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