作业英文写的，实在没时间翻译了，有关两个电影的比较就试着两边都发一遍。
Destruction and Reflection in Objectification: Feminist Allegory in Daisies/ Sedmirkrásky [1] and The Girls/ Flickorna [2]
In the male-dominated film industry, it is rare to see films made from the perspective of women. Thornburg complains that traditionally most media have provided limited role models for women and that most films objectify women and define them in terms of their relationship to men.[3] With the onset of second-wave feminism in the early 1960s in the west, more women got involved in the film industry as filmmakers and more films were produced from a feminist point of view. Examples of such films include Daisies and The Girls, which are both directed by and use women as protagonists. These films successfully broke down stereotypical portrayals of women in film and have presented women’s reflection on their condition under patriarchal society. Daisies is directed by Věra Chytilová, a preeminent member of the Czech New Wave film movement. This film can be interpreted in a number of ways and can also be considered as a feminist allegory which reconstructs the doll metaphor as the celebration of the female recalcitrance rather than the apparent condemnation of its heroines.[4] The Girls, which is more recognisable of its director - Mai Zetterling’s political commitment, inserts an ancient Greek comedy - Lysistrata as a feminist allegory to reveal the heroines’ reflection on their own lives. Focusing on the central notion in feminism - objectification, this study will explore the feminist values presented to the viewer in Daisies and The Girls. This will be achieved by carefully comparing and analysing filmic elements and techniques used in both of these films.
Before we begin to analyse their respective film works, it is valuable to look at these female filmmakers’ authorship approaches first. Although Chytilová and Zetterling are both from Europe, they came from opposing parts of Europe divided by the so called “Iron Curtain” for much of the 20th century, leading to distinct cultural differences in their work. As one of the most innovative filmmakers in 1960s, Chytilová’s work is characterised by surrealism, grotesque satire and absurdism. She is very creative in her methods through which she utilises avant-garde and experimental techniques to establish her own unique film style. For a brief period the work she produced was critical of communism, due to the de-Stalinization policy of the Czech government in the early 1960s, a short-lived period of artistic freedom in the country. Her early career as a fashion model may also have influenced Daisies. Zetterling is perhaps better known in the west for her acting than for her directing, yet she has created a new image of women in film which has embodied the potential of filmmaking by women[5]. Her filmmaking style is deeply influenced by the Swedish Ingmar Bergman, who has achieved worldwide notoriety as a director. He has directed several films and TV series that focus on women and marriage such as Persona[6] and Scenes from a Marriage/Scener ur ett äktenskap [7] which are in the same vein as The Girls. Some of the actors from The Girls also star in some Bergman’s other films. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the influence of Bergman when analysing The Girls by Zetterling.
Differences in film elements and techniques set apart the contrasting styles of Daisies and The Girls. When analysing the respective films’ cinematography, it is apparent that the change of colour in Daisies and The Girls sets essential differences in their film’s tone. The differences are not just confined to the fact that Daisies is cine-colour and The Girls is in black and white. Daisies has manifest colour change from filters change and colour effect. The heavy use of colour effect in this film does not follow any specific rules, setting a tone that resembles a disordered game. Hames remarks that Daisies does not take itself seriously as most experimental films do.[8] This is contrast to The Girls, which follows a clear rule of the change of colour contrast. To some extent, The Girls is a combination of acting, reality, imagination and reminiscence. However, it is notable that only the reality and acting on the timeline are presented in a normal contrast, whereas imagination and flashback are both in high black and white contrast. This indicates a strong tendency of gender opposition. A clear and firm tone has been stated from the manifest colour change.
