nurse, who is standing only a few

feet inside, and says she is not feeling well and needs to go to her room.

Scene 6. The nurse bursts loudly into an open room, pushing the curtains in the doorway

away aggressively as she enters. We see her approach Demophon and Acamas, Phaedra and

Theseus’s sons, who were sitting. Both stand quickly and direct their attention to the nurse as she

enters, worry on their faces. The nurse tells them that she does not know the cause of their

mother’s illness as she cannot find anything physically ailing her. Rather, she thinks that rather

than losing her appetite from illness that Phaedra is intentionally starving herself. The boys look

shocked, and the nurse continues by saying that she promises she will do everything in her power

to help Phaedra for she has cared for her like family and will work day and night until she is

better. The nurse then runs back out with purpose, presumably back to Phaedra’s side. The sons

then begin to discuss what to do next, and Demophon suggests sending a letter to their father,

who is away on a trip, about his wife’s condition. Acamas counters and says they should at least

wait until they know exactly what the reason behind her illness is before they bring unnecessary

worry to their father. Right as they’re finishing this conversation, Hippolytus casually enters
eating an apple and asks what they’re talking about. They inform him of the situation, and

Hippolytus tells them he is sorry about their mother, noting how she is a strong woman and will

recover; he does not seem too distraught about the information, though. As Hippolytus is

leaving, Acamas asks why his leg is bound in bandages, and Hippolytus tells him of how he was

pricked by thorns a few days earlier, but for some reason the wounds keep bleeding and have not

started to heal. He then exits and the scene fades.

Scene 7. A shot of a dark room with curtains in a window billowing fades in and only the

sound of the wind can be heard. The shot switches to the bed in the same room where a very

gaunt looking Phaedra is laying in bed, staring at nothing in the distance. A few of her attendants

are sitting on the edge of her bed or standing nearby, some holding platters of food and drink that

are untouched, and all with worried expressions. The nurse enters, but Phaedra does not react,

even as she approaches the side of the bed and kneels, her face right in front of Phaedra’s. She

asks her to please eat something as she looks terribly frail and might kill herself if she keeps this

up. Phaedra does not react, and the nurse asks again, this time with a bit of anger and intensity,

raising her voice and walking away from the bed. Phaedra still does not respond or even look in

her direction, and the nurse returns to the side of the bed, leaning in very close to Phaedra before

whispering with extreme emotion how worried she is, begging her to eat for both of their sakes.

Finally Phaedra looks at her and just says that she cannot. The nurse asks if she can at least tell

her why she is doing this-- what is paining her; she desperately wants to help. Phaedra says that

she will not burden anyone with the knowledge of her ailment, going on further to exclaim that

her mere existence has now become an abomination, and how this will put an end to all of her

pain and prevent the pain of others as well. The nurse’s eyes begin to well with tears, and she

puts her head down on the bed, her voice muffled through the sheets as she just repeats the
phrase, “please.” After a bit of this, the nurse rises again and calmly, at a normal volume, insists

that Phaedra tell her what is wrong. Phaedra only gives vague answers about her desire to leave

this earth for she is cursed. The nurse grows impatient and starts rapidly giving examples of what

she could feel such guilt for, stating assault, murder, and adultery as a few. Phaedra says no to all

of these, then explains how even speaking of her guilt will bring shame to herself and her family.

The nurse, now fully crying, tries to explain that her family will still love her no matter what and

that even Hippolytus, who is a son not born from her, will understand. At the mention of

Hippolytus, Phaedra visibly tenses up and looks away, allowing the nurse to realize that he must

be involved in her guilt. After more questioning, Phaedra finally breaks down and admits that

she has been overtaken by an extreme desire for Hippolytus and in the most shameful way; it

happened all of a sudden, and it must be a curse. She goes on to say how she can not live with

this pain or the shame that this could bring, and simply dying is the best option. The nurse runs

out of the room in shock and whispers in the ear of an attendant at the door. We see this

attendant whisper to another, and eventually we see shots of people all over town whispering to

one another, sharing Phaedra’s secret with one another. During this montage,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCCyoocDxBA plays. After this compilation, the music

stops, and a man is seen asking a woman if she has heard the news that Hippolytus and Phaedra

are sleeping together. The woman says yes and exclaims how disgusting and shameful the whole

situation is, and on top of that they betrayed the king Theseus. The shot quickly jumps back to a

close up of Phaedra’s face with her eyes wide with concern, and it becomes known to the

audience that the montage and evolution of the news was just a hypothetical that Phaedra feared

would come true. She explains to the nurse and attendants how she has always loved her family

and still loves Hippolytus as a son. He is already a bastard with no mother and rejects his own
identity because of the lust that made him. Maternal love is all she has wanted to give him, and

this news would only bring him more pain. The nurse’s face turns from shock to pity, and she

promises not to tell anyone and to do whatever it takes to fix this. The other attendants all agree

and nod in unison when the nurse tells them that nobody shall ever speak of this. They all exit

except for the nurse and Phaedra.

