Friday, March 29Royal Holloway's offical student publication, est. 1986

Suffragette (2015)- Representation in Film

 

With the general election approaching, it is important to remember the feminist movements that

took place in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the fight for women to have equal rights,

including the right to vote. Later on this year, the film Suffragette will be released and it is likely to

be a dominant force within the 2016 Oscar race. The film will tell the untold story of the real foot

soldiers of the Suffragette movement who were prepared to go beyond peaceful protests, often

turning to violence and prepared to lose everything, to fight for equality and change. Its

revolutionary status in history will be further reinforced within the production value of the film, as it

is the first in history to have been given permission to be shot at the Houses of Parliament. The film

boasts exceptional female talent from stars Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Marie-Duff

and Meryl Streep; from screenwriter Abi Morgan and director Sarah Gavron.

It is disappointing that none of the films nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards this year

were helmed by a central female protagonist. This was also reflected with no female screenwriters

or directors being nominated. The recent twitter movement #FilmHerStory reflects that audiences

want films with more female protagonists. We need films that are representative. Suffragette is

likely to be successful in capturing females within history for a wider audience to appreciate, as it is

captured as ‘a story told by women, about women, for women’.

Suffragette will be released in UK cinemas in Autumn 2015.