perfect sisters ( released in the uk as deadly sisters ) is a 2014 canadian crime drama film directed by stanley m. brooks .

it stars abigail breslin and georgie henley .

the film was released on april 11 , 2014 , and was based on the novel the class project : how to kill a mother , which itself was based on the real-life murder of linda andersen .

perfect sisters

the first trailer for drama perfect sisters , about toronto’s notorious bathtub girls , has landed .
in perfect sisters , she plays 16 - year - old sandra , who orchestrated the murder .
perfect sisters is now playing on demand and it opens in new york and los angeles on friday , april 11 .
the weirdly upbeat soundtrack music , and fantasy sequences with sorvino playing a perfect smiling mom , further underscore the feeling that perfect sisters is more of a tv sitcom episode than a movie true - crime drama .
perfect sisters , a crime thriller starring abigail breslin , will hit select theaters in new york , los angeles and toronto on april 11 .
sisters country weddings home  advertise  about us the nugget newspaper  sisters oregon guide  discover sisters country all content © copyright 2016 the nugget newspaper , inc . all rights reserved .
starring little miss sunshine ’s abigail breslin and georgie henley of the chronicles of narnia series , perfect sisters opens april 11 . it’s already available on demand .
all the wedding planning  the perfect dress , the custom rings , the carefully crafted personal ceremony deserve the perfect setting . a stunning mountain back drop , a charming lakeside ceremony or a lush garden venue can all be found in sisters country .
what’s really unsetting about perfect sisters isn’t so much the murder itself , which as depicted on the screen seems far less gruesome than courtroom testimony and trial reports suggested .
gravitas ventures has provided urltoken with an exclusive clip from the crime thriller perfect sisters , starring abigail breslin , georgie henley ( “the chronicles of narnia” ) and mira sorvino .
georgie henley , left , and abigail breslin star in perfect sisters , the screen adaptation of former star reporter bob mitchell ' s book about the murderous
bathtub girls .
the two stone - cold killer teens really did get away with murder , when all is said and done , and that’s a truth too real for movies like perfect sisters to handle .
yesterday i watched a pre - screening of “perfect sisters” ( 2012 ) with alex of georgie henley life and emma of georgie central . alex has posted a short review on her website .
tags : abigail breslin , crime , drama , elizabeth kiy , georgie henley , mira sorvino , mystery , perfect sisters , sisters , teenage girls , true crime bookmark the permalink . follow comments with the rss feed for this post . both comments and trackbacks are closed .
avoid deniz at the reception , the rest is perfect . . . . - review of cappari hotels aquarius hotel
two teenage sisters conspire to murder their alcoholic mother in this true - crime thriller .
perfect sisters would be just another forgettable “based on a true story” crime movie , heading to dvd and download after a brief theatrical stop , except it hits close to home for people in the greater toronto area .
but a movie with cruel and unrepentant sociopaths and gratuitous nudity wouldn’t fly in american multiplexes , the intended destination of perfect sisters , because it would be slapped with the nc - 17 kiss - of - death rating .
the sordid tale of the so - called bathtub girls — who were convicted of first - degree murder in the 2003 death of their mother in mississauga , ont . — is now the subject of the movie perfect sisters .
longtime tv producer stanley m . brooks makes his directing debut with perfect sisters , which was shot in winnipeg . there was talk two years ago that the film might premiere at the toronto international film festival but that didn’t materialize .
avoid deniz at the reception , the rest is perfect . . . . - review of cappari hotels aquarius hotel , kas - tripadvisor
as bad as perfect sisters is , and i’d rate it 1 . 5 stars out of 4 at best , it’s no worse than another crummy u . s . movie about a notorious canadian crime , released nearly a decade ago .
coppola tried to dig far deeper into the minds of her youthful lawbreakers than did the makers of perfect sisters and karla , and she had a bigger budget , a better script and a splashy cannes launch to help her do it .
