Relationship between characters

Relationship between George and Ella

George and Ella are spouses in the film East is East directed by Damien O'Donnell. We do not know the circumstances under which they met and got married, but we are led to understand that they fell in love with each other. Unlike the arranged marriages which George wants to push on his sons, his marriage with Ella appears to be based on mutual affection.

This longstanding affection appears to be what kept George and Ella’s marriage from falling apart despite a lot of personal differences and the constant clash between their two cultures. The situation is further complicated by George being tyrannical and unwilling to accept other people’s points of view. Even though Ella is a tolerant and open-minded person, she also tries to protect her children from unhappiness and suffering. Because George disregards his own children’s wishes and does not seem to care if they are happy or not, Ella finds herself in open conflict with George. By her own admission, she is always caught between George and the children and forced to choose sides: “I can’t do anything to please you. If it’s not you, it’s your dad, if it’s not your dad, it’s you.” (01:30:53-01:30:57). This suggests t...