Worldwide Women Project: February: Lucrecia Martel and La Ciénaga

February: La Ciénaga (2001), dir. Lucrecia Martel, Argentina

As it always does, the 28-day February came and went in a flash. And because of that, my schedule got condensed and more crowded, and so I was unable to watch La Ciénaga until the last week of the month. I’ve taken the extra week to write my essay on it because I wanted to make sure I did a good job researching and understanding the film and its context. 

My relationship with foreign film began less than a year ago, in July 2020. I was taking a film class through UPenn’s summer program, “World Cinema: 1945-Present.” The first film we were assigned to watch was the Italian neorealism classic Bicycle Thieves (1948), dir. Vittorio De Sica. I had never seen it, much less heard of it, or Vittorio De Sica, or Italian neorealism. So, as an American teenager who had up until that point had only seen American films, I was underwhelmed and confused by Bicycle Thieves. “Nothing happened.” “What was the point of that?” were the questions that kept swirling in my mind. And then my class discussed it, analyzing scenes and talking about what neorealism was and why the movement is so significant in the history of cinema. Bicycle Thieves is not my favorite movie, and I have not watched it in full since, but after looking at it as a historical document, both in its importance as a political and artistic expression, I have tremendous reverence for it.

I felt a similar way after diving into Argentinian director Lucrecia Martel’s 2001 debut, La Ciénaga. Although only a 101 minute film, Martel does not rush even for a moment. Everything is at the pace of a slow summer day, when the sun glares in your eyes and the cool of the wind breezes over. La Ciénaga is more of an atmospheric film than a story; it is a film more concerned with how people react, interact, and confront their innermost desires and fears as opposed to where they came from and where they are going. 

To try to describe the plot of La Ciénaga would be a disservice to the film; there is no way to satisfyingly sum up the events that transpire or the moments in between the events in one sentence. I think the Criterion Collection’s words on the film are the best at capturing why I felt it was an important film to include in this project: “Martel turns her tale of a dissolute bourgeois extended family, whiling away the hours of one sweaty, sticky summer, into a cinematic marvel. This visceral take on class, nature, sexuality, and the ways that political turmoil and social stagnation can manifest in human relationships is a drama of extraordinary tactility, and one of the great contemporary film debuts.” And that is essentially what the film tackles; it “stars” actresses Graciela Borges and Mercedes Morán, but it is truly an ensemble with no performances that overpower the others. 

Similar to how I felt after viewing American filmmaker Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut, The Virgin Suicides (1999), one thing was clear to me: Lucrecia Martel had a clear voice and vision, and had portrayed women on screen in a way I had never seen before. And while I knew a lot about Sofia Coppola before seeing The Virgin Suicides, I knew virtually nothing about Lucrecia Martel, and so I set out to change that. 

I watched a fifty minute interview that Martel gave to Film at Lincoln Center in 2018 about La Ciénaga as well as reading some profiles on her. In Film at Lincoln Center’s guest profile of Martel, they wrote: Martel studied film in Buenos Aires during one of the country’s worst economic crises, and eventually lent her worldview and sense of place to intimate, elliptical dramas that broke from the aesthetic and ideological tendencies of the prevailing national film scene.” Viewing La Ciénaga through the lens of a woman who lived in a broken economy and had a disillusioned view of the bourgeoisie makes the cynical nature of the film less “empty” as one may feel viewing it and more profound and knowing. 

Then I read more about why she made La Ciénaga as her debut and the impact it had. Not only is the film a staple of the New Argentine Cinema (which the Criterion Collection described as “escaping the theatrical aura of previous cinema”), but it is also shown in many film classes and is adored by film academics. Film critic and journalist Kleber Mendonça Filho described his adoration for the film by saying “I remember the impact Lucrecia Martel’s debut feature had on film students, critics, and fellow filmmaker...I love everything about this film: the obliqueness of it, the fresh and bold take on sexuality, the use of sound, the faces and bodies.” There are countless anecdotes about people’s experiences with the film similar to Filho’s, and they all strike upon the same themes of the film’s subversion of narrative and audience expectations of what a film can be, which is quite powerful. 

What struck me during my research Martel’s revelation to an interviewer that La Ciénaga was intended to subvert film conventions and make audiences experience something new and partly distressing. In an interview with The Telegraph around the release of the film, Martel stated that to her, La Ciénaga is “not a realistic film. It's something strange, a little weird. It's the kind of film where you can't tell what's going to happen, and I wanted the audience to be very uncomfortable from the beginning." It is not revolutionary for a filmmaker to want to bring out feelings of discomfort and tension in their audiences; however, to do so with such a sparse film is what makes the film stand out. In American film, Alfred Hitchcock makes his audiences uncomfortable with relentless suspense, and David Fincher does so with his cool-toned frames and unpredictable characters like Amy Dunne in Gone Girl or Tyler Durden in Fight Club; Martel does not have a “gimmick” or a “thing” that she uses. Instead, the through line of the film is discomfort and dissatisfaction; scenes are often cut short, storylines are unresolved, characters appear in their grossest, most unkempt forms, and exterior sounds are what control the movie, not a thundering score or a carefully curated soundtrack. 

