Antonia’s Line
Director: Marleen Gorris Run Time: 102 min. Format: 35mm Rating: R Release Year: 1995
Starring: Willeke van Ammelrooy, Els Dottermans, Mil Seghers, Jan Decleir
Co-hosted by programmer Shay Filmore
Antonia, an independent single mother, returns to her Dutch village after World War II to run her late mother’s farm. Once she and her daughter are settled, this “feminist fairytale” spins a multigenerational yarn about a community of strong women and local outsiders cultivated by Antonia. Written and directed by Marleen Gorris (A Question of Silence), the film is a big-hearted, fresh look at women brushing against patriarchal norms to find autonomy and pass those lessons on to the women who come after them. Gorris weaves a fantastical and sensitive tapestry about the highs and lows of life. Even in the face of tragedy, this Academy Award-winning poetic parable radiates whimsy and radical affirmation.
Print courtesy of the Yale Film Archive