In recent years, cinema has witnessed significant changes in the representation of female characters. Films made by women tell stories that are often ignored or devalued. We have compiled five films by directors where female experiences occupy a central place in the narrative.
GENRE: satire, body horror
Elizabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), host of the iconic aerobics TV show and former Oscar winner, is fired on her fiftieth birthday when the show’s producer, Harvey (Dennis Quaid), decides she’s too old. On the way home, the actress is distracted by some workers removing her sign from an advertising billboard and suffers an accident. At the hospital, he is given a USB flash drive with an advertisement for a drug called “Substance”, which offers to create a new version of the consumer who will be “younger, more beautiful, more ideal” than him. But there is one condition: both personalities must exist in symbiosis with each other and change every seven days, and one of them loses consciousness during this period. The young version must inject a body-stabilizing serum from its “womb” every day. Elizabeth initially resists the temptation, but eventually gives in and asks for the drug. That same night Sue (Margaret Qualley) is born, an improved version of the elderly actress. She is chosen to replace Elizabeth on a television show and begins to enjoy fame, but the copy, like The Matrix, has its own ambitions. Living in balance and giving up another place every seven days only becomes more and more difficult.
GENRE: animated drama
The plot of the cartoon is based on the memories of the main character, the Iranian girl Marji. At the airport in France, look at the flight schedule; Her eyes stop on the word “Tehran”, the city of her childhood, where the Iranian revolution began in 1979 and her family members could not be left out, although Marji herself, who dreamed of justice and exploits heroic actions, he was prohibited from participating in rallies. One day, Siamak Yari, a family friend and father of Margie Lali’s friend, returns from prison and talks about the horrors he saw. Margie is jealous that Lali has a real “hero” in her family. Time passes and power changes in the country, but the situation of Marja’s family does not improve. They are deeply upset when Islamist fundamentalists become leaders of the country. Iranian society begins to be repressed using strict Sharia law, the government forces women to dress modestly and wear headscarves, and their loved ones are once again arrested for their political beliefs. Many family friends, as well as thousands of Iranians, are fleeing the new regime to Europe or the United States. Many are now trying to start over and bury their roots as deeply as possible.
GENRE: existential drama
Bob Harris (Bill Murray), a famous American actor, arrives in Tokyo and stays in one of the hotels in the city center. Harris’s job is well-paid and at the same time simple: he advertises Suntory whiskey. In the same hotel as him lives a young Yale graduate, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), who arrived in Tokyo with her husband, the photographer John (Giovanni Ribisi). Charlotte barely sees her husband, who spends most of his time at work. Bob, for his part, after 25 years of marriage, feels a lack of romantic relationships and is going through a midlife crisis. At night, after Bob cannot sleep again, he arrives at the hotel bar, where he sees Charlotte sitting with her husband and their friends. They smile at each other and she calls for the waiter to hand Harris a small cup of nuts. After that, every night Bob and Charlotte meet at the same bar, at the same table. Over the next few days, they will have many adventures: from visiting a hospital and a strip club to a hotel fire drill. Awkwardness constantly arises between the characters, as between people who experience more than just friendly feelings, but at the same time cannot talk about it for many reasons. To this day, the film is considered one of the ideal examples of American independent cinema and, according to critics, was able to most accurately convey the feeling of loneliness of the characters, even if it occurs against the background of a bustling metropolis. .
GENRE: drama, melodrama, music.
Mid-19th century. Ada McGrath (Holly Hunter) and her daughter Flora (Anna Paquin) arrive in New Zealand from Scotland to enter into an “arranged” marriage with Alistair Stewart. Ada does not speak, she expresses herself through signs and playing the piano. For her, the piano is more than an instrument: it is a way to feel and express emotions. Upon disembarking, the piano is safely left on the shore, as there are not enough porters to transport it. Ada only asks that the piano be taken away and her things left, but her husband Alistair Stewart (Sam Neill) doesn’t understand. He tries to make his fortune by trading as much land as possible for beads and guns, and he doesn’t understand his new wife’s grief over the abandoned piano. Ada can’t imagine her life without music and asks guide George Baines (Harvey Keitel) to take her ashore. One of the most beautiful scenes in the film takes place there: on the seashore, in a barbecue, there is a piano and Ada plays. The director buys the instrument and asks the woman to give him playing lessons. Ada has to accept this. She is offended, but she can’t live without the piano. Baines senses this and makes one condition: if he gives her lessons, Ada can get the piano back. They agree: a lesson: a key becomes Ada’s property; and so, little by little, key by key, you will recover it. The film not only talks about the personal freedoms of women, but also touches on the property they might have owned at the time.
GENRE: drama, comedy
The plot focuses on the young and beautiful Cleo Victoire (Corinne Marchand), who decides to discover her destiny thanks to a fortune teller. The letters say that she is sick and will soon meet a young talker. The girl doesn’t want to believe it, but the fortune teller insists that she is doomed. Cleo is about to receive the results of the exam and, to distract herself, she goes to a cafe to meet with her assistant Angela (Dominique Davray). Leaving the cafe, the girls enter a hat shop. Cleo gets carried away trying on and ends up buying an inappropriate black winter accessory. The film narrates an hour and a half in the life of a popular singer and simply a young woman, who spends in Paris while waiting for the results of tests related to possible cancer. During this time, the heroine (and we with her) experience a whole range of emotions. The film starred future famous figures of the French New Wave: Jean-Luc Godard, Anna Karina, Eddie Constantin and Jean-Claude Brialy, and the role of the composer was played by Michel Legrand, who also wrote the music for the film. .
