Storyline

The storyline of the film is centered around a small town Southern waitress named Jenna. She finds out at the beginning of the film that she is pregnant; however, she cannot stand her husband. He is aggressive, rude, and dominating over her throughout the whole movie. She wants to leave him, but doesn’t have the money to make it on her own. She tries to save up her cash from waitressing at the diner, but has to give most of it to him when he picks her up from work. Jenna’s unhappiness with her husband ends up leading to an affair with her doctor, who actually makes her feel worthy and wanted. The affair is off and on throughout most of the film, but comes to a final close at the end, as once Jenna has her baby girl, she feels confident, happy, and independent. She stands up to her awful husband, Earl, and ends up turning the diner she worked at into a little pie shop. She has a special talent for making pies, and even names these pies to represent the different things happening in her life. 

(Pinterest, 2007)

Food in the Film

The general role that food plays in the film includes Jenna’s way of making money, as well as her way of expressing herself and her feelings. It appears throughout the film, mainly in the form of pies, as she works at a diner where they are served. The pies also appear in her thoughts though, as she dreams up the different ingredients to represent the events going on in her life, such as the “I hate my husband pie.” Food is also talked about in the film when Jenna goes to the doctor, and he tells her what kind of diet she should follow while she is pregnant.

(Miniermabe, 2007)

Themes

Food as material and symbolic
All of Jenna’s pies had some type of symbolic meaning throughout the film. Whenever something happened in her life, she thought up all of the ingredients in her head to make a pie. For example, she titled one of them “I Hate my Husband Pie” when talking about how terribly her husband, Earl, treats her. She also called one “Pregnant, Miserable, Self-Pitying Loser Pie” when she was feeling miserable due to her pregnancy, and just overall not enjoying it. Lasly, she names one “Earl murders me because I’m having an affair pie” when she realizes that her affair with her doctor is going to lead to something bad with Earl. By dreaming up these pies and titling them as things going on in her life, Jenna is able to express her thoughts and emotions. Her pie making allows her to have an outlet for the various troubling events and emotions she is experiencing.

Gender roles
The idea of gender roles, and particularly male dominance, is present throughout the film. It is especially present in Jenna’s relationship with her husband, Earl. When he picks her up from work at the diner, she has to hand over the money she made that day. She also has to ask him for money at the part in the film when she wants to enter a pie baking contest. He won’t buy her a car or give her any money because he doesn’t want her going anywhere. Jenna even says to the doctor that she has “nowhere to go”, as she is trapped with Earl and has no money. There is also a sense of male superiority and lack of respect throughout the film, with the way Cal treats Jenna and the other waitresses at the diner. Earl also slaps Jenna when he sees her at the bus stop with a suitcase trying to leave him. Lastly, at the end of the film when Jenna has her baby, Earl makes a disgusted face when he finds out it’s a baby girl. Food reflects the theme of gender roles in the film in the way that all of the waitresses at the diner are females. It goes back to the idea of women being the ones that prepare the food and do the dishes, while the men are off working jobs and making the more steady income. 

Social class
It is very clear in the film that Jenna, as well as the other waitresses, are not very high up in terms of social class. Jenna doesn’t even have money for a car, and has to rely on Earl or her friends to take her and pick her up from work. Her husband uses money as a way to keep Jenna oppressed and with him. He tells her in bed one night that he “pays for the house and puts clothes on her back” manipulating her into doing things she doesn’t want to do, like staying with him. She longs to escape him and their marriage, but can’t due to her lack of money. The other female waitresses also married for money, and then end up having affairs as well because they are unhappy with their husbands. Their lack of education and economics causes them to have to work at the diner, where the involvement of food in their job sort of represents their social class. The owner of the diner, who clearly has money, comes in and orders all kinds of things from the menu, as he can afford it. However, those working at the diner in this small town, such as Jenna, could not. The food at the diner in general though reflects a lower class, while a fancier restaurant would reflect a higher class. 

Family
Jenna’s family is broken and messed up, as she is unhappy with Earl and ends up having an affair. She often uses her pies and baking as a way to express these emotions, and get her mind off of just how unhappy she is. When she is baking, it reminds her of her time as a child baking with her mother. She tells the doctor how her mother used to sing in the kitchen when they would bake together. The act of baking pies allows Jenna to reminisce on her childhood and remember the times she had with her mom. Then, when she has her baby girl, Lulu, she gains the confidence to stick up to earl. She feels a sense of unconditional love, and is truly happy. She dumps Earl, and her family then consists of just her and her baby. She couldn’t be any happier with it being that way though, as when she leaves the pie shop at the end of the movie, she is carrying Lulu with the biggest smile on her face. She goes on to win the pie contest she had been wishing to do, with the help of some money from the previous diner owner. However, without the monetary support from him, she wouldn’t have been able to participate in it. 

(Pinterest, 2007)

Informed Opinion

The film Waitress was overall successful in portraying the themes of gender roles and social class, as well as showing how food can be symbolic. The film was able to appeal to the emotions of the viewers while presenting the different hardships Jenna encountered day to day. It was clearly illustrated how dominating a male can be in a relationship, as Jenna wasn’t allowed to have a car or participate in a baking competition. However, the film showed that through her pies, Jenna was able to express her emotions and continue doing what made her happy. It was also able to provide a sense of entertainment for the viewers with multiple cheesy kissing scenes between Jenna and her doctor and funny lines throughout the film. Although there weren’t many weaknesses, I didn’t enjoy watching Earl be so aggressive, both with his words and actions, towards Jenna. I understand it was necessary for the storyline, but it was definitely aggravating at times. 

References

Roiff, M. (Producer), & Shelly, A. (Director). (2007). Waitress [Motion Picture]. United
States: Searchlight Pictures.

Amazon. (2007). [Untitled image of Waitress DVD cover].
Retrieved May 4, 2021 from https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FWaitress-Widescreen-Andy-Griffith%2Fdp%2FB000VY1EYG&psig=AOvVaw1r2dY718aHP2Ttmy0XJEb6&ust=1620233480023000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA0QjhxqFwoTCOj3spy-sPACFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Miniermabe, J. (2007). [Untitled image of Jenna and her doctor in the kitchen].
Retrieved May 4, 2021 from https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fjessicaminiermabe.wordpress.com%2F2013%2F07%2F05%2Fwriting-saturday-night-at-the-movies-waitress%2F&psig=AOvVaw3KbwSyyZRsg9pFKlUqW3rJ&ust=1620233614839000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA0QjhxqFwoTCJCzxN2-sPACFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

Pinterest. (2007). [Untitled image of Jenna and Lulu].
Retrieved May 4, 2021 from https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fjennylearyivey%2Fpies-from-the-movie-waitress%2F&psig=AOvVaw3KbwSyyZRsg9pFKlUqW3rJ&ust=1620233614839000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA0QjhxqFwoTCJCzxN2-sPACFQAAAAAdAAAAABAJ

Pinterest. (2007). [Untitled image of Jenna making a pie].
Retrieved May 4, 2021 from https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F228205906092910131%2F&psig=AOvVaw3KbwSyyZRsg9pFKlUqW3rJ&ust=1620233614839000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA0QjhxqFwoTCJCzxN2-sPACFQAAAAAdAAAAABAQ