because of its adult content , language ( frequent use of the f - word ) , themes , and some partial nudity i think “perfect sisters” ( 2012 ) will be rated pg - 13 or r in the united states , 15 in other countries . we’re still waiting for an official trailer and poster , plus news on the film’s status at tiff this september . please follow “perfect sisters” on imdb and on facebook ( look up ‘the class project’ ) for the latest news .
when i couldn ' t stand my mother , i left the house . i didn ' t kill her . these canadian girls had other options . the people of toronto were right to scold perfect sisters for portraying the teenage murderers as the protagonists .
subscribe to trailers : urltoken subscribe to coming soon : urltoken subscribe to indie & film festivals : urltoken like us on facebook : urltoken follow us on twitter : urltoken perfect sisters official trailer 1 ( 2014 ) - abigail breslin horror movie hd tired of their mother ' s alcoholism and a string of her abusive boyfriends , two sisters plot to kill her .
we are excited to be working with gravitas ventures on the release of perfect sisters ,
says brooks .
on behalf of our incredibly talented cast and crew , we look forward to sharing our film with audiences in theaters and on demand this spring .
abigail breslin and georgie henley play not so heavenly creatures in perfect sisters , a true - crime drama that shares themes , if not quality , with that 1994 peter jackson film . based on the notorious “bathtub girls” case that rocked toronto in 2004 , stan brooks ’ debut feature about teenage sisters who conspire to murder their alcoholic mother doesn’t manage to overcome the familiarity of its subject matter .
perfect sisters has been criticized by people familiar with the case , such as bob mitchell , the reporter who wrote the class project , the true crime book it’s based on , for playing down greed as a motive , instead suggesting the girls are driven to murder by their difficult circumstances .
stan brooks ' directorial debut is based on the true story of teen sisters who plot their addict mother ' s murder .
the directorial debut of stanley brooks in “perfect sisters” is a work of art in plotting , characterization , and cinematography . he needs to direct more films ! georgie henley should receive more adult acting work as well . she’s proved she can handle different characters and accents , becoming someone other than herself .
t had been designed with military precision , with several heirs to the throne on the guest list , the cream of high society in attendance and a picture perfect english country setting .
perfect sisters eventually trails off into courtroom drama and begins to feel rushed . a detective with an eyepatch reads his lines as though he’s straight out of reno 911 ! still , the chemistry between breslin and henley is real . by the end of the film , the audience can see the world “their way”—not to the extent of peter jackson’s somewhat similar heavenly creatures , but enough that the story’s conclusion manages to be a tad touching , despite the over - the - top music raging on the soundtrack . perfect sisters may stand accused of being rife with tone - deaf stylistic choices , but the more positive spin is to call it a marginal film elevated , however inadvertently , by the strange specificity of its scenes . the word “perfect” in the title is an unfortunate move , but the film is certainly unique enough to stay engaging .
both of them are now free and still safely anonymous , having served only a fraction of the 10 years’ incarceration they were sentenced to . they’ve both been studying at university and the younger sister — wait for it — aspires to a career in law . these facts only make it as a printed postscript into perfect sisters .
i don’t know the real story and characters of “perfect sisters . ” i haven’t read bob mitchell’s book the class project . so i will confine my comments to this film adaptation . i hesitated to see it because of its dark plot – two sisters drowning their mother in a bathtub . i’ve seen “schindler’s list” ( 1993 ) , “michael collins” ( 1996 ) , and “the pianist” ( 2002 ) . i am no stranger to dark films that tell true stories . yet i did not know which moral angle the director would take with the convicted sisters . would they be seen as murderers or as victims ?
ineffectual and cartoonish , “perfect sisters” dramatizes a case that shocked canada a decade ago , when two teenage girls killed their alcoholic mother in order to be free of the chaos wrought by her perpetual irresponsibility — a well - planned crime that several of their classmates knew about before it happened . tv producer stan brooks’ first directorial [ … ]
henley , 18 , hasn’t been seen onscreen since wrapping the narnia series in 2010 . she played the youngest sibling of the central characters , lucy pevensie . in perfect sisters , she’s certainly grown up , playing younger sister beth as a dark - haired goth , trying on a new look for the first day at their new high school .
