-
The Worst Person in the World (2021): The Authored Life
Joachim Trier made a film about a woman resisting the feeling that her life is being written for her. He did not notice what he was doing with his chapter titles. I. Julie Tries Medicine, Then Doesn’t, Which the Film Presents as Self-Knowledge II. Julie Tries Photography, Which Is Closer But Still Someone Else’s Idea…
-
The Favourite (2018): The Geometry of Favour
Yorgos Lanthimos’s film “The Favourite” intricately explores the dynamics of power among Queen Anne and her two companions, Sarah and Abigail. While the screenplay avoids championing any one woman, the camera’s fisheye lens subtly conveys the court’s hierarchy. Anne’s emotional depth drives the narrative, revealing the cost of ungoverned feelings in a political arena.
-
La Notte (1961): The Letter That Proves Too Much
La Notte, directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, explores Giovanni’s emotional detachment and masculine egotism through his neglect of his wife Lidia, who carries a forgotten love letter. The film portrays the cost of this asymmetry, culminating in Lidia’s silent suffering and affirmation of her lost connection with Giovanni as he silences her realization.
-
Barbara (2012): Subject
Barbara is a film about what surveillance does to a person. Its camera watches Barbara the way the Stasi watches her. That is the trap the film sets for itself — and the thing it does with it is extraordinary. SURVEILLANCE REPORT — SUBJECT: DR. BARBARA WOLFF Compiled for internal use Subject arrives at provincial…
-
Undine (2020): She Exists Only Through Men
Christian Petzold named the curse. Then he made a film that enacts it. “She has to go back in the water and wait for the next man to come along. She exists only through men, and that is a horrible curse. Our story aims to explore an Undine who is struggling against this.” — Christian…