VENICE 2021: L’Événement
Wild Bunch InternationalL’Événement ‘Happening’ fits very well into the modern canon of feminist filmmaking, alongside movies like Eliza Hittman’s Never Rarely Sometimes Always and Kitty Green’s The Assistant: stories about social issues that have often been unsuccessfully tackled by men, now finally being reappropriated by women. Audrey Diwan adapts Annie Ermaux’s 2000 novel in an entirely subjective way, as the camera is always focused on Anne (Anamaria Vartolomei), following her around with constant medium shots and close-ups, with handheld motion that adds an extra level of intensity to the experience.
Early ‘60s France had a law that forbade women from getting abortions, the penalty being spending life in jail. Anne is studying literature in university, and an unexpected pregnancy pushes her to seek any help she can to avoid having her baby halt her life and ambitions. The story is very critical of the society of the time, where men were literally in control of women’s bodies and would not take responsibility for their own mistakes.
Films about abortions are nothing new, with Cristian Mungiu’s excellent 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days being held as the finest to approach this subject. While Happening definitely is nothing groundbreaking, both narratively and stylistically, what makes it stand out from similarly themed films is the perspective: Diwan’s direction is confident and assured, giving voice to the protagonist in a way that never feels pandering or condescending. There is careful attention to detail in both the psychology of the lead and the proceedings of her dangerous quest, with an increasing sense of tension and frustration that escalates in a disturbing and graphic climax that clearly shooked much of the audience at the screening.
While it takes a while to get going, Happening is worth watching to experience an authentic tale of abortion and women’s rights, reminding audiences just how far society has improved, and also how much very few things have changed.