This film is just fabulous in trying to show the problems women face everyday. Pourriat is brilliant in flipping commonplace sexist terms that we don't even register anymore as offensive, for example motherfuckers to fatherfuckers. I mean seriously. Genius. Pourriat says, "Sometimes men – it's not their fault – they don't imagine that women are assaulted even with words every day, with small, slight words. They can't imagine that because they are not confronted with that themselves." This was her impetus for making this film, trying to make men understand that street harassment and abuse is ingrained into our society and completely unsolicited.
Even statements like this, when flipped to the other gender, just show how insulting this is. To pass over the man as he is seen as incapable of discussing and coping with matters, is shocking and just shows how awful it is when people speak to the husband not the wife.
This smile is so beautifully forced and all women can emphasise with that as we have all been in that situation where you feel like you have to swallow the insult. Thinking about it, we should all challenge sexist assumptions like that but that takes a lot of bravery.
This scene in which the husband is forced to wear a balaclava by his wife in order not to attract attention is brilliant. This is similar to women being told to cover up in order not to be attacked. The husband seems completely emasculated, on first watching I actually mistook him for a woman. I think this is important as in order to survive in a female dominated world, he must completely eradicate his personality, his identity as a man is dictated and skewed by his society, just like women are in this patriarchy.
This character is brilliant, she is so rude just like a lot of men cat calling in the streets but because it is a woman it seems so unseemly and disgusting.
The panic that he shows when he is locking his bike seems so real, he really captures that feeling when you know you are being watched but can't get away.
The police room scene is incredible, I can't even count the number of situations where I have felt uncomfortable and have pulled together a cardigan or pulled down a skirt. But seeing a guy do this just shows how wrong this is, nobody should be made to feel this way because clothes are just clothes and they should make no impact on how you are treated. The attention to detail in this film is fantastic with all the positions of power held by women, and it jars seeing all these women filling offices. Pourriat again raises questions about rape culture by having the police officer very suspicious of his story.
The wife is such an interesting character, she seems so cold and unsympathetic, she in no way understands or tries to understand what he is going through.
The man has a breakdown, completely exhausted by the constant abuse and his wife responds with 'I can't stand your masculinist nonsense.' This is just brilliant comparison to the word feminist, so often used as an insult or stained with connotations of whiny middle aged single women stereotype. Here she uses masculinist as an insult to shut him up, showing how damaging the use of feminist as an insult is.
The ending is really interesting, as the wife walks away she is plagued by whispers of sexist abuse aimed at her. I think it ends this way to contrast back to what women face everyday, street harassment and abuse should seem as alien as it does to this woman. Also as it is unexpected for this woman her first experiences of it are scary and threatening, this emphasises how just because women have grown used to harassment we no longer find it as scary, but we should and we shouldn't have to face it.
This film is incredible in reversing the situation and highlighting what women have to deal with in a clever and poised way. Liv Siddall commented that, "the film is so well-shot and perfectly timed it gives you goosebumps and spot-on enough to change your views on gender forever." I have to agree, as it truly captures the fear and the frustration of living in a society that favours one gender and oppresses the other. Pourriat's next project is a mockumentary about the removal of pubic hair, frankly I CANNOT WAIT
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