As evidenced by the soundtrack differences in Daisies and The Girls, the feminist allegory is told in a subtle way and a direct way respectively in each film. Much like its visual style, Daisies’ soundtrack is an experimental mixture of dialogue, sound effects and music. The soundtrack is more independent in Daisies, it includes pop music and mechanical sounds such as the tik tok of a clock and creaking sounds. The creative use of contrapuntal sound effectively defines the attributes of the two heroines from the opening scene of Daisies: the movement of the two Maries’ bodies makes a mechanical sound. From the beginning of the film Chytilová has made it clear that two heroines are puppet-like, as evidenced from their stiff and unnatural movements. In contrast, the sound source used in The Girls is diegetic for the most part. The movie uses dialogue directly copied from the play Lysistrata for dramatic effect. The memories and imagination aroused by the theatre that three heroines perform in are juxtaposed with lines from Lysistrata, to show their understanding of the drama and reflection of their real lives. The psychological description of an old couple who Liz has treated like friends is shown as monologues which reveal the status quo of women under the male gaze. Compared to Daisies, the dialogue in The Girls is more revealing in terms of its political overtones. This is in contrast to the dialogue of Daisies, which is far more banal and mundane, therefore its subtext as a feminist allegory is presented in a far more subtle way.
Another element that differentiates the style of Daisies and The Girls is the performance style. The performance in Daisies is mostly acted out by the two women, and they are both amateur actors. Their performance style is unique and unnatural, and is in keeping with the style of the film. Their body language and speech are also stilted, and these traits combined with their negative and selfish behaviour are superficially attractive. [9] This performance style helps to establish the image of the girls as being doll like, Hames argues that they ‘act out a puppet-like spectacle.’[10] In The Girls, the acting performances are more natural and professional. The characters’ behaviour noticeably diverges under different conditions. In the real world and in memory sequences, the heroines are obedient and weak. However in the scenes from the theatre and from their imagination, they are radical and strong. These inconsistencies in their behaviour show their strong desire to have these traits in the real world. For instance, Liz gives three speeches which are after the show, in the real world in front of the journalists and in her imagination. Her confidence level varies in each of her speeches, at the start of her after-show speech she is reasonably self-assured, but in her real world speech she is irresolute, lastly in her imagination she is fearless and intrepid, reflecting her ‘desire for power’.[11]
To some extent, Daisies is about the consequences of poor decision making whereas The Girls is a reflection on the feminist allegory. Daisies and The Girls both criticise consumerism with food but in differing ways. In The Girls, Gunila has an unpleasant flashback where she goes shopping and buys a cake. She is treated disrespectfully by a male clerk in shop and then children start to chase her, leaving her feeling helpless. She drops the cake she bought and runs away. Gunila does not push back against the clerk’s behaviour and fears the kids even as a mother of four children herself. In Daisies, the two girls eat, cut and spoil food, and burn things with joy. There behaviours show the girls’ liberation from consumerism using hyperbolic imagery. Lim describes them as being ‘awaken to revolt’[12]against the worn out cliche that women are powerless and flimsy.
The relationship between the heroines and men in these two films are portrayed using different techniques. In Daisies, the two Maries belong to no-one, and they enjoy the game of manipulating men because of their inability to love. In other words, they also belong to everyone. They are portrayed as both consumers and destroyers of food, but in reality they represent the typical woman who has been objectified to the point where they are no different to a product that is consumed in the patriarchal society. Chytilová further highlights this from other details in the film such as when the two Maries soak themselves in the milk bath and when they get into the food elevator. In Daisies, the two Maries use destruction to justify their existence. Nobody cares them so they decide to destroy. The Girls is for the most part about the struggle of three heroines against the men in their lives. They are deeply bothered by the reality that people are indifferent towards them even though they are successful actresses. The girls in Daisies parallel the mistresses of Liz’s husband in her fantasy scene in The Girls. Liz’s husband takes his mistresses out from his case and undresses them on the bed as though they are dolls, whilst persuading Liz to sacrifice her career to support him. Thornburg points out that Liz’s husband wants to objectify Liz in the same manner as his mistresses: to achieve an ‘expansion of his own ego’.[13]Clouzot states that the dominant trait of Daisies is its objective vision[14], which explains why Chytilová and Zetterling present the two Maries and the mistresses of Liz’s husband in a similar manner.
