Praise the female gaze with our spotlight on women filmmakers

International Women’s Day on 8 March is another perfect occasion to recognise the global stories by female filmmakers. Stream this selection of films at SBS On Demand.

Women filmmakers

(L–R) ‘Lore’, ‘Marlina The Murderer In Four Acts’, ‘Bedevil’, ‘One Sings, The Other Doesn’t’. Source: SBS On Demand

Lore

MA15+
Germany, Australia, UK, 2012
Genre:
War, Period Drama
Language:
German
Director:
Cate Shortland
Starring:
Saskia Rosendahl, Kai Malina, Mika Seidel, Nele Trebs, Mike Weidner
What’s it about?
Saskia Rosendahl shines as Lore, the oldest child of a family who must lead her siblings to safety when the Allies move into Germany in 1945 and their parents have met their fate. Thomas (Kai Malina) shows up at the perfect time, forcing Lore to question what she’s been taught to believe as his arrival changes the dynamics irrevocably between the children. A powerful film. (Cate Shortland’s 2017 thriller Berlin Syndrome starring Teresa Palmer is also streaming .)  

Watch Lore at SBS On Demand.

One Sings, The Other Doesn’t

MA15+
France, 1977
Genre:
Drama
Language:
French
Director:
Agnès Varda
Starring:
Valérie Mairesse, Thérèse Liotard
What’s it about?
Set in the early sixties, close friends Suzanne, a young mother, and would-be singer Pauline, are embarking on adulthood with the backdrop of the women’s movement influencing their lives. When their lives diverge, a chance encounter at a protest years later reconnects the pair. We follow their friendship across a decade and a half, as they face the various challenges of lovers, parenting and building a career.

SBS On Demand is also streaming a number of iconic filmmaker Agnès Varda’s other films over the decades: 1969 comedy , 1987 documentary in which fellow feminist Jane Birkin is interviewed by and performs for Varda , 1961 black and white drama , 1985 drama and 1956 relationship drama .

Watch One Sings, The Other Doesn’t at SBS On Demand:

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

M
France, 2019
Genre:
Period Romance
Language:
French, Italian
Director:
Céline Sciamma
Starring:
Noemie Merlant, Adele Haenel
What’s it about?
Héloïse’s future holds an unwanted marriage. Her betrothed commissions a portrait of her, and painter Marianne travels to her isolated seaside locale to observe her before she can begin painting. Tension between the women builds in this sumptuous 18-century-set beauty from writer/director, Céline Sciamma.

Watch Portrait of a Lady on Fire at SBS On Demand.

Evolution

MA15+
France, 2015
Genre:
Mystery, Thriller
Language:
French
Director:
Lucile Hadžihalilović
Starring: 
Max Brebant, Roxane Duran, Julie-Marie Parmentier
What’s it about?
When you see Evolution, you’ll understand why French filmmaker Lucile Hadžihalilović (who has Bosnian heritage) losing control over her body and mind. On a remote coastal outcrop live a group of boys and their mysterious mothers. Medical procedures are taken out on the boys, linking them to starfish. A truly original filmmaker, you’ll be hard-pressed to find another film to liken to this one. , “It’s a film about sensations, emotions – not storytelling” that asks you to bring your “imagination to the table”.

Watch Evolution at SBS On Demand.

Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts

MA15+
France, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, 2017
Genre:
Thriller, Drama
Language:
Indonesian
Director:
Mouly Surya
Starring:
Marsha Timothy, Egy Fedly, Dea Panendra, Yoga Pratama
What’s it about?
When the widowed young Marlina’s remote farm is taken over by a gang of would-be robbers and rapists, she decides to fight back, killing some of the attackers. She executes one of the seven men more brutally than the others, and it’s his ghost who reappears to haunt her. A devastating film not for the faint-hearted.

Watch Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts at SBS On Demand.

From the Land of the Moon

MA15+
France, 2016
Genre:
Romance, War Drama
Language:
French
Director:
Nicole Garcia
Starring:
Marion Cotillard, Louis Garrel, Alex Brendemühl
What’s it about?
Oscar winner Marion Cotillard is impassioned as the untethered Gabrielle, married to the unfortunate José. Not performing as a good wife is expected to in post-war rural France, she’s sent away for a brief sojourn to a sanatorium where she falls for broody war veteran André, who captivates her completely, and he knows it. Their affair wreaks further havoc on her marriage after José arrives to bring her home.

Watch From the Land of the Moon at SBS On Demand:

Tuesday Club

M
Sweden, 2022
Genre:
Romantic Comedy
Language:
Swedish
Director:
Annika Appelin
Starring:
Marie Richardson, Peter Stormare, Ida Engvoll, Carina M Johansson
What’s it about?

Alternately titled Food and Romance, this gorgeous funny film centres on Karin, who discovers her husband has been cheating on her. With the encouragement of her friends, she signs up to a cooking class helmed by the gruff but attractive Henrik. Reigniting her passion for cooking serves up a few steamy side dishes as well. A feel-good film that’s just delicious.

Watch Tuesday Club at SBS On Demand.

The Loneliest Planet

M
USA, Germany, 2011
Genre:
Thriller
Language:
English, Georgian, Spanish
Director:
Julia Loktev
Starring:
Gael García Bernal, Hani Furstenberg, Bidzina Gujabidze
What’s it about?
If you’re a fan of thrillers, you will be chilled to bits watching The Loneliest Planet. Alex and Nica are engaged, and blissfully happy. The pair embark on a guided tour through the majestic Caucasus Mountains, and we follow their loving adventure, all the while knowing that something is coming. It’s a mere moment, yet it changes everything irrevocably. Director Julia Loktev expertly times the unfolding drama.

Watch The Loneliest Planet at SBS On Demand.

Bedevil

PG
Australia, 1993
Genre:
Thriller, Horror
Language:
English
Director:
Tracey Moffatt
Starring:
Diana Davidson, Tracey Moffat, Lex Marinos, Jack Charles,  
What’s it about?
The feature film debut of one of our national treasures, prolific visual artist, performer, photographer and filmmaker Tracey Moffatt, Bedevil is also the first feature film made by an Indigenous Australian woman. With her haunting and evocative style, Moffatt weaves together her take on three supernatural stories, each set in Queensland, which melt away time and blur the lines between realms of the living and the dead. An unforgettable cinematic experience.

Watch Bedevil at SBS On Demand.

Four Sisters and a Wedding

M
Philippines, 2013
Genre:
Romantic Comedy
Language:
English, Tagalog
Director:
Cathy Garcia-Molina
Starring:
Toni Gonzaga, Bea Alonzo, Angel Locsin, Shaina Magdayao
What’s it about?
There’s something about weddings and funerals that amp up family drama. Here, it’s the upcoming wedding of our titular sisters’ younger brother that stirs the hornet’s nest. While they momentarily put aside their differences to convince him not to go through with the marriage, longstanding issues must rear their ugly heads. In this case, the romp is delightfully entertaining.

Director Cathy Garcia-Molina loves a romance, and SBS On Demand is also streaming three of her other films: , and .

Watch Four Sisters and a Wedding at SBS On Demand.
SBS Movies is also marking International Women’s Day on 8 March, with The Hours starring Nicole Kidman and Meryl Streep at 8.30pm and Miss Marx at 10.35pm. The Hours will be available at SBS On Demand for 30 days after it airs. Miss Marx is streaming now at SBS On Demand:

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7 min read
Published 6 March 2023 9:04am
Updated 6 March 2023 10:50am
By SBS Movies
Source: SBS


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