The nurse sits beside Phaedra once more and begins a long speech about what to do in

this situation and how she views it as we see her face in a close up. She starts by making a point

about how although Phaedra is overtaken by love that does not mean it is innately evil. She

should find an outlet for this love because love is everywhere; she must turn this love into a new

form and she will be soothed. So rather than rid herself of it, change it. The nurse then explains

how she loves Phaedra like family with her entire heart, but it is not her ruin. Love, lust, and sex

are not evil like Hippolytus claims. Love is necessary, and Phaedra must not give up because of

it or she will miss out on so many other forms of it. Love can, in fact, be a curse like it is to her at

the moment, and it can bring about tragedy, but without love there is no living. To love is to be

human. We may be victims to love at time, and it is a risk, but it is a risk worth taking. She

continues by saying that she knows Phaedra did not get to make the choice to love in this way

and it became her fate, but it is what you do in response that determines your final fate; our lives

are driven by both the situations we are given-- our fates-- and the decisions we make. So, she

may be fated to love Hippolytus, but she can use her love that she still has for others to live and

overcome this. After all of this, Phaedra, crying, tells the nurse she loves her but this is all too

much of a burden and that everyone she loves will be better off if she just dies. The nurse walks

towards the camera, situated in the exit of the room, when she then stops. She takes one last look

at Phaedra and states, out of earshot, that if Phaedra cannot overcome this herself, then she will
use the love she has for her to save her. She will take the risk that is love even though she knows

it will lead to her own demise.

Scene 8. A similar montage from before of a rumor spreading is seen, but this time it

ends with the revealed rumor being that Hippolytus raped Phaedra. The people curse Hippolytus

and express their sadness for the rest of the family.

Scene 9. At a port a boat is docking, and Demophon and Acamas stand quietly on the

dock. Theseus gets off the boat and happily greets his sons, but they do not hug him back or

respond. Theseus asks what is wrong and they just stare at him until he grows seriously

concerned. He asks again.

Scene 10. The cuts to Theseus crying over Phaedra’s bead, her lifeless body covered in a

sheet. She succeeded in starving herself to death. While Theseus cries, the sons stand to the side

sniffling as well, but it is obvious they have had some time to process the death.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSWIfX_MNCY plays quietly in the background. After

moments of sobbing, Theseus screams while asking what happened over and over, turning to his

sons. The sons look at one another then wait a moment as the camera zooms in just to their lips

as they say, “Hippolytus” in unison.

Scene 11. Hippolytus is sitting in a field with a few other hunters and his friend eating

some game meat over a fire. Hippolytus mentions how he wonders if his father is home yet, but

he has been on this hunting trip for awhile and will be for a few more days, so he can only

wonder. He then leaves the group to go urinate and upon entering the woods sees a figure in the

distance. He approaches it, confused, then sees it’s the silhouette of his father and grows

relieved, even greeting him, excitedly saying how he was just talking about him. Theseus only

stands there, staring with utmost intensity. After a moment he asks his son to join him by the
water for a moment to talk, and Hippolytus agrees. Upon coming to the water,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPCLFtxpadE plays while Hippolytus turns to his father and

asks why they are there. Theseus looks at him in the eyes and pushes him into the water without

a word. When hippolytus hits the water, it becomes aggressive and waves start to consume him

as he is pulled farther and farther away from the shore. Clouds cover the area and a storm

quickly forms while Hippolytus fights to stay afloat, asking for help from his father. But Theseus

only stands there and watches. Theseus turns his head towards the water in the distance and says

“Poseidon, father, it's time.” A bull comes from the sea and impales Hippolytus moments after.

As Hippolytus falls under the water, Theseus breaks his intense stare and looks worried; he

jumps into the water and pulls a bloodied Hippolytus out onto the shore, all of a sudden taking

on the role of a concerned father. Hippolytus, visibly dying, asks his father why. Theseus

responds it was punishment for what he did to his wife, but he couldn’t go through with watching

the son he loves die. Hippolytus looks confused and asks what he is talking about. Theseus tells

of the rape. Hippolytus says he rejects sex and would never hurt Phaedra-- he has no idea what

he is talking about. Theseus, very emotional and confused, calls to the gods to give him guidance

and insight; he regrets this curse and ever bringing death to his son. Hippolytus looks at his

father and says it is okay and that he forgives him. Just as hippolytus dies in his father’s arms, a

cloaked woman comes from the woods towards a crying Theseus, still clutching to the body. She

reveals that she is Artemis, and he has been deceived, explaining that Phaedra killed herself out

of her love for Hippolytus and respect for her family. There was no rape and Phaedra was cursed

by Aphrodite to lust after his son. Theseus cries out, hugs his son one last time, then takes a

dagger from his side and to his wrists, killing himself. He falls, and the two bodies lay there with

the water flowing to their feet and their blood running through the sand into the water. Only their
hands touch as the camera zooms out from an aerial view until the men can only barely be seen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLj8EcECKxk plays through the entire scene after Theseus

pulls Hippolytus out of the water.

Scene 12. The camera rushes through the woods at eye level until it slows on the nurse on

her knees, crying with her head in her hands before she looks straight at the camera, calm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNSsv86lsok plays. She says that she is ready for her

punishment.. We turn to see a close up Artemis smile slightly before turning back to the nurse.

Next is a view of a tree for a moment in silence then back to the spot where the nurse was sitting,

with only a deer to be seen. Some more scenery of the woods and then the same shots that the

film opened with are shown again, this time in complete silence besides the sounds of the calm

nature after the storm. As the screen finally turns black https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=9R7hZ7VOJ58 slowly builds.