I do not know if I will ever revisit La Ciénaga, or at least visit it anytime soon. And yet, I recommend that everyone watch it at least once. I cannot say it was a life changing viewing experience, nor did it move me in any profound way. But it was something I had never seen before, made by a woman who, on her first film, knew how she saw the world, and was not afraid to show that to the world. It is a movie that easily could have been dismissed or forgotten, but it is Martel’s dedication to her vision and disregard for making the film easy or pleasant for her audience that I feel has made the film remain relevant in its now 20-year life.

La Ciénaga is available for streaming on HBO Max and is also a part of the Criterion Collection.

Sources:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/?xml=/arts/2001/10/04/bfsf4.xml 

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/3449-lucrecia-martel-and-the-new-argentine-cinema 

https://www.criterion.com/films/28113-la-ci-naga

https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/372-kleber-mendon-a-filho-s-top-10 

Entering 2021 & Introducing my Worldwide Women Project

Hello! 2020 is finally over, and while switching the calendar does not cast a magical spell that remedies all of the troubles 2020 brought, every new year brings an opportunity for reflection and forward-looking. I think I have done a lot of introspection about the year already, so I do not feel the need to recap my thoughts on 2020; I think my feelings about the big issues of the year (COVID, BLM, etc.) have been well documented.

Instead, I want to focus on the year ahead. I am not a big believer in New Year’s Resolutions, but I did have one big goal for 2021, and that is to be more productive. I have a lot on my plate, but 2020 showed me that a lot of what I was doing was not bringing me the joy or satisfaction it maybe once had. So in 2021, I want to strive to combine my interests and passions with productive actions that are not only fun but would better me as an individual.

Two of my biggest interests are cinema and world cultures, so in 2021, I wanted to not only combine these but also turn them into an educational and informative action plan. Then, while browsing the website of Turner Classic Movies, I came across their new initiative: Women Make Film. Not only did TCM produce a feature-length documentary on female filmmaking, but they also spotlighted 100 international female directors and their films. Inspired by this, I have decided to devote 2021 to what I am calling my “Worldwide Women Project.”

Once a month, I will watch a film from a country that not only stars a woman but is also directed by one. I will give my personal thoughts on the film, but also have a more academic and analytical discussion about the impact of having a woman in-front of and behind of the camera on that specific story, as well as the cultural distinctions that are present between the different nations. I tried my best to highlight films from lesser known filmmakers or at least women whose films I had never seen (so I did not include films by very famous directors such as Greta Gerwig, Ava DuVernay, Barbra Streisand, Sofia Coppola, Jane Campion, or Kathryn Bigelow).

Here is the tentative schedule for the films I will be viewing for the project. Titles are subject to change based on regional availability (some films are harder to find than others).

January: The Bigamist (1953) directed by Ida Lupino from the USA; starring Ida Lupino and Joan Fontaine

February: La Ciênaga (2001) directed by Lucrecia Martel from Argentina; starring Mercedes Morán and Graciela Borges

March: Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) directed by Céline Sciamma from France; starring Adèle Haenel and Noémie Merlant

April: Rafiki (2019) directed by Wanuri Kahiu from Kenya; starring Samantha Mugatsia and Sheila Munyiva

May: Zero Motivation (2014) by Talya Lavie from Israel; starring Nelly Tagar and Dana Ivgy

June: My 20th Century (1990) by Ildikó Enyedi from Hungary; starring Dorota Segda

July: Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1974) directed by Chantal Akerman from Belgium; starring Delphine Seyrig

August: Antonia’s Line (1995) directed by Marleen Gorris from the Netherlands; starring Willeke van Ammelrooy and Els Dottermans

September: Nowhere in Africa (2001) directed by Caroline Link from Germany; starring Juliane Köhler

October: Rachida (2002) directed by Yamina Bachir from Algeria; starring Ibtissem Djouadi

November: The Night Porter (1974) directed by Liliana Cavani from Italy; starring Charlotte Rampling

December: Wings (1966) directed by Larisa Shepitko from the Soviet Union; starring Maya Bulgakova

I am incredibly excited to begin this journey around the globe and interact with these filmmakers’ work. I truly believe in the power of cinema, specifically its global reach and impact, and I hope that this project can contribute in some way to that beautiful power.

The Ancient Modern-Day Woman: What Cleopatra's Legacy Means to Me

Recently in school I had to answer the following question: who is your historical figure, and why?

