Epigram 12.03.2017
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Women with Movie Cameras For International Women’s Day, Ellen Kemp looks at five films by female directors who have revolutionalised cinema
2) For the girl who
Post-Weinstein Hollywood is undoubtedly going to be an interesting place for women to work in future. Mainstream cinema is under more pressure than ever to prove that it is no longer the sexist institution it has been since Judy Garland first squeezed into her ruby slippers. Hopefully, recent events will add momentum to the quest for an equal presence of female-centric stories, told by women, and accessible to all, and perhaps even help to break down the gender divide that still stifles society on the other side of the silver screen. We’ve seen Wonder Woman, and I’m sure we all love Greta Gerwig, but it seems that the most compelling examples of female gaze are generally refracted through the lens of art cinema. So, in the interest of celebrating the varied perspectives of the female cineeye, I hereby present a selection of my favourite films directed by women, which I believe are truly captivating – and none of which end in the transgressive heroine driving off a cliff or marrying Humphrey Bogart.
with the insatiable appetite: Raw, Julia Ducournau In light of the mushroom cloud explosion of veganism across campuses, this film is both disturbing and timely. A bold, energetic horror film in which the main character is a young vet student, and a vegetarian – though not for long. An alumnus of the revered La Fémis film school, debut director Ducournau holds the spectator in kind of macabre staring contest: it’s the type of horror that takes your senses prisoner: bursting with style, colour, vitality, and a restless soundtrack, you can’t look away, but watching is an act of daring. The film flirts with Romero-esque irony, subtly raises the moral questions evoked by all the best supernatural thrillers (but without going overboard) and it’ll definitely freak out your more squeamish housemates.
A tragi-comedy, a heist film, and a piece of cinema as earnest as it is defiant, Divines updates and recalibrates the so-called Parisian “banlieue” films. It casts aside the sexual prejudices seen in landmarks of the genre such as La Haine, adding colour to the gritty poetry that so defines both. Its plot-line transcends the superficiality of the usual crime film, creating something near operatic in vision without losing sight of a certain degree of realism. But the best part is the friendship of its two misfit female protagonists, which consistently remains the story’s centre of gravity.
Watershed
Twitter / @mattviajero
1) For the girl
dreams big: Divines, Houda Benyamina
3) For the girl at odds with a crazy world: I Am Not A Witch, Rungano Nyoni
Rungano Nyoni’s I Am Not A Witch traces the bizarre complexity of modern-day African witch camps. It tells the story of a nine-year old girl who faces the choice of joining the government-approved community of witches, or being turned into a goat. Nyoni treats the subject with well-dosed touches of bleak wit – it is neither completely satirical nor greatly sentimental, allowing her to point out the incongruity of, say, a novelty ringtone interrupting the opening remarks of a community trial for theft, (in which the ‘witch’ gives the final verdict). The film is structured around the silences and stares of its young protagonist, Shula, such that the dialogue of the other characters and the odd bursts of the baroque score seem to express far less by comparison. As the story unravels, the increasing absurdity of the situation reaches a point of devastating irony which leaves the viewer stunned and spellbound long after the credits stop rolling.
Twitter / @Leiaorganias
Ellen Kemp Third year, French and Film
4) For the girl who
misses her dog: Wendy and Lucy, Kelly Reichard Whether you are slightly in love with a canine companion, or with Michelle Williams, Kelly Reichardt’s second film is sure to stir any spectator with a sympathetic leaning for struggling youth. It’s a quiet film, a tale of two drifters scraping by across the American Midwest, until disaster silently strikes. Williams’ performance is understated but highly nuanced, depicting masterfully the rarely seen character of a lone young woman, determined, but on an unsteady footing in an unforgiving social landscape. Although something of a slow-burn, the film is pensive and allows space to contemplate the sentimentally brutal society which allows such characters to slip through the net.
5) For the girl who just wants to have fun: Cléo de 5 à 7, Agnès Varda
Not a contemporary film, but a film which is so gorgeous, it gives Godard a run for his money for the quirkiest and cutest film of the Nouvelle Vague – though in fairness Jean-Luc does have a sneaky cameo. This gem of a film is filled with arty details, a passion for beauty in all its forms, with brilliant little technical flourishes and nods to existentialist themes too, as the eponymous Cléo sweeps through the city like a modern day Mrs Dalloway. It’s a leap away from the left bank for Varda, and it proves without question that her ambidextrous, all-embracing curiosity makes her one of the most underrated film-makers of her era - but above all, it’s pure charm caught on celluloid.
This week in cinema history The Godfather premiers - 15th March, 1972: ‘I’m a business man; blood is a big expense.’
Conrell Cinema
With a film as prestigious as Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, it’s easy to forget why it became so renowned in the first place. People often remember the decapitated horse head, ‘I’ll make him and offer he can’t refuse,’ and Michael (Al Pacino) closing the door on Kay (Diane Keaton) without remembering what a cohesive masterpiece all these individual moments make up. Once you move past the ubiquity of The Godfather, and manage to watch it with a fresh pair of eyes, the film’s true merit shines. For a film so incomprehensibly successful, it can be a surprisingly challenging watch. With a run time of around 3 hours, and an extremely slow and methodical pace, viewers may find it a little impenetrable at first. But with just the slightest bit of effort, the reward is arguably one of the most perfect pieces of cinema
ever created. The film is tonally immaculate, with pitch-perfect dialogue, a hauntingly memorable soundtrack and all-round stellar performances all playing a part. A beautiful dark colour palette of black, red and gold pervades the film, adding a sense of brooding intensity which refuses to be alleviated. Never before – and perhaps never again – has Hollywood produced a film simultaneously so commercially and cinematically successful. The Godfather has more than earned its place in the annals of film history.
Charlie Gearon
Film and TV Editor