and in the case of the killer sisters , the unvarnished truth will always trump any polished version of it , as recent events have proven .
you may think “it’s just clothes , how could they go wrong ? ” well trust me , the sisters went very , very , wrong .
the sisters’ ignorance to music history was disrespectful to the musicians and their families . many relatives have spoken out . the doors’ former lawyer has filed a
it’s the day you’ve always waited for and talked about with your sorority sisters . you’ve experienced so many candle passings during your as a collegiate and you finally get the time to shine . can you believe all the times you’ve talked about your sisters being bridesmaids in your wedding is finally a reality ?
i consider only chameleons true actors . cate blanchett , judy davis , daniel day - lewis , johnny depp , and meryl streep are the best of the best in this business . as beth anderson in “perfect sisters , ” georgie henley can proudly take her rightful place beside them . she deserves every nomination she receives – and i hope a few wins !
based on a real - life incident , two sisters manage to cover up the murder of their mother but their story unravels when they tell their friends .
4 . use your sorority flower as a center piece . some sorority flowers have meaning behind them . my sorority’s flower is a pink carnation because its the longest enduring flower . what a perfect place to display it ! have your sisters sit together at your reception and make an elegant flower arrangement for the center of the table or place one flower at every seat .
it’s no easy feat to make a true crime film that rises above lifetime schlock . it takes things like dark humor , broader social context , impressive cinematography and storytelling risks to breathe life into a stale murder plot . with that goal , perfect sisters isn’t exactly a blazing success , often falling into the trap of domestic melodrama , but i think it’s still worth a watch .
i am a sucker for movies that are based on true stories since i enjoy reading up the actual true stories and try to see how much of the movie got wrong or left out , etc . anyways , this film
perfect sisters
is just another typical good true story movie but what ' s interesting about this case is that these two girls almost got away with the perfect crime . even more interesting is that the two girls , who ' s name have been changed due to being underage when the crime occurred , they are both walking free today and living among us . did you enjoy
alpha dog
or
bernie
or
pain and gain
or even
boy ' s don ' t cry ?
then check out perfect sisters , it ' s actually quite a good film and i was surprised with the two actresses that played the two girls pulled off the roles very well . glad to have rent this and watched this , check it out !
the case created shocking headlines for weeks and led to a book by former toronto star reporter bob mitchell , who covered the trial . titled the class project : how to kill a mother , it forms the basis of perfect sisters , an american indie film getting a very small north american release on friday , including a single tiny screening room at the carlton for its unheralded toronto run .
when they were 15 and 16 years old the sisters staged the drowning , plying their alcoholic mother with drinks and feeding her tylenol 3’s before drawing her a bath .
perfect sisters is not afraid to show the cruelty of these girls . they are able to causally plot their mother’s murder , laughing about it with their friends , enthusiastically speculating about the freedom that will be available to them , chatting online and researching the pros and cons of different methods . planning the murder takes on no more weight than speculating who’s dating who or what’ll be on the next math test . in one scene , the girls form an official “murder club” and gather in a school classroom writing ideas on the board . in another , the group gathers at the sisters’ home and practice attacking each other . it’s never entirely clear if their friends realize plotting the murder is more than just a game for the sisters .
i also hesitated to watch “perfect sisters” because of georgie henley’s much darker role than that of innocent lucy in “the chronicles of narnia” ( 2005 , 2008 , 2010 ) . i didn’t know if i could handle the on - screen changes , of georgie handling adult material . yet once again i had little to fear . georgie delivers the finest performance in this film , the finest of her career .
that last bit may sound like a surprise , but it’s even more so in the film , which takes a sharp left turn into a dark humor , particularly during the planning stages , when the girls are brainstorming different disposal methods . for a movie about a serious subject , it gets wacky . and yet this refusal to color within its genre’s lines keeps perfect sisters as watchable as it is .
