A huge salute to our 9th Femme Filmmakers Festival which has long since headed off into the not-so-distant past. We now look ahead as we dive head-first into our 2014 in Film celebrations. I thought it apt to bring some of the very worthy motion pictures with the female holding the camera back into the limelight from the year Filmotomy was born. We are happy to hear more from you out there of 2014 films made by women. But in the meantime here are ten of the stand-outs – a select few of which shine very brightly with this writer.
The Voices – Marjane Satrapi
Marjane Satrapi is an Oscar nominee for the animated, autobiographical Persepolis. And here, depending on how much you want to deeply analyse film, she has taken a different direction, vivid and memorable all the same. The Voices slipped under the net with audiences last year, but the quirky, oddball picture is a bit of a treat.
Merging an underlying, yet heavy, theme of psychological health with the sympathetic, docile lead in Ryan Reynolds (with his good and bad nature voiced by Bosco the dog and Mr. Whickers the cat respectively). The film has some refreshing moments of comedy and horror. Stick around for the zany closing titles musical dance number too.
The Babadook – Jennifer Kent
The Babadook takes the age-old spooky house, scary story book, creepy kid, and monster in the dark formula and transfers the fear via lingering and anticipation. The narrative also propels a single mother, full to the brim with depression and grief long before the “ba-ba-dook-dook” sounds emerge. Essie Davis is a marvel here, playing a woman who has to break beyond her little boy’s disturbing behaviour, as well as her own incredible anxieties. To stand tall and literally scream claim of her family and home.
One of the scariest movies for many a year, a phrase over-used, but I mean it. Not just because of the genre-specific chills that work so well, but psychologically this stirs much deeper, almost messing with your own mind. In her debut feature film, Australian writer-director Jennifer Kent has an expert grip on the horror proceedings, as well as the importance of the human story. She does not put a foot wrong here.
My Life Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn – Liv Corfixen
Danish film-maker Nicolas Winding Refn receives some advice at the opening of his wife’s documentary. That he was not thinking about success before Drive, but afterwards he was, and this can change your creativity. Liv Corfixen wanted a family man, for her and the children. There are a couple of candid discussions between the couple, that she takes care of the home and he is working all the time. Refn goes on to describe arranging his pre-production scenes for Only God Forgives like a game of chess.
We later watch Refn as Ryan Gosling plays with his children. He’s not a bad husband or father, more a dedicated film director. What else is fascinating here is that although his movies tend to export a sense of over-confidence and swagger, as the shooting for Only God Forgives begins Refn has some clear concerns about his own method. We know now the diverse the movie took some critical pounding in places, so those worries have greater significance. Corfixen’s inquisitive voice then may well echo through, suggesting Refn’s creativity was indeed hindered by his lack of confidence in his own work following the overwhelming success of Drive.
Citizenfour – Laura Poitras
You kind of pay attention when intelligence agencies, and the National Security Agency (NSA), are revealed to be taking part in some rather unethical practices. Like it or not, this kind of effectual citing is like glue to the mind. Citizenfour dives straight into this, a documentary taking large chunks of it’s time in an interview far off in Hong Kong with a so-called whistle-blower for the time being shutting himself away from the world – including his nearest and dearest. Why? He has information about the whole access to information scandal that would land him in hot water too. Am I saying too much?
Journalist Glenn Greenwald is at the centre of reporting this back out to the world. A task I could have perhaps admired much more were I not still haunted by his more abstract and damaging involvement in the Zero Dark Thirty torture mud-throwing. Regardless, Citizenfour does have it’s fair share of blatant manipulative angles, as do many documentaries. But it is hard not to be compelled and intrigued by the direct involvement of director Laura Poitras and Edward Snowden, behind and in front of the camera respectively. It unravels quickly into something relevant, something worthy of attention, whichever side of the fence you sit.
Belle – Amma Asante
Belle appears to have slipped through the net of many a movie-goers to-see list, and that is a real shame. Lavish, gorgeous and often intoxicating, Amma Asante’s costume drama has plenty of spark and substance to distinguish this from the standard crowd of a seemingly wilting genre. A refreshing take, too, on the ever-relevant social issues of race, gender, and class. Assante presents a thoroughly engaging story and setting, and keeps us attached to the triumph of identity and the consumption of good old-fashioned romance.
At the heart of the film is Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who with a very different role in Beyond the Lights had a breakthrough year in 2014. A gorgeous woman, clearly, in those period gowns, but her talent as an actress is without question. In a tale about a marginalized woman in a shadowed time socially who just wants a voice, Mbatha-Raw’s commanding presence shouts loudest.
Obvious Child – Gillian Robespierre
There are no fewer that four women writers involved here – give or take a short film or story credit here or there (Gillian Robespierre, Karen Maine, Anna Bean, Elisabeth Holm). And the film itself is about a woman. The magnetic and naturally funny Jenny Slate, who plays Donna, a young woman not afraid to speak her mind (unapologetic in her stand-up routines). But is at a loose end cross road in her life. Spontaneous fun and frolics with a rather nice, homely, young man resulting in accidental pregnancy might be the last thing she needs. Oops. The ensuing dilemma facing Donna is handled with remarkable assurance, balancing some emotive moments with plenty of awkward, genuine comedy.
