THE MT VOID
02/10/23 -- Vol. 41, No. 33, Whole Number 2262
Co-Editor: Mark Leeper,
mleeper@optonline.net
Co-Editor: Evelyn Leeper,
eleeper@optonline.net
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Topics:
Mini Reviews, Part 12 (SHE SAID, THE WOMAN KING,
UNA GREAT MOVIE, WOMEN TALKING) (film reviews
by Mark R. Leeper and Evelyn C. Leeper)
This Week's Reading (THE DIARY OF A BOOKSELLER, CONFESSIONS
OF A BOOKSELLER, REMAINDERS OF THE DAY, SEVEN
KINDS OF PEOPLE YOU FIND IN BOOKSHOPS, HAY BEFORE
THE BOOKSHOPS) (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
===================================================================
TOPIC: Mini Reviews, Part 12 (film reviews by Mark R. Leeper and
Evelyn C. Leeper)
This is the twelfth batch of mini-reviews, all by and about women:
SHE SAID: SHE SAID starts out seeming to be about Trump, but that
is merely the background for one of the main characters. The real
story is about Harvey Weinstein and the toxic Hollywood
environment. The reporters covering the story find it difficult to
get people to speak out; there are either NDAs (non-disclosures
agreements) or a fear of retribution in their careers. (At least
two of the women who did come forward also appeared in the film as
themselves.)
The film (directed by Maria Schrader and written by Rebecca
Lenkiewicz, Jodi Kantor, and Megan Twohey--the last two the
reporters who broke the story) is strangely similar to ALL THE
PRESIDENT'S MEN with two reporters chasing a story. There are also
elements of SPOTLIGHT, with reticent witnesses and a gradual
revealing of the scope of the problem, though these seem less
obvious. Carey Mulligan as Megan Twohey, one of the reporters in
this film about sexual assault and harassment, reminds one of her
role in PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, though that had her as a victim as
well as an investigator.
Released 06 January 2022 on streaming. Rating: +2 (-4 to +4) or
7/10
Film Credits:
<
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14807308/reference>
What others are saying:
<
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/she_said>
THE WOMAN KING: The specifics of THE WOMAN KING are fictional, but
most of the generalities are accurate, except for the personality
of King Ghezo and the position of Ghezo and the head of the Agojie
regarding slavery. In the film, they oppose it; in real life Ghezo
was one of the worst slavers in West Africa.
But the Kingdom of Dahomey (located in present-day Benin) did have
a corps of female warriors, probably because so many males had been
killed in fighting with neighboring states. (This corps, the
Agojie, was the inspiration for the female warriors in BLACK
PANTHER.)
There is a certain irony (to us, anyway) that we know of this corps
of female African warriors almost entirely through the reports and
writings of white males. On the other hand, for this film the
director (Gina Prince-Bythewood), both writers (Dana Stevens and
Maria Bella), and the cinematographer (Polly Morgan) are all women,
which is quite unusual for what is basically a historical war film.
Notable in the cast are Viola Davis as the general of the Agojie,
and Thusa Mbedu as Nawi.
Released theatrically 16 September 2022. Rating: +2 (-4 to +4) or
7/10
Film Credits:
<
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8093700/reference>
What others are saying:
<
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_king>
UNA GREAT MOVIE: UNA GREAT MOVIE (written and directed by Jennifer
Sharp) is basically a remake of the 1989 Kevin Bacon film THE BIG
PICTURE, which given the title, may not be an accident. A
screenwriter talks to various Hollywood executives, and gradually
her screenplay about a Black women traveling through Mexico looking
for romance becomes full of stereotypes, and white-washed to boot.
But UNA GREAT MOVIE itself retains its focus, and it updates THE
BIG PICTURE with more current concerns.
Released theatrically 29 June 2022; now on DVD. Rating: +2 (-4 to
+4) or 7/10
Film Credits:
<
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6765628/reference>
What others are saying:
<
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/una_great_movie>
WOMEN TALKING: WOMEN TALKING is set in an anti-feminist world, in a
world much like that of A HANDMAID'S TALE. But it is not a future
dystopia; it is set in the present, and is an isolated society run
by men where religion is used to control the womenfolk. And it is
based on a real-life Mennonite colony in Bolivia in from 2005 to
2009. The film portrays this society of women kept illiterate and
under total control in very muted tones, almost as if it were a
black and white film.
