[Editor's Note: Blue is one of April's Editor's Picks! Enjoy!]
Most plots portray prostitutes in one particular way – broken down souls caught in a downward spiral. For Julia Stiles WIGS character Blue, this isn’t the case; her character is refreshing, as her motives are complicated. After an award-winning first season, Stiles returned last month in Blue for a second season.
So who is Blue? She is a sister, daughter, friend, and a nine-to-fiver. She is a loving mom to her 13-year-old braniac son; And, she works as a poised no-nonsense escort. Her earnings cover the tab accruing on her son’s pricey private education.
The character employs a mix of forthrightness and covert behavior to keep her double life untangled and her son shielded. Blue’s battle is protecting herself psychologically from a trade than can deal harsh blows to one’s feeling of self worth. What makes this all the more interesting is that it took a bit of a psychological push for Stiles to accept this part as an actress.
“I’ve always been a little reluctant to play a call girl. Even though I’m very intrigued and fascinated by that subject matter, maybe I was too shy or scared. But I really love the way director Rodrigo Garcia (Albert Nobbs) handled it, showing the girl from all angles so she’s not just defined by this job,” notes Stiles.
In season one, Garcia skillfully created uneasy drama in each scene with Blue and her multiple lives. Each episode had her tiptoeing through peril as the pendulums of her numerous lives swung and sliced, threatening to collide, to undo everything. Blue’s supreme fear is her son discovering the whole truth about her. So the central question of the show becomes – if one party maintains secrecy about one aspect of their self, is a close and honest relationship ultimately fraudulent?
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In season two, expect Garcia to go a step further. The drama is increased as Blue continues struggling between two lives. Will Blue be exposed? Will she continue to succeed in fabricating truth in moments of supreme risk? The mounting tension Garcia serves up feels like titans playing tug of war.
In addition, Blue gives a fresh look at the peculiar relationship between prostitution and society. In order to build authenticity into the role, Stiles conducted interviews with women working as escorts. Stiles mentions, “It wasn’t hard to find people soliciting escorts or working as escorts, and I’m sure that’s true in many cities. So isn’t it accepted already? It’s permissible, but you just turn a blind eye to it, right?”
Tolerating prostitution while allowing it to remain illegal results in corruption and neglect. Cops are paid off to not notice things, leaving sex workers with no protection against their employers. Exploitation of thousands of men, women, and most grievously, children is the result.
“The demand will be met with supply one way or another, no matter what is legislated. Turning our backs on the women and men who do this work may be far more immoral – even criminal – than prostitution itself. Only when we recognize and validate the work of professional prostitutes can we expect them to practice their trade safely and responsibly,” Alexa Albert, MD, wrote in her 2001 book Brothel.
Blue presents its subject matter with empathy and class. It offers rich, textured character study and compelling themes, check out season two to see how Blue’s precarious situation evolves and expands.
