Entertainment
6 Films To Watch To Celebrate Womanhood
For many decades, women have continuously broken barriers and proved how strong they are in every circumstance that they face. They also proved that they are as capable as anyone else, if not more, when faced with challenges.
This month, as we celebrate what being a woman is, here are some films that reflect the life of daughters, of mothers, of wives, of the working class, and of women who continuously prove that gender is never a hindrance to reach greater heights and embody what it is to become a strong person:
- Lady Bird (2017)
In a coming-of-age film by Greta Gerwig, Saoirse Ronan plays Christine McPherson who refers to herself as “Lady Bird.” She is a feisty high school senior who yearns to get out of her hometown in Sacramento and go to college in New York City and live her life opposite of what Sacramento is–extraordinary.
The film courses around how Lady Bird wants to be identified, whether in school, by her friends, or by her family, especially her mother, whom she worries to not “like her very much.” Her relationship with her mother, Marion (played by Laurie Metcalf) is highlighted in the film as both of them are strong-willed individuals with opposite views on how they want to live life. They navigate through their relationship as mother and daughter, while also facing the challenges of life such as Lady Bird’s transition to college, their financial issues, and their womanly resilience to face whatever life throws at you.
- Little Women (2019)
In another cinematic adaptation of the classic novel by Louisa May Alcott, Greta Gerwig’s Little Women shows a fresh and enthusiastic frame in re-telling the story of the headstrong and zealous Jo March (Saoirse Ronan) and the women in her family. Jo along with her sisters Amy (Florence Pugh), Meg (Emma Watson), and Beth (Eliza Scanlen), paint a picture of the quintessential sisterhood in the 19th century who are determined to live their lives on their own terms.
Jo, who is resolute on becoming a writer in New York City, has radical views on marriage and has turned down the proposal of Theodore Lawrence or Laurie (Timothee Chalamet), their rich neighbor who became almost like a brother to the March family, and Jo’s best friend. Amy, who is often seen as Jo’s rival, spends her time in Paris to become a painter. Amy, who holds herself to a high standard, sees the economical value of marriage, and proceeds to marry Laurie after being turned down by Jo. The beautiful and vain Meg, whom Jo describes as someone who could be an actress, married for love despite falling into poverty, and the quiet and shy Beth pursues her interest in learning the piano, but suffers with illness.
Despite the many adaptations, Gerwig’s version of Little Women is unapologetic with the way the characters are portrayed naturally. It doesn’t shy away from the silliness and the enthusiasm as well as the soft and emotional portrayal of the women in the March family. It offers nostalgia that can resonate even in the modern setting, with how the March family figures out their paths in life, as we also figure out who they are.
- Kim Ji-Young, Born 1982 (2019)
Kim Ji-Young, Born 1982 became a revolutionary masterpiece that stirred conversations on the role of women and the feminist movement in South Korea, which, despite its skyrocketing technological advancements and undeniable prosperity, still struggle to move forward from their systemic misoginy.
Being adapted from a million-seller novel by Cho Namjoo, the filmis about Kim Jiyoung (Jung Yumi), an ordinary 30-something coursing through her life as a daughter, an older sister, a working class woman, a wife, and a mother while encountering gender discrimination in all of her life’s phases.
The film becomes subtly sinister as Jiyoung slowly descends into madness and suffers through a dissociative disorder. Her husband Jung Dae-Hyun (Gong Yoo), is supportive of her but cannot stand up for her in front of his mother who continuously humiliates her and pressures her on what her roles as a wife and mother should be. Daehyun tries to convince her to see a psychiatrist as Jiyoung doesn’t notice whenever she dissociates and becomes a different person. Her disorder is often triggered by the misogynistic remarks directed at her and she starts to embody other women, dead or alive, who also suffer through the patriarchal views and expectations that are continuously being shoved into their throats.