The difference can also be seen from different character settings. In The Girls, the heroines’ conflict with the men in their lives is partly due to their successful jobs. However, in Daisies, the two girls never work but exist under an ‘economical parasitism’ [15]. The three heroines in The Girls are middle-class white women who can be related to by the audience from their different conditions: Mariamne is a mistress, Liz has a cheating husband and Gunila is a mother who has a boring and irresponsible husband. In Daisies, the young and beautiful Maries are an extreme representation of every woman who has been objectified in their life.
Daisies and The Girls both operate within a double world structure but it presented to the viewer in different ways. The two worlds in Daisies, which are the realistic orderly world and the world of the two Maries’ abnormal behaviours, exist independently. The majority of Daisies is dominated by the second world. There are several parts of the film in which the two Maries encounter the real world. For example, in the nightclub scene, a female dancer becomes frozen with surprise upon viewing the two Maries’ farcical behaviour. One can assume that her reaction shows how she has become enlightened by the two Maries’ defiance against docility. In the countryside scene, the two Maries are passed by a group of workers who totally ignore them, which sparks Maries’ self-criticism about their decision to engage in this behaviour. Moreover, the dual protagonists are symbolic of the double world. The repeated use of symmetrical composition from the beginning correlates with the concept of double world. Daisies starts with the dual protagonists sitting on the ground and ends with them lying on the table after their punishment. Their rebellion is destined to fail because they are still stuck in the cage of patriarchal society. At the end of the film, their behaviour reverts to that of the stereotypical female, happy to be subservient in society. Their destruction can be interpreted as Chytilová’s criticism on objectifying women.
In The Girls, the double world becomes mixed up together as the three heroines’ theatre acting, real life and fantasy combine. The nightclub scene in The Girls is a fantasy in which Liz leads the women to use their initiative to put themselves under the male gaze by taking off their clothes in front of male onlookers. Only in the imaginary scenes do the women rebel bravely, which is similar to the behaviour of the girls in Daisies. Apart from this, the heroines are passive and oppressed in the real world. Their fantasies are more like daydreams, compared to the practical revolt that occurs in Daisies. The Girls ends in an ambiguous manner. Liz’s decision to get divorced is not shown explicitly but is replaced by the imagery of distorted figures dancing in the mirror, which may indicate an acknowledgement by Zitterling that the challenges faced by women in the real world are still difficult to conquer. As Zitterling admits that ‘a woman is emotionally formed by men and never quite breaks free from them, even if she would like to.’[16]
Thanks to the efforts of generations of feminists, women have made great progress in the pursuit of gender equality in the west. However, today’s world is still dominated by men, and women in developing countries are still facing similar problems to what were experienced by women in the developed world in the 1960s. Winkler describes the three main actresses in The Girls as having a real ‘sense of frustration with balancing or combining work and family’ in 1995[17]. Women in the movie industry are still facing these same problems today. Chytilová has become renowned for her talent, skills and unique style. However, Zetterling cannot avoid being overshadowed by the more acclaimed Bergman as a director. Therefore, films like Daisies and The Girls are still hugely relevant as feminist allegories, not only because they show how women have awakened to reflect on their condition, but also to act as a benchmark when it comes to the representation of women in film today. Daisies and The Girls both have distinctive styles in presenting colours, sound and performance on screen. Chytilová tells the story of how women can be destroyed by objectification through an experimental comedy. Zetterling contrasts the reality and the political appeal of women who have become inspired by the play Lysistrata. They both reflect on the manner in which women have become objectified and go on to explore the real world demands of women. Although the five heroines in two films all fail in practicing, the double world in Daisies already interacts with each other and the three actresses in The Girls are awaken on the ideological level. These proclaimed feminist films will always inspire people to reflect and behave just as the female filmmakers had wished. Winkler highlights that Liz’s speech after her performance likely serves as Zetterling’s own views in regard to her film[18]. These films shot from the woman’s perspective in 1960s deserve more notoriety as they are invaluable in showing the potential of women as independent human beings. As Winkler argues that ‘in spite of Bergman’s influence, The Girls is Zetterling’s own.’[19]
Filmography
Bergman, Ingmar, Persona, 1966. Film. Swe: AB Svensk Filmindustri
Bergman, Ingmar, Scene from a Marriage/ Scener ur ett äktenskap, 1973. TV series. Swe: Sveriges Radio
Chytilová, Věra, Daisies/Sedmirkrásky. 1966. Film.
