Sarah Polley and Face2Face host David Peck talk about her new film Women Talking, curiosity, imagination, the patriarchy, trauma and grief, de and re-construction, the power of community, what it means to heal, inspiration and the greater Good.
Blurb:
Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, and Judith Ivey, with Ben Whishaw and Frances McDormand, star in Sarah Polley’s fearless adaptation of Miriam Toews’
acclaimed novel about a cloistered world where women struggle with an epidemic of abuse.
Oscar-nominated writer-director Sarah Polley’s fearless adaptation of Miriam Toews’ acclaimed novel grants us access to a tight-knit, cloistered religious colony in
which women struggle to recover from an epidemic of abuse. Featuring riveting, emotionally complex performances from a stunning ensemble that includes Oscar
nominees Rooney Mara and Jessie Buckley and Oscar winner Frances McDormand, Women Talking is a drama of harrowing revelations, fraught alliances, and the
search for grace.
Reeling from multiple counts of sexual abuse, newly uncovered within their Mennonite colony, a group of women gather in a hayloft to discuss how to respond. While
the men are away, the women narrow their options down to three: do nothing, stay and fight, or leave. Some fear that any act of defiance will jeopardize their entry into
heaven, while others believe they cannot survive without husbands and sons. Some are willing to take any measures to escape the terror of their domestic lives and
insist that “the truth is stronger than the rules.”
With her first feature in almost a decade, Polley showcases her unmatched skills as both a screenwriter and a director. The film is at once ferocious in its critique of
patriarchal oppression — a critique that clearly extends to our broader, secular culture — while respectful of the beliefs and traditions in which its characters were
raised. Though it is suffused with the pain of trauma, a stubborn sense of wonder and quiet joy in community permeate the film. Women Talking ushers us through a
journey of rage, grief, wisdom, and hope through to a triumphant, most gratifying conclusion.
Adapted from Jane Schoettle’s Synopsis, TIFF
About Sarah:
Sarah Polley, actor, director, writer, producer, she is one of Canada's most talented and well-known actors. Sarah is also an acclaimed director and a committed political activist. As a child actor, her natural and unaffected performances on television series such as CBC’s Road to Avonlea, and in films such as Atom Egoyan's Exotica and The Sweet Hereafter.
After choosing to pursue a career in Canadian and independent films, she embarked on a highly successful second career as a writer-director with such award-winning films as Away from Her, Take This Waltz and Stories We Tell. Her latest film is Women Talking.
She has won multiple Genie and Gemini Awards, and numerous international honours.
Sarah is the first woman to receive a Genie Award for best director, and is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of Canada’s Walk of Fame.
Image Copyright and Credit: Universal Studios.
F2F Music and Image Copyright: David Peck and Face2Face. Used with permission.
For more information about David Peck’s podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here.