Kim Jiyoung, one of the most common names in Korea in the year 1982, represents the women in Korea who still face a deeply rooted sexism in the modern age. The novel is seen as one of the most important feminist novels in the country, however, it drew a powerful backlash among the readers, especially from the anti-feminists. The film also received the same flak, going as far as petitions to the Blue House to stop the film’s release and giving the movie bad reviews. Despite the backlash, Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 opened an important discussion on the #MeToo movement and the role of women in society.
- Hidden Figures
Genius and women empowerment come together in a field of a predominantly white male setting in NASA as Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe), a team of female African-American mathematicians, serve an important role in the race against Russia in the space mission to land the first man on the moon, John Glenn.
Based on a true story, Katherine, Dorothy, and Mary, known as “human computers” among their colleagues, were tasked to calculate the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit and guarantee his safe return to Earth, despite facing their colleagues of the opposite sex and the segragation that is still implemented in all of the US. The trio is assigned to the “Colored Computer Division” where other women of color compute numbers manually. Despite dealing with power play among their white executives and dismissive supervisors, the women push through to become visionary legends in the field of mathematics and computer science and become an inspiration for generations to come.
The film, told in a lighthearted manner despite covering heavy and controversial topics such as racism, segregation, and sexism, highlights the empowerment of women in the world of sciences and mathematics, as well as having vital roles in the creation of history in the Space Race.
- On The Basis of Sex (2018)
Another true-to-life story turns into a film with U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg played by The Theory of Everything’s Felicity Jones. The film shows the first beginnings of Ruth’s progression in her career, first as “the smartest woman in the room” in Harvard Law School, a field dominated by men and where you can count the number of women in one hand and a finger. She is married to Armie Hammer’s (Call Me by Your Name) character as Martin Ginsburg, who is supportive of her in the pursuit of a career as a lawyer, and later helps her in her first gender discrimination case, Moritz v. Commissioner.
Ruth struggles to find a law firm who will hire her as most of them refuse due to the fact that she is a woman. Frustrated, she accepts the job to teach law despite the protests of her husband who wishes for her not to settle down and pursue a career as a lawyer. Martin convinces Ruth to take on the case of Charles Moritz, who filed for a caregiver tax deduction because he was caring for his ailing mother, but was denied and prosecuted as the deductions are only available for women. Ruth sees that this is a case of gender discrimination where the victim is a man and proceeds to defend him with the help of Martin who also practices law.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg shows a tenacity in her quest to bring Moritz’s case justice, as well as an unwavering determination to prove her brilliance in the field of law regardless of her gender. Eventually, she was appointed Associate Justice to the supreme court with a vote of 97-3.
- Sakaling Hindi Makarating (The Amazing Journey of the Letters) (2016)
The film centers on Cielo (Alessandra de Rossi) who is trying to recover from a break-up with her 11-year relationship with Mark (Jay Gonzaga) two months before their wedding. She moves alone to the apartment they bought and meets her new neighbor Paul (Pepe Herrera), who delivers her postcards mistakenly dropped on his apartment’s door. The postcards are from a certain “M” who travels around and paints the sceneries they encountered, to which they send to “C”. Paul assumes that the postcards are for Cielo, and he advised to follow the postcards wherever the destination leads her and look for who “M” is.
The journey takes Cielo to different islands in the Philippines where she meets certain locals from whom she learns different skills and perspectives in life. She also learns to be comfortable in the independence she gained from the break-up, and the courage to decide and do things alone. For each destination she travels to, her heart slowly heals, and she learns more about herself and her capabilities.
Films can become a reflection of the reality that most of us don’t focus on. They show the spectrum of the human experience, from the grand picture, to the tiniest details.
With this, films also replicate the experiences of who women can be and what their potentials can discover. These films also resonate with women of all phases and identity, and it serves as the voice for what a lot of women cannot say.
This Women’s month, celebrate your womanhood by being one with the community, spending time with the women closest to you, and empowering each other to reach more heights and defy what is expected of what a woman should be.
