Les filles du soleil / Girls of the Sun
Eva Husson – France
IN A NUTSHELL
Set in Kurdistan. Bahar played by Golshifteh Farahani is commander in chief of the Girls of the Sun, a Kurdish female battalion. The Girls of the Sun are trying to take back the town of Corduene, which is where Bahar was captured by the extremists. Mathilde (Emmanuelle Bercot), is a French journalist who is covering the first three days of the offensive. The two women meet, an incident that triggers Bahar’s experience of being captured by the men in black, however will this affect the battalion’s ability to recapture the town? (by Bianca Garner)
CRITICS RESPONSE
“Gritty locations and production design put some realism back into the mix, but the director’s decision to shoot for universal values rather than distracting details gives the entire story a soft-focus feel. Bercot and Farahani emote like the great actresses they are, but there’s little to their characters but tragic backstory.” – – – – – Lee Marshall, Screen Daily
“Written and directed by Eva Husson — whose first, very sexy and ethereal feature Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story) is a far cry from the Hollywood-style machinery of this effort — the film works best when it shows star Golshifteh Farahani leading her all-female battalion through the heat of combat, worst when it indulges in narrative histrionics and a tear-jerking score worthy of a Walt Disney movie.” – – – – – Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter
“The script is the film’s biggest liability, stuffed with old chestnuts that would be more at home in a Hollywood adventure film from the 1950s. Farahani and Bercot are fine actresses who can’t do anything with lines or situations so lacking in nuance. Sound design is one of the film’s most successful elements.” – – – – – Jay Weissberg, Variety
PRIZE POTENTIAL
Eva Husson was the first of the three women directors in competition this year to show off their movie. In hindsight, this is not the picture to crack the golden egg revealing a female winner of the Palme d’Or.
I’m not being cruel here, while the film was well received, Husson not only has to contend with Alice and Nadine, but several other films in competition that are being touted for the big prizes too. Not even Golshifteh Farahani, in a memorable female enaenens, for Best Actress either.
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[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRUc5Y9YviE&w=560&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMpO96GTTiE&w=560&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv-VtjtGdzs&w=560&h=315]
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srdhJd91IAY&w=560&h=315]