This is a film that depends on the script and the acting. Sarah
Polley both directed and wrote the script (based on the novel by
Miriam Toews). The novel is told entirely from the "minutes" kept
by the male school teacher, while the movie actually shows you the
women talking, and gives you a better sense of their feelings. As
Sheila O'Malley points out, in the novel you are getting the
women's feelings filtered through the man who is taking the
minutes. This is yet another 2022 film by a woman director and
screenwriter that focuses on women and their feelings and
perceptions. (MASTER; THE WOMAN KING; CATHERINE CALLED BIRDY; and
GOOD LUCK TO YOU, LEO GRANDE are some other examples that come to
mind.)
Released 6 January 2023. Rating: high +1 (-4 to +4) or 6/10
Film Credits:
<
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13669038/reference>
What others are saying:
<
https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/women_talking>
[-mrl/ecl]
===================================================================
TOPIC: This Week's Reading (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
For those who love 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD for its description of
bookshops, I can heartily recommend the books of Shaun Bythell (THE
DIARY OF A BOOKSELLER [Profile Books, ISBN 978-1-781-25863-7],
CONFESSIONS OF A BOOKSELLER [David R. Godine, ISBN
978-1-567-92722-1], REMAINDERS OF THE DAY [David R. Godine, ISBN 978-1-567-92756-6], SEVEN KINDS OF PEOPLE YOU FIND IN BOOKSHOPS
[David R. Godine, ISBN 978-1-567-92692-7]). Bythell is the owner
of The Bookshop in Wigtown, Scotland. Wigtown is "Scotland's
National Book Town", although unlike Hay-on-Wye in Wales, this did
not come about naturally, but was planned as a way to revive the
town.
I have read four of these through our public library's Hoopla
account(*); CONFESSIONS OF A BOOKSELLER is not available these, or
through inter-library loan, and all the copies for sale are more
than I want to spend. THE DIARY OF A BOOKSELLER concentrates
mostly on the bookshop, albeit with some comments on other aspects
of life in Wigtown. By the time Bythell gets to REMAINDERS OF THE
DAY, however, it has become more a diary of his life in Wigtown,
with far more characters than I can keep track of, and less a view
into bookselling. There's nothing wrong with discussing other
matters--reading about rationing, apartment dwelling, etc., was
part of what made 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD charming--but by REMAINDERS
it has become the tail that wags the dog (so I guess my
recommendation is a bit less hearty for REMAINDERS). In my
opinion, of course; you mileage may vary.
These lured me into searching for other books about bookselling,
but what I found was, ironically, a book that was 100% village life
and no bookselling whatsoever: HAY BEFORE THE BOOKSHOPS by Bridget
Ashton (Austin Macauley, ISBN 978-1-398-45206-0). This is Ashton's reminiscence of her childhood in Hay-on-Wye in the early 1950s,
when there were *no* bookshops in Hay--and not much else in the way
of modern amenities (or mod cons, if you prefer). Of course, it
doesn't claim to be anything but that (although the title means it
is trading at least a bit off the while bookshop thing). I suppose
the most accurate review would be, "For people who like this sort
of thing, this is the sort of thing they would like."
(*) Hoopla is a great way to borrow ebooks/audiobooks from your
library; check if they offer it. The big drawback is that each
library has a daily limit on how many books it can lend out that
day, and if you try to download something in the evening, you may
well be told you have to wait until the next day. For that matter,
I've gotten that message at 10AM. On the other hand, you night
owls are good to go, because the count resets at midnight. [-ecl]
===================================================================
Mark Leeper
mleeper@optonline.net
I never read the papers...I rely on Sven to tell me
if there's a war broken out. No, I think there's far
too much going on already without reading about it
as well.
--Alan Ayckbourn
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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