Another fact based story, this time one which has been constructed
around the woman’s suffrage movement in Britain in the late 19th and
early 20th century. The movie includes some real life characters,
Emmeline Pankhurst (Meryl Streep) leader of the movement and Emily Davison
(Natalie Press) a militant suffragette who was jailed on nine occasions and force-fed
49 times both written in along side some very convincing fictitious characters. Written by Abi Morgan who was also
responsible for screenplay for Brick Lane
(2007) co writer on the Steve McQueen directed movie Shame
(2011) and created and wrote the six-part British TV drama Series River that stars Stellan Skarsgard and
Nicola Walker. Directed by Sarah Gavron, who won a Best Director award for Brick Lane, Suffragette (2015) was
selected to open the 2015 BFI London Film Festival.
The brave women that Morgan's story was based upon. |
As I have already said Morgan’s story is based around real
life facts that emanates from the decision of Emmeline Pankhurst to concentrate
on deeds and not just words, an edict that went a long way to radicalise woman
of all classes encouraging them to participate in actions of social unrest and acts
of destruction. At the centre of the
narrative is Maud Watts, played by Carey Mulligan in award winning mode, who
has worked in the same laundry since a very young child, a married woman with a
small child of her own. We witness Maud accidentally getting mixed up with a
window-breaking riot in Oxford Street London. This single incident leads her
deeper into the movement and the effect it has on her and her family life.
Although most people will be familiar with the woman’s
movement and its battle to allow female voting rights the movie really does
concentrate the mind on how difficult and hard it was to win what should have
been a basic right for all women over the age of eighteen. It’s still incomprehensible
to believe that it took until 1928 for woman to get parity in the UK with men
over their voting rights. Just one more example of how hard it is to go against
the establishment and their paid lackeys. The film is difficult to watch at
times not because of what you see on the screen but because of the story it’s
portraying, an unbelievable mix of sadness, hardship and dedication. The cast
also includes Helena Bonham Carter, Brendan Gleeson, Ben Whishaw and Anne-Marie
Duff.
Arrested by the Establishments Lackeys. |
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