| UPCOMING SCREENINGS |
WEDDING SEASON
Sept. 19: Muriel's Wedding
Oct. 17: Monsoon Wedding
Nov. 21: The Syrian Bride |
| THE BASICS |
We meet at In Other Words at 8 NE Killingsworth. Screenings are generally on the third Friday of the month. You do not have to RSVP, just show up! There is a $1-5 suggested donation for In Other Words, but no one is turned away.
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| PREVIOUS POSTS |
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| ARCHIVES |
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| Friday, June 29, 2007 |
| The Piano - July 24, 6pm |
Writer/Director: Jane Campion
1993
Runtime: 121 minutes
SYNOPSIS:
Ada, her nine year old daughter, and her piano arrive to an arranged marriage in the remote bush of nineteen century New Zealand. Of all her belongings, her husband refuses to transport the piano and it is left behind on the beach. Unable to bear its certain destruction, Ada strikes a bargain with an illiterate tattooed neighbour. She may earn her piano back if she allows him to do certain things while she plays; one back key for every lesson. The arrangement draws all three deeper and deeper into a complex emotional sexual bond remarkable for its naïve passion and frightening disregard for limits.
THE DIRECTOR:
Jane Campion is a New Zealander with academic backgrounds in art and anthropology. She was the first woman to win the Palm D'Or at the Cannes Film Festival for a feature film, and at the 66th Academy Awards she became the second woman to ever be nominated for best director.
THE FILM:
The film won a host of Australian Film Institute awards, including best film, actor, actress, cinematography, director, editing, and screenplay . It won Oscars for best screenplay, best actress (Holly Hunter), and best supporting actress (Anna Paquin).
REVIEWS: (may contain spoilers)
Boston Review - Alan A. Stone
Women's Studies Database Film Reviews - Linda Lopez McAlister
Chicago Sun-Times - Roger Ebert |
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| Welcome to FFS |
I've always wanted to start a group that watches movies and then holds feminism-based discussions of those movies. Here in Portland we have the amazing In Other Words Bookstore and I thought it would be a great place to finally make this idea happen.
The main question that some ask when they hear this idea is:
ARE WE ONLY WATCHING FEMINIST FILMS?
The answer is no. I hope that we'll be watching a variety of movies, and then discussing what we think may or may not be "feminist" about them. I think we will make an attempt to watch movies written or directed by women initially, but we'll discuss what we want to watch in the future at each screening.
All are welcome to come! I'll be posting the start time and running time of the film, so if you don't have time to watch the movie with us you can watch it on your own and then join us for the discussion. Alternately, anyone is welcome to just come watch the movie and then leave. Also, I'll try to post some of our thoughts from the discussion here on the blog, and perhaps we can continue the discussion that way.
If you are interested in doing some reading before coming to a meeting, you can check out the links I have put to the right of the post that give some insights into feminist theory and women in the film industry.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to email me at kshrum at gmail. Thank you for your interest!
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| QUOTE OF THE WEEK |
"You're terrible, Muriel."
--Muriel's Wedding |
| ABOUT FFS |
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The Feminist Film Society of Portland is a group of feminists dedicated to viewing and discussing movies. Our meetings are open to all.
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| LINKS |
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