Interestingly enough, I covered this topic only a few weeks ago during Girl Week 2020. This topic, by the way, is films directed by women. Of course, it's for Thursday Movie Picks. Of course, it's hosted by Wanderer at Wandering Through the Shelves. Duh.
Anyhoo, the post I did was just a list. For this one, I'm going to pick three from that list and expand my thoughts a teeny, tiny bit. Let's do it.
Fast Color
(2018)
If I say the phrase "superhero movie," you immediately think of the carefully crafted for mass consumption blockbuster churned out by Marvel and DC. I love many of those movies, but they're just one type of superhero movie. When I think about the potential of the genre to tell stories with depth, meaning, and using superpowered beings to examine the human condition, Fast Color is the type of movie I'm talking about. This slow burn takes a look at the role of Black women within the white patriarchy that runs America. It also eschews costumes, altogether and sets itself in a universe clearly separate and more grounded than the Avengers or the Justice League. To bend a cliche to my liking, his is a superhero movie for people who don't like superhero movies. Two underrated/underused actresses carry the day: Gugu Mbatha-Raw in the lead and Lorraine Toussaint as her mother. Someone please get them more work.
Selah and the Spades
(2019)
This is the most obscure of the bunch. It's also the oddest. It's Mean Girls meets Heathers. It ambitiously tries to cover all the bases those movies did with a dollop of 21st century sensibilities as a topper. The results are a bit uneven, but it's never anything less than intriguing. This one takes place at a boarding school where the student body is divided into 5 uneasily coexisting factions, with Selah at the head of the most powerful of them all. It's a pretty wild ride with lots to say.
Queen & Slim
(2019)
Here is by far the most high profile of this lot. In it, we follow the titular couple whose first date goes sideways and ends with the pair killing a police officer. Immediately, they go on the run and the film progresses from there. The makers of this movie shy away from the inevitable comparisons to Bonnie and Clyde, but they're well-earned. And that's okay. It builds on the foundation of outlaws in love by drawing on the currently spotlighted issue of the relationship between the police and Black America. Like the Warren Beatty/Faye Dunaway classic, this is as much about the characters on the screen as it is about examining our own complicity in the events that unfold.
Those picks all sound amazing and will go straight to my to-watch-list! You definitely had me with Mean Girls meets Heathers.
ReplyDeleteCool. Selah and the Spades is a really interesting watch.
DeleteI haven't seen any of these yet but both Fast Color and Queen & Slim are on my watchlist and I hope to get to see them soon. I've never heard of Selah and the Spades before but it sounds interesting so I might check it out.
ReplyDeleteI hope you do. It's an interesting piece of work.
DeleteQueen & Slim is in my never-ending DVR list hoping to be watched soon. Fast Color is the film that I really want to see.
ReplyDeleteBoth are among my faves for the year they came out.
DeleteI've heard of Queen & Slim but haven't seen it. I'd be interested to see how it compares to Bonnie & Clyde.
ReplyDeleteThe other two are new to me. I'm most intrigued by the first because of the participation of Lorraine Toussaint, love her.
I thought of you when I saw the theme because of Girl Week. As I mentioned at the time I followed the TCM Women Make Film series they have been running the last few months and that's where I drew my four from this time out.
The Hitch-Hiker (1953)-Two buddies Ray (Edmond O'Brien) and Gilbert (Frank Lovejoy) head off for what is supposed to be a relaxing fishing trip but make the mistake of picking up an innocuous hitchhiker Emmett Myers (William Talman) who turns out to be a sociopath on the run from the law. Knowing that he’s a killer and sure that as soon as he’s done with them they are dead they plot an escape. But their plan is hampered by the fact that even when he sleeps Myers keeps one eye open. Director Ida Lupino, the only woman in the 50’s listed as a member of the DGA, keeps the action economical and the atmosphere tense.
The Ascent (1977)-In the deep winter of the German countryside during WWII a pair of starving Soviet soldiers leave their unit in search of food but are captured by a Nazi patrol. Tortured for information they don’t possess one of them stands by his principles while the other seeks a way out but both pay a heavy cost. A big success upon release this proved to be the final film of director Larisa Shepitko who was killed along with her crew in a car accident shortly afterwards scouting locations for her next film.
Daughters of the Dust (1991)-Julie Dash directed this look at the Gullah community off the coast of South Carolina at the turn of the last century where the descendants of former slaves kept a mix of African and colonial ways alive. As the changing times intermingle with the old ways conflicts ensue.
Zero Motivation (2014)-Stationed in a remote desert location a disparate group of female Israeli soldiers wait until their period of service is up while they bicker, bond and fight against the ennui that comes with living in such an isolated spot. Tayla Lavie directs this with a fine mix of humor and gravitas.
I'd be very interested in your thoughts on how the two compare, though Queen & Slim cannot claim to alter the cinematic landscape as Bonnie & Clyde did.
DeleteOf yours, I'm still most interested in Daughters of the Dust. It really has been popping up on my radar on a pretty consistent basis, lately.
I added Selah and the Spades to my Netflix DVD list so hopefully that comes available so I can watch it soon. I really enjoyed Fast Color. I had a few issues with Queen and Slim, but overall I still think it's a decent movie.
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy Selah and the Spades. Glad you gave the others a chance.
DeleteSolid picks, man. I haven't seen any of these, although I think Queen & Slim is playing on Netflix right now so i may have to check it out.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
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