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While the main characters in the fil are female, the primary focus is phallic and, largely, associated with the potential of men to rape. Weiss says, on her web site, that the film is rather autobiographical; she does not elaborate. I was excited about this film because it was a first female director for the region, and because the modern story incorporates ancient folklore. But it is too male identified, and not in a good way: women seek approval of, protection from and validation by men throughout. Slavic folklore is full of powerful, female Goddesses; none appear here. Many are far more fierce, cunning and important than this so-called king of the forest (who has not appeared in an hour of online searching as other than a footnote). If the forest protector & potential threat to the women had been Baba Yaga, for instance, we would have had a fierce and intense story. She seldom assists the lost, is very threatening and lives in an ancient style of small cabin with no windows or doors (she flies out the chimney in a mortar with pestle & broom). She is an ancient and pervasive figure in many countries and is the inspiration for the classic Halloween witch. THAT would have been a powerful movie! I get the examination of boundaries: nations, genders, gender roles, modern vs. traditional, class and even race. But the neoFreudian symbolism & emphasis on potential danger of men is unexamined on more than a superficial basis. No virgins were harmed in the making of this movie.
While the main characters in the fil are female, the primary focus is phallic and, largely, associated with the potential of men to rape. Weiss says, on her web site, that the film is rather autobiographical; she does not elaborate. I was excited about this film because it was a first female director for the region, and because the modern story incorporates ancient folklore. But it is too male identified, and not in a good way: women seek approval of, protection from and validation by men throughout. Slavic folklore is full of powerful, female Goddesses; none appear here. Many are far more fierce, cunning and important than this so-called king of the forest (who has not appeared in an hour of online searching as other than a footnote). If the forest protector & potential threat to the women had been Baba Yaga, for instance, we would have had a fierce and intense story. She seldom assists the lost, is very threatening and lives in an ancient style of small cabin with no windows or doors (she flies out the chimney in a mortar with pestle & broom). She is an ancient and pervasive figure in many countries and is the inspiration for the classic Halloween witch. THAT would have been a powerful movie! I get the examination of boundaries: nations, genders, gender roles, modern vs. traditional, class and even race. But the neoFreudian symbolism & emphasis on potential danger of men is unexamined on more than a superficial basis. No virgins were harmed in the making of this movie.