At the helm of Obvious Child, Gillian Robespierre whizzes the narrative along, taking it in a direction you might not have anticipated. Her vision is straight forward and effectively snappy, so much so the movie is over before you know it. Short and sweet this is, even with some delicate adult issues. The final scene is reassuringly tender. A kind of wake-up call that romantic bonds can perhaps flourish from the seemingly hopeless, tougher decisions we have to make in this life.
The Wonders – Alice Rohrwacher
Italian director Alice Rohrwacher won the Grand Prize of the Jury at the Cannes Film Festival for her second feature The Wonders. The director’s touch has poise, and allows clear as day feelings from the characters. Primarily children, as they do in fact show sedated wonder about the prospects of participating and winning in an unusual TV show contest. The principle character, Gelsomina, can allow bees to crawl in and around her face without an inch of fear.
The film is more about a tough little family, who appear to be struggling to keep a living in rural Italy. Their main income is through bee-keeping and harvesting honey, so an inspector visiting and the kids scrambling to scoop fresh honey from the floor are not prosperous in combination. There is something compelling about the experiences of this family. And you are drawn into a strange paradox as at times your attention may wander. And only because The Wonders offers a thoughtful hand rather than becoming boring.
The more practical kids own the optimism while the parents worry out loud. The film tackles poverty and childhood innocence expertly. They are what they are in that baking sun, and Rohrbacher never over-does either, one way or the other. An acquired taste, The Wonders took its time with me, it’s a rare, pretty flower that still continues to blossom long afterwards.
I Believe in Unicorns – Leah Meyerhoff
Not so much directly focusing on coming-of-age (though there is a strong whiff of it), Leah Meyerhoff’s feature directorial effort I Believe in Unicorns seeks out a teenage girl’s perspective of that yearning for adulthood. Or at least, being part of something grown-up. Like seeking out new adventures and enveloping yourself in a rich romance. The choice of boy Davina (Natalia Dyer) makes though is a far cry from settling down and taking life seriously. Nor does Davina perhaps want this – she just does not know it yet. Teenage love is something of an experiment in itself for the most part, about discovery and craving and excitement, good, bad, or unknown.
Davina and the unpredictable Sterling (Peter Vack) take to the road. They kiss and roll around, they also bicker and shun each other like an old married couple. Their relationship is fresh and enticing, but also volatile and intense. And that feels very, very real. Meherhoff’s visually beautiful, but never heavy-handed, film definitely gives the female, youthful touches here and there. The dreamy Davina imagines unicorns of the stop-motion variety, but is the one with the pants in the relationship. Which makes Dyer the big shining star in front of the camera in this flourishing adolescent show.
Thou Wast Mild And Lovely – Josephine Decker
Thou Wast Mild and Lovely might appear to be a certain way experimental or haphazard. But I would argue the talented writer and director, Josephine Decker, knows exactly what she is doing. The hand-held and hovering camera gives the impression of spontaneity. Yet the visual splendour suggest this was a well thought out work of art. A floating balloon enveloping all manner of tension and seduction that, true, does seem to drift off and beyond. But not once allow you to let go of the string.
Thou Wast Mild and Lovely is set on a farm where the somewhat sexually-enthused daughter is the object of desire for the hired hand. Unable to be too forthcoming with the father on the scene. A father open about the guy’s tension in his shoulders, though we suspect he just does not outright like him. The daughter’s voice-over reminisces over a lover, like poetry over the splendidly breezy cinematography. It is somehow eerie not too deep inside, with the distant sound score which seems to come from within. A tension builds. Not just the potential, sweltering passion, but something else, something forbidden and discomforting.
Decker’s lenses also come in and out of focus without any great regard to audience expectations. Telling a simple story in well under ninety minutes, while filling each minute with substantial panache. Movies that meander in spite of their beauty (like the films of Terrance Malick sometimes for example) often receive some negative criticism, that narrative or pay-off are not sufficient. That’s not always for us to judge fairly. Film-making is such a vast universe, interpretation and intention can be lights years apart.
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night – Ana Lily Amirpour
Written and directed by Ana Lily Amirpour, proving yet again there’s some incredible film talent deriving from Iran. And seemingly talked about with high anticipation long before many had even seen it. Due largely to the appalling limited release. A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night is an exceptional, infectious film experience. Immaculately lit, framed and focused in its black and white. You would really struggle to find a frame of film here that is not unquestionably pleasing to the eye.
And why should you, A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night catches your gaze and holds your attention from beginning to end. Subliminally taking you in and out of great movies gone-by depicting many specific eras by acclaimed film-makers. Too many to mention here perhaps, this pays the highest respect and homage to some of cinema’s finest memories without appearing as copy-cat or wanna-be. It also expertly drifts through genres of horror and western with its dead town landscape and dark, clandestine places.
Somehow both eerie and comforting simultaneously, Amirpour’s execution feeds our subconscious reminding us in no certain way what draws us to the enigmatic lure of vampires. The remarkable soundtrack takes me back to my alternative days of youth at times, while always adding to the movie’s composure and elusive tone. Catchy songs are used in a less conventional way in accompanying the mood. Yet the music and the scenarios feel familiar and real. This is an exquisitely made little film. Beautifully atmospheric and captivating, with ample drops of chills and romance in all the right places. It is always at ease in fulfilling our appetite for cinematic indulgence. A motion picture to relish and cherish.