The question is not complex or demanding, and instantly I knew my answer. It is the same answer I use anytime I am asked this question. Cleopatra. To many, that may be a beaten to the ground, eye-roll inducing, cliché answer. I would agree with those people! I am not normally one to agree with the popular consensus, and yet, Cleopatra will always be my pick.

I think to some extent any high school girl has admiration for Cleopatra. When we learn the big names of ancient history, there’s Alexander the Great, Hammurabi, Xerxes, Mark Antony, Julius Caesar…and Cleopatra. Her name invokes a breath of fresh air, and her image in itself is empowering. She is the one female leader of that time period that the history books could not ignore.

Cleopatra doesn’t just receive recognition for being a woman; her accomplishments as a leader exceed the judgement of gender. Her savvy politics helped her ascend the throne and remain there for two decades until her untimely death. And although modern literature and film enjoy to dramatize her relationships with Mark Antony and Julius Caesar (which were also incredibly impressive feats of leadership and command), Cleopatra stands on her own as a historical figure. In fact, she is definitely more well-known than her two Roman companions.

The fact that she is so prominent in history has always made me gravitate towards her. But what makes Cleopatra’s legacy fascinating to me is beyond her title and her long reign; it is the fact that Cleopatra was a leader who embraced he femininity and led as a woman, and did so unapologetically in a time when that was unthinkable. In these times, I think we could use another Cleopatra, and it is sad that I think the world would have a more adverse reaction to a leader of her nature than they did in ancient times. Cleopatra was the embodiment of an ancient modern-day woman, and I am forever grateful for her rich legacy.

The Scarlet Letter: An Underwhelming Introduction to American Literature

This year in English, the focus of my class is on reading and exploring classic American literature, starting with the Puritans and The Scarlet Letter, all the way to The Great Gatsby and beyond. And while I am excited to further familiarize myself with such iconic titles, The Scarlet Letter was not all I hoped it would be. 

There were some elements of the novel I enjoyed. Hester Prynne could be a twenty-first century woman who just happens to be dealing with eighteenth-century issues. Being a single mother and the hardships and judgement that come with that are still very relevant issues today, and Hester is an excellently written female character, even more impressive is the fact that she was written in a time when women were rarely considered “complex.”

I also thought the symbolism of the scarlet letter was creative and perhaps the best developed “character” of the novel. It added an added layer of depth that helped carry the plot; the evolution of the letter’s meaning was also an interesting progression.

My gripes with The Scarlet Letter has nothing to do with the novel being “old”; some of my favorite books come from older eras. I actually love the storyline of the novel, especially when the plot finally starts to be explored. My main issues are unfortunately the fault of author Nathaniel Hawthorne himself. Hawthorne’s horrendous pacing combined with his half-baked character development makes The Scarlet Letter a great story that is hard to get through. 

First, the pacing. The first 100 pages or so of the novel are a collection of elaborate descriptions and intense discussions, none of which lead to any action. Dragging out long sentences, sometimes even paragraphs, about the natural surroundings of the character, or what they’re looking at, do little to enhance the narrative.  And once the story starts to ramp up, specifically as Hester and Dimmesdale reunite to plot against the manipulative Chillingworth, the pacing becomes rushed, and the novel comes to a very abrupt and unsatisfying ending. Loose ends were wrapped up in short and convenient little bows, with little explanation as to how or why certain things happen, like why Chillingworth leaves his fortune to Pearl when she is not even his child, or how Hester is welcomed back into the community.

I also felt that the character development was rushed, excluding Hester, who was a captivating and well-rounded character throughout the novel. Dimmesdale’s transition from the secretive and depressed reverend to the great father and “brave” confessor of sins is unbelievable; Dimmesdale’s development is extremely out of character. He works best as a character when he is the cowardly man who cannot face his sins, but does not have to because the public loves him; this works better as a foil to Chillingworth, who, although has impure motives, has strong conviction and is not afraid to stay true to his intentions. 

Pearl was also a character who fell off the map in the second half of the story, and while this was intentionally done to fit Hester’s character development, she played such a major role in the first 100 pages, and I wanted to see more of her perspective towards the end. I also thought her ending, simply getting Chillingworth’s inheritance, was anticlimactic for such a pivotal character.

Overall, I respect The Scarlet Letter and its place in American literature’s history. However, I would not read it again, and I would not recommend this book if it was not considered a “classic.” Hester Prynne deserved a more well-rounded supporting cast, and unfortunately, Nathaniel Hawthorne was too preoccupied with including nature and symbolism to give her that. 

My Weekend in Philly: Cheesesteaks Not Included.

This weekend, my family and I went on an excursion to the historical city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. And while no, I didn’t visit the Liberty Bell (my 5th grade field trip already covered that), nor did I eat any Philly cheesesteaks, I was able to get a close-up look at our nation’s former capital.