Zetterling, Mai. The Girls/Flickorna. 1968. Film. Swe: Sandrew Film & Teater
Bibliography
Anděl, Jaroslav, Alexandr Hackenschmied (Prague: Torst, 2000)
Clouzot, Claire, ‘Daisies by Věra Chytilová’ Film Quartly, Vol.21, No.3, 1968, pp. 35-37.
Hames, Peter, Czech and Slovak Cinema: Theme and Tradition (Traditions in World Cinema) (Edinburgh University Press, 2010)
Lim, Bliss Cua, ‘Dolls in Fragments: Daisies as Feminist Allegory’ Camera Obscura, Vol.16, No.2, 2001, pp. 1-77.
Sloan, Jane, ‘Making the Scene Together: Mai Zetterling’s Flikorna/The Girls(1968) and Aristophanes’s Lysistrata’, Quarterly Review of Film and Video, Vol.25, No.2, 2008, pp. 97-106
Thornburg, Linda, ‘Mai Zetterling: The Creation of a New Mythology’ Journal of the University Film Association, Vol. 26, No. 1/2, 1974, pp. 13-15.
Winkler, Martin M, Classical Literature on Screen: Affinities of Imagination (Cambridge Press, 2017)
[1] Chytilová, Věra, Daisies/Sedmirkrásky. 1966. Film.
[2] Zetterling, Mai. The Girls/Flickorna. 1968. Film. Swe: Sandrew Film & Teater
[3] Thornburg, Linda, ‘Mai Zetterling: The Creation of a New Mythology’ Journal of the University Film Association, Vol. 26, No. 1/2, 1974, p. 13.
[4] Lim, Bliss Cua, ‘Dolls in Fragments: Daisies as Feminist Allegory’ Camera Obscura, Vol.16, No.2, 2001, p. 38.
[5] Thornburg, ‘Mai Zetterling: The Creation of a New Mythology’, p. 13.
[6] Bergman, Ingmar, Persona, 1966. Film. Swe: AB Svensk Filmindustri
[7] Bergman, Ingmar, Scene from a Marriage/ Scener ur ett äktenskap, 1973. TV series. Swe: Sveriges Radio
[8] Hames, Peter, Czech and Slovak Cinema: Theme and Tradition (Traditions in World Cinema) (Edinburgh University Press, 2010), p. 152.
[9] Anděl, Jaroslav, Alexandr Hackenschmied (Prague: Torst, 2000), p. 8.
[10] Hames, Czech and Slovak Cinema: Theme and Tradition (Traditions in World Cinema), p. 154.
[11] Sloan, Jane, ‘Making the Scene Together: Mai Zetterling’s Flikorna/The Girls(1968) and Aristophanes’s Lysistrata’, Quarterly Review of Film and Video, 25:2, 2008, p. 102.
[12] Lim, Bliss Cua, ‘Dolls in Fragments: Daisies as Feminist Allegory’, p. 60.
[13] Thornburg, ‘Mai Zetterling: The Creation of a New Mythology’, p. 15.
[14] Clouzot, Claire, ‘Daisies by Věra Chytilová’ Film Quartly, Vol.21, No.3, 1968, p. 35.
[15] Lim, Bliss Cua, ‘Dolls in Fragments: Daisies as Feminist Allegory’, p. 57.
[16] Thornburg, quoted in Rosen, Marjorie, ‘Women, Their films and Their Festival’ Saturday Review (ed) ‘Mai Zetterling: The Creation of a New Mythology’, p. 15.
[17] Winkler, Martin M, Classical Literature on Screen:Affinities of Imagination ( Cambridge Press, 2017), p.149.
[18] Ibid. p.144.
[19] Ibid. p.148.
