OnScreen Review: "Women Talking"
Ken Jones, Chief Film Critic
For several of the past few summers I have co-led a Faith in Film summer series at my church. Rather than watch Christian movies, we have tried to select mainstream movies from a Christian perspective. Some of them have more overt Christian themes than others, but they are not “Christian” movies. Women Talking is the first movie I have seen and immediately thought to myself, “I have to use this movie next year.” This adaptation of a Miriam Toews novel directed by Sarah Polley is sure to catch awards attention at the end of the year.
The film is laid out as a fictional response to a real-life situation, set in 2010 in a Mennonite community, where women of the village have gathered in a barn to chart their path forward as a group. For several years, the women in the community have experienced sexual abuse that they believed and were told was by demonic spirits. In reality, it was by some of the men in their midst and so they must decide what action to take going forward. Their options are to forgive and move on, stay and fight, or leave. None of the options are entirely appealing, because many of them lack education, have limited exposure to the outside world because of their community’s religious beliefs and how the boys and girls are raised on very different educational and skill tracks growing up. Also, in their faith, leaving is apostasy and they will not enter heaven. But they cannot allow what has happened to continue, either. Something must be done.
If it were not for negative connotations, the highest compliment that could be paid to Women Talking is that it could easily have been alternatively titled “12 Angry Women” as it is very similar in structure to the classic film/play 12 Angry Men where a group sits together in a room deliberating. Arguably, the outcome of this deliberation is more seismic in nature because there is more than just the life of one person hanging in the balance; to them, their eternal lives hang in the balance of their decision.
Polley has assembled a stellar cast. There are several generations of women involved in the meeting, with Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, and Jesse Buckley headlining the cast as some of the mothers in the group, Ona, Salome, and Mariche, respectively. Judith Ivey, Sheila McCarthy are two outstanding performers in older grandmother roles, Agata and Greta. Michelle McLeod also gives a strong performance as Mejal. Ben Whishaw has the lone prominent male role as August, the schoolteacher who is asked to keep the minutes of the meeting. Lastly, Frances McDormand, also a producer of the film, has a small supporting role as a token voice of dissention for maintaining the status quo. While it seems that Foy and Buckley seem destined for nominations for their performances, and rightfully so, it is a great ensemble performance.
It would be a mistake to simply label Women Talking as a film that is timely or merely pandering to the headlines about bodily autonomy, but it does address the reality of women living in a male-dominated society. It can be easy to see how this film could be viewed as a parable for the world at large and how women have to confront sexual abuse, how it is often the monster in their midst who does it, and sense of betrayal and violation.
This is an emotionally charged film. Mara, Foy, and Buckley’s characters all essentially represent one of the three paths forward. The women argue back and forth about the merits and drawbacks of each course of action, and they argue fiercely at times. Often, their discussion will lead to an understandably emotional outburst by someone, and other women in the group will gather around that woman to say a prayer or sing a song to comfort her.
So while they go hard at one another, they are also incredibly supportive of each other too, pausing everything at a moment’s notice to be there for each other like a big, tight-knit family. All of the women, from the oldest to the youngest, are treated as equals and peers. It is moving to see the way that their faith and community and so interwoven into their lives. The film itself has compassion for its characters.
Not having read the book, only its synopsis, Polley as writer and director makes some small changes in the third act of the film that I think are for the better and keeps things more in line with the overall deliberative and contemplative tone of the film. Sarah Polley is most well-known as an actress from the 90s and 00s, but she has almost completely moved behind the camera now. 2006’s Away From Her and 2010’s Take This Waltz were critically acclaimed; personally, while I could see her skill as a director, I was turned off by the scripts of those films. Her deeply personal documentary Stories We Tell was quite good. Women Talking, in my eyes, is a significant step forward for Polley as a director and I am curious to see what doors open for her going forward and what her next project will be.
Women Talking is a challenging film that deals frankly with a difficult subject. It does so with grace, righteous anger, and compassion through a finely tuned ensemble performance. And while this is Sarah Polley’s fourth feature length film, it is refreshing that she is a potential voice to be heard from more going forward. This is a film that is sure to merit awards consideration this winter, as it is one of the best films of the year.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
(Women Talking has a limited release on Dec. 2nd and then a wide release on Dec. 25th.)