“Women Talk” proves that there is nothing stronger than a female bond

What is Women Talking About?

The film centers on women and girls from a rural, remote Mennonite colony discussing their future. The women and girls were repeatedly drugged and sexually abused by the colony’s men, who now traveled to the city to post bail for the arrested criminals. The women hold a vote to determine whether they should do nothing, stay and fight the men, or leave and form a new colony. The vote results in a tie between fight and leave, and three families are elected to resolve the tie. Much of the screening time of the film is dedicated to this conference as families discuss the expectations and implications of each option. While some of the debate is polemical, much of the conversation is driven by women’s stories.

Storytelling allows women to better understand each other

Three types of storytelling by women are of particular relevance to the conference. First, women tell each other biographical accounts of their experiences. When Salome (Foy) mentions that she needs to give her daughter Mip (Emily Mitchell) antibiotics, other women ask how Salome was able to get medicines outside the colony. Her mother Agatha (Ivy) tells how Salome carried Meep on her back for several days to get to the local clinic. As Agatha tells this story, the film switches to Salome carrying her wounded daughter. In this way, the film supports Agatha’s narrative with visualization, presenting the visualization that takes place in the minds of each of the other women. The story of Agatha describes the plight of Salome after the attack on her daughter. While none of the women is depicted questioning Salome’s love for her daughter, this story fills the silence left by her not speaking out about such an issue and allows each of the women, especially Maricha (Buckley), to reconsider Salome’s wrath. Throughout the film, each of the women has equal opportunities to tell their stories and those of their families, allowing the other women to better understand not only the narrator but also the stakes of their decision.

The exchange of allegories leads women to agree on a solution

Second, allegorical stories are told to help women make their decision. The allegories are mostly told by Greta (McCarthy) in the form of stories about her horses, Ruth and Cheryl. The first story she tells concerns the reaction of the horses to being frightened by the dogs of the colony. In the presence of strong fear, the horses rush, deviating from the predetermined path. Greta uses this allegory to understand why the women might consider leaving the colony—perhaps when there is danger, flight is the best option. This story begins a lively discussion about Greta’s choice of words, but she returns to her most important thesis: if women are treated like animals, why not act like animals? Later, Greta tells another similar story in which the road conditions make it difficult for the horses to maintain their path. Greta says that instead of focusing on the nearest stretch of road in front of her, she can regain control if she focuses on where she is going. Here she allegorically describes how women can control their own destiny by focusing on the path ahead rather than the one they see right now. Through these stories, the views of women change and contribute to their final decision to leave the colony.

Storytelling can immortalize women’s experiences and save lives

The creation of new narratives constitutes the third form of storytelling. As part of the conference, women ask August (Ben Whishaw), a school teacher, to keep minutes of the meeting. While the women are preparing to leave the colony, Augustus tries to hand Salome the protocol he has drawn up. She stops him by saying, “The goal was for you to take minutes.” The minutes of the meeting do not serve as notes for the women to familiarize themselves with, but as a new history that Augustus can keep in the colony. Since women and girls in the colony are not taught to read and write, it is assumed that the material that is read and taught to boys in school does not reflect women’s experiences.The protocol thus offers a new narrative that can be used to help boys forget generational misogyny.

All the events of the film also work as the creation of a new story, as the film is structured through framed narrative. women talk opens with Authier’s narration line (Keith Hallett): “This story ended before you were born.” In this way, the narrative structure contributes to the film’s depiction of women’s narration, as the events portrayed on screen are understood to be part of Autier’s story. The narration further complicates the plot as Autier brings in significant reflections on the proceedings of the conference. For example, she describes how, when women looked back, they could see breadcrumbs indicating that men were attacking women. However, since their stories were never told, the women did not have the language to discuss what was going on. In this way, the narrative creates a double argument for the importance of storytelling by women: through these stories, women can understand the past as well as envision their new future. Autier’s narration embodies this idea in the film’s final line: “Your story will be different from ours.”

“Women Talking’s message comes from both inside and outside the narrative”

These three storytelling forms not only lead women to the ultimate decision to leave the colony, but their potential also inspires other women and girls in the colony who join them. This is shown most clearly through the Janz (McDormand) family. Although Janz initially participated in the conference, she forcibly removes herself, her daughter Anna (Kira Guloyen) and her granddaughter Elena (shila brown), from a conference when other women would not consider forgiving the men and staying in the colony. Anna hesitates, suggesting that she would rather fight or leave. At the end of the film, as the women prepare their carriages, Anna and Helena rush to the carriages and join their efforts. Although they have not heard women’s stories directly, they are inspired by the potential of women’s storytelling for their future.

There are several ways women talk can be interpreted as an allegory of contemporary gender politics, but consideration of all of them is beyond the scope of this article. However, one particularly noteworthy way of interpretation is to view the film as an allegory for female cinematic storytelling. The women of the colony are historically deprived of the language to put their stories into words. Women directors and screenwriters have faced a similar exception in the history of Hollywood filmmaking. It is only by telling stories that the women of the colony can foresee and create their own future. As seen with Anna and Elena, these stories inspire women who want to be a part of this future. So for women filmmakers women talk claims that female cinematic storytelling inspires other female filmmakers to tell their stories in film. women talk showcases the power of women behind the camera and in her storytelling and serves as an inspiration for the female storytellers of the future.