Philly, similar to Boston, is a city that in modern day still remains a center of evolving culture, diverse people, elite universities, and great sports teams, in addition to its incomparable roots in American history. Philadelphia’s connection to America’s past in inescapable; artwork, sculptures, and architecture from the beginning of our country still remain and are embraced. Philadelphia’s NBA even harkens back to America’s foundation, calling themselves the “76ers”.

However, Philadelphia’s bridge from the past to the present is what makes it. in my opinion, a more intriguing city than Boston. Almost like small cities within the larger whole of Philadelphia, you can totally remove yourself from the history and be immersed in a twenty-first century metropolis, bustling with contemporary art museums, stadiums and arenas, and a diverse and lively night life.

In my short visit to Philadelphia, i was fortunate enough to visit the University of Pennsylvania, one of the most esteemed universities in the world. A member of the Ivy League, UPenn is a university that prides itself on academic excellence, a robust yet flexible curriculum, and of course, the luxury of being in the center of a major U.S. city.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Penn; students were engaged in learning, taking on multiple majors, seeking summer opportunities, and volunteering their time to present to potential students. Students at Penn, like other elite universities, love to learn and grow as students and individuals, and that energy was very present on the Penn campus.

Similar to the city of Philadelphia, Penn is full of artwork, specifically sculptures, that are both beautiful and interesting, which is a good way to summarize the Penn campus. Buildings with old and historical exteriors are met with sleek and modern interiors, to maintain the” Ivy League look” if you will, while also creating the most productive work spaces for students.

While walking through the campus, I totally forgot I was in Philadelphia. The campus is big, but not too big, and has plenty going on. However, being able to step right outside the campus into a city like Philadelphia is a fantastic privilege that Penn students definitely take advantage of (and they’re encouraged to do so socially and academically).

Philadelphia was a city I liked more as I saw more, and a city I hope to return to. No, it is not New York, or San Francisco, or Washington D.C., but it is a great place to be, whether you're in the room where the Declaration of Independence was signed, or at a Taylor Swift concert, and certainly a great city to go to school, especially when there is a school at the caliber of Penn in the heart of it.

Me in front of the LOVE sculpture at the University of Pennsylvania!

Focus on Yourself: Reflecting on Freshman Year

This past Wednesday I finished my freshman year of high school. There is no correct or adequate way to prepare one for the high school experience; it does not matter if you are a genius or a failing student, a varsity athlete, an artist, or a violin player. On the first day of freshman year, everyone is thrown in head first with no one holding their hand; from that point, is it up to every student to decide for themselves if, for the next four years, they are going to sink or swim.

My freshman year experience had its highs and its lows; I maintained high grades, I made new friends, and had incredible experiences; however, I also had long and grueling hours of homework, stress, and the constant pressures of keeping up with my peers.

High school has taught me invaluable lessons about myself, and of course about the subjects I am taught in. But perhaps the best lesson I learned over the course of my freshman year is this: focus on yourself, and do not give in to imposter syndrome.

"Imposter syndrome" is a type of psychological behavior in which one diminishes their own accomplishments by constantly comparing them to those of others; in my case, and the case of many competitive high school students, "others" are their peers.

Being a competitive person and a competitive student, sharing higher level classes with more-or-less the same group of people throughout my classes created some unhealthy expectations. Students would always compare grades on tests and projects, track each other's GPAs, and discuss and analyze their "competition".

I will admit, I definitely got wrapped up in imposter syndrome early on in the year. I became fixated on knowing who had what GPA, what summer activity so-and-so was doing, and how many APs so-and-so was planning to take next year. This was a massive mistake, as I found myself questioning my achievements and abilities when I stacked them up against my peers.

Then, I watched a YouTube video. It was a video by a student at Dartmouth College detailing his troubles in high school with imposter syndrome. He explained how he was always "number-two" at his high school, and how that impacted his views on his worth as a student and as an individual. His video was a big wake-up call for me; I realized that the more time I devoted to stressing about what others were doing, the less time I had to accomplish my goals and get to the places I wanted to be. The person in the video had this same wake-up call, and now he's at Dartmouth!

If you asked me the GPA of any of my peers now, I would tell you I do not know. I only know what my friends are doing this summer, and I do not care what so-and-so's class rank is. Because zoning in on others' successes will never advance me or my successes, and that is not how anyone should spend their time in high school; we should be able to support our peers without comparing ourselves to them, which is an attitude I definitely had to work towards.

I had an awesome freshman year; I ended with great grades, I earned leadership roles in several clubs that I am excited to take on, and have expanded my role in my community. And, yes, I am sure there are countless other people my age doing much more, and that is great for them; right now, my greatest concern is being proud of myself, and I could not be happier with what I achieved my freshman year, and could not be more excited to see what else is to come.

Emma