South by Southwest, known as SXSW Festival, is an annual gathering of films, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that takes place in mid-March in Austin, Texas, United States. It began in 1987 and has continued to increase in scope and magnitude each year. Festivalgoers can view a wide variety of content, including documentaries, TV production, animation, music videos, and more, on screens ranging from the small to the large. An Army of Women, the feature documentary directed by Julie Lunde Lillesæter that will have its world premiere at the SXSW Festival, revolves around a collective of women in Austin, Texas, who unite to support a legal battle against the system that enables their rapists to evade justice.
An Army of Women, directed and edited by Julie Lunde Lillesaeter, portrays the tales of rape and sexual assault victims, the authorities’ reluctance to acknowledge the brutal facts, and the victims’ pursuit of justice and support in a remarkable documentary. Amy Smith, the primary plaintiff, is shown cutting court documents in the opening shot while reflecting on 15 years of hardship. Jenny and Elizabeth, the lawsuit attorneys, bravely assist the victims. As far as we know, lawyers pledge to respect justice and the law and support anyone in need of representation before appearing in court, and they have diligently completed their tasks. Marina Garrett and Hanna are two more members of the plaintiffs’ army who are challenging the official indifference. These women may not fully uncover the experiences of thousands more others in similar situations, but their absolute endeavors and how they deal with the situation are admirable.
Frances McDormand, the American actress and producer, emphasizes the importance of editing in one of her interviews. As she says, the filmmaker who understands the importance of editing has a comprehensive perspective on the film. Julie Linde Lillesaeter, together with Trude Lirhus and Mathias Askeland, skillfully combines editing expertise to blend newspaper headlines with the feelings of the victims in some sections of An Army of Women. When we see the term “dismissed” in various contexts, we understand the frustration experienced by the plaintiffs as they navigated the legal process of pursuing the claim. By combining the media and official footage about the abuse cases with the victim’s personal life in the same frames, the director shows the different sides of one coin.
The director of short documentaries like The Dry Valley and When Pride Came to Town (2018) and the brilliant documentary about Kisilu, a Kenyan farmer, named Thank You for the Rain (2017) once again demonstrates her efficacy in addressing challenging and intricate human concerns. With her cinematic talent, Julie Linde Lillesaeter is there to unravel one of the most controversial issues in the world: women’s sexual abuse. Travis County in Austin is not an exception.
Jenny and Elizabeth stated that about one thousand sexual assaults were recorded in Austin annually, with only one case going to trial in 2016–17. A perpetrator who had previously assaulted five other women assaulted the male victim, but none of the women’s cases resulted in legal action. It provides solid evidence that women’s situations are not treated with seriousness since they are not believed. An Army of Women is leading us along the road of being believed and understood. As the film progresses, fresh riddles are expected to be resolved. The District Attorney, Margaret Moore, appears to downplay the severity of the catastrophe, while her election competitor, Jose Garze, is taking it seriously as expected. All the highs and lows, the despair and the hope, the traumatic moments of defeat and ignorance of society for empathy have been masterfully depicted in the documentary.
Documentaries, thanks to their ability to bring the realities of life to light, have their own values and supporters in the film industry. Still, the way documentaries are narrated is a matter of debate. Having real people who are wearing no masks but the truth is not easy at all, specifically in cases like sexual abuse, which has always been taboo in societies.
In Julie Linde Lillesaeter’s An Army of Women, we see unguarded helpless women who have been abused, and as if it were not enough, they are carrying the burden of shame, anger, and depression on their own shoulders. Julie Linde Lillesaeter subtly shows how taking responsibility for the issues and apologizing to the victims is vital. Their tears in court are strong proof of what they have suffered during their own trial.
© 2020-2024. UniversalCinema Mag.