Feminist Fury: Call Jane & She Said

Well, 2022 has been a year to infuriate most women with the overturning of Roe v Wade and continued indignities to our rights and protections as human beings. So if you're feeling the need to watch some movies about women fighting back against sexism, corruption, and the patriarchy, this blog post is for you.

Call Jane: Directed by Phyllis Nagy with a screenplay from Hayley Schore and Roshan Sethi, this is a fictional story about the very-real group called the Janes, a group of women in Chicago who helped women get abortions in the pre-Roe era from 1969 to 1973. Elizabeth Banks stars as Joy, a suburban housewife who develops complications during her pregnancy with her second child. Her doctor advises her that the only option would be to terminate the pregnancy, but unfortunately, the hospital's medical board (comprised of all male doctors, natch) does not agree, prioritizing the life of the unborn fetus over the life of the very sick mother. At her wit's end, Joy tries every loophole, but cannot find a way to get a legal abortion. Which is when she discovers the Janes, run by the competent and compassionate, Virginia (Sigourney Weaver). They have developed a whole system of how to help women obtain abortions, shepherding them to a doctor on their payroll, and making follow-up calls to ensure their health and safety afterwards. It's extremely illegal, but these women know how dangerous unwanted pregnancies can be to desperate women and are willing to fight the good fight.

The movie is beautifully scripted, always propelling you along Joy's journey as she first gets this abortion and then gradually finds herself sucked in by the Janes. This film has much to say about gender roles, mothers and daughters, solidarity amongst women, and the many ways in which the patriarchy can pit women against themselves. Joy is a prim and proper Catholic and while she recognizes the need for an abortion in her case, she is still very judgy of other women who seem to be using the Janes' service in a more "casual" fashion. But Virginia sets her straight on the Janes' philosophy to never judge the women they take on, and we get to watch Joy's gradual evolution from a slightly frustrated housewife to a strident feminist activist.

The movie also doesn't shy away from all the complications and problems with this group of very white women. Wunmi Mosaku plays Gwen, the group's only Black member, who is frustrated that women of color often cannot avail them themselves of the group's services because they are too poor to pay the exorbitant fee charged by their shady doctor. It's a showcase for the need for intersectional feminism, and how solving one problem cannot solve for all of society's ills; you need to evolve and change and be capable of fighting more than just one fight at a time. Thankfully, this is a story where women band together and triumph, showing remarkable resilience and courage. But given that this country has yet again failed to protect abortion as a right for us all, this movie is a stark reminder of what the women of 2022 are facing once again.

She Said: At this point we are all aware of the broad strokes of the Weinstein scandal. But this movie is the story of Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey (played by Zoe Kazan and Carey Mulligan), the New York Times investigative journalists who did the fearless reporting that first exposed Weinstein's predatory behavior and eventually got him held to account for his crimes. It's a little sad that a movie with so many roles for women exists just because it is about sexual harassment and assault in the workplace, but oh well. C'est la vie. 

Directed by Maria Schrader from a screenplay by Rebecca Lenkiewicz that adapts Kantor and Twohey's articles and book recounting their investigation, the movie is a fast-paced thriller, a throwback to films like All the President's Men or Spotlight, where we all know where the story is headed, but we are all watching with bated breath anyway to see what happens next, and how these reporters are going to find their sources and then convince them to go on the record. Mulligan and Kazan are wonderful and you empathize with them every step of the way, particularly as their characters are reckoning with their own challenges with marriage and motherhood (this movie is a reminder that behind every great woman, there's a man who is willing to take care of the damn kids). But they are relentless and determined to give a voice to women who feel like the entire system has let them down.

This movie is shot in New York, which meant that I spent a lot of time excitedly recognizing places I've been to and identifying weird production design matters like the fact that a Wafels & Dinges kiosk had been renamed Weinman's (what gives, does big Wafel not support women?!) But apart from those delightful asides, this is of course a movie that made me alternately sad and furious. Ashley Judd features prominently, as the first woman who agreed to go on the record, and while it's great to see her tell her piece in this movie, it's just another reminder of all the movies we didn't get to see her in after Weinstein blackballed her in Hollywood. This is a movie where you can already predict exactly how you're going to feel when you walk out, but it is still a great watch. It is riveting, moving, and ensures that attention and focus is given to the brave women who spoke up so this monster could finally be silenced. Now we just need to take down all the other monsters in his wake.