YMMV / Florence Foster Jenkins

• Accidental Aesop:
  • Being surrounded by Yes-Men and/or Professional Butt Kissers can't shield one from less biased perspectives forever.
  • Florence's reaction to there being one negative review of her performance could also serve as a caution to those who dream of a performing or other public career but are sensitive that it's not necessarily for everyone.
• Alternate Character Interpretation: It's up in the air how much sympathy St. Clair deserves. He lies to Florence to spare her feelings, but is it because he's afraid of devastating her? Or does he just not want to have to do the Cruel to Be Kind thing? The fact that Florence's ego is a shaky thing does give him good reason, but how much of that is due to being constantly lied to by her inner circle?
• Hype Backlash: Meryl Streep's performance garnered her another Oscar nomination, but a lot of critics felt it was a very safe and un-challenging performance - as it was a biopic and period piece. Hence why this nomination was mentioned as one that should have been cut to make way for Arrival. Oddly enough the film averts a lot of the tropes associated with Oscar Bait - released in the spring as opposed to December, and having a much more comedic edge than other biopics.
• One-Scene Wonder: Agnes Stark only appears in a couple of scenes but she sure does make an impression. She's this in-universe too - easily able to command attention when it's needed.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character: Lookalikes of Cole Porter and Tallulah Bankhead were hired for the Carnegie Hall scene but were only really seen entering the hall despite ample shots of the audience throughout the recital (however, they do feature more prominently in extended footage not in the theatrical cut). Furthermore, the lookalike actress of Lily Pons, shown performing a recital earlier in the film, was actually in attendance of the real Florence's recital, but can't be seen in the movie one.
• Unintentionally Unsympathetic: St. Clair is a good candidate for this trope. He's never once, in all the years he's been married to Florence, had the courage to tell Florence that she sounds awful, and keeping her shielded from a little Brutal Honesty is a major factor in things spiraling out of control.
• The Woobie: All Florence wants to do is sing. The problem is that she's so terrible, everyone who sees her can't do anything but laugh. It's clear that she's devastated by the bad reviews, and convinces herself that the people were really applauding her singing. Not to mention that she had a promising career as a pianist (which she was actually good at) cut short by getting syphilis from her first husband. In Real Life, some physicians now believe that thanks to the syphilis, Jenkins probably heard herself as in-tune, even though she wasn't. Had she not been afflicted, she'd have sung normally.