the main reason for the murder was their mother’s insurance policy , mitchell said . he recalled the day in court when autopsy photos were displayed and the sisters were giggling .
it’s about the infamous bathtub girls , the teenage mississauga sisters who in 2003 callously killed their alcoholic mother by plying her with booze and tylenol 3s before drowning her in the family bathtub .
it had been a glorious sunny morning in berkshire , perfect for an english country wedding . but the grey clouds are coming in and it ' s looking like the wedding party might be getting a little wet when they arrive in an hour ' s time .
tired of their mother ' s alcoholism and a string of her abusive boyfriends , two sisters plot to kill her . stars abigail breslin , georgie henley , and mira sorvino . ( 2016 )
6 . flower pin . let your wedding guests know the ones that were there with you during your crazy college years are . honor your sisters with a flower to wear during the wedding .
a memorable day in sisters country is the fitting start to a successful marriage . respect , patience and good communication can keep a couple together  and happy  long after the wedding ceremony .
the sisters’ unethical and illegal decision to kill their mother begins here . they could have found another course of action besides murder . sandra observes early in the film , after the family has moved to a new town and a seemingly new life , that a hamster in a cage will kill her babies to spare them pain . this analogy is a key to understanding some aspects of the sisters’ murder .
toronto — one of two ontario sisters who drowned their alcoholic mother when they were teenagers and almost got away with it has made an unlikely transition from murder to law school , a new film reveals .
she adds : “he’s been punched in the face thrice . ” in other words , susan and sarah’s brazenness—not to mention that of their two sisters—is “a real combination of both our mom and dad . ”
sisters sandra and beth are both straight - a high school students with big hopes for their futures , and they ' re as close as can be . but their alcoholic single mom ( mira sorvino ,
to cope , sandra and beth imagine their perfect mother , a vision they both interact with . their perfect mother is impeccable groomed and shines with a halo of light and offers to make cookies and brush their hair . in their fantasies , she’s always there with to take care of them and provide comfort , something they have to find in each other instead . in reality , linda is embarrassing . she tries to be her daughters’ friend and jokes around with their friends . at a party in their apartment , she gets drunk and babbles sexual things while their guests laugh at her .
i’ve seen a younger abigail breslin in “raising helen” ( 2004 ) , “no reservations” ( 2007 ) , “definitely maybe” ( 2008 ) , and “my sister’s keeper” ( 2009 ) . she handles adult material in “perfect sisters” well : flashing her bra a few times , kissing her boyfriend in public , and binge drinking at a party . as older sister sandra , the eldest in the family , abigail convinces us she loves her mother but also wants what is best for her siblings . she seems heartbroken and out of control after she drowns her mother , even more so when the sisters are forcibly parted after the sentencing at the end of the film . yet i never forgot that sandra was just an older , more mature abigail breslin .
5 . sing your sorority’s song . your sisters know how special this day is to you and will probably make you the center of attention and sing your sorority song to you . warning : tissues might be needed !
the last act of perfect sisters forms an intriguing portrait of how differently two people react to one event . beth grows cold and introverted , while sandra externalizes her guilt , partying and basking in her celebrity . she becomes the sloppy mess everyone secretly laughs at at parties , confessing the murder to anyone who’ll listen . the boy next door type who has loved her for years , biding his time , finally gives up on her and disgusted by what he sees as her lack of remorse , wears a wire to secure her confession .
breslin and henley play mississauga teen sisters who plied their abusive mother ( played onscreen by oscar winner mira sorvino ) with booze and pills before drowning her in the bath in 2003 , hoping to make it look like an accidental death .
ineffectual and cartoonish , “perfect sisters” dramatizes a case that shocked canada a decade ago , when two teenage girls killed their alcoholic mother in order to be free of the chaos wrought by her perpetual irresponsibility — a well - planned crime that several of their classmates knew about before it happened . tv producer stan brooks’ first directorial feature provides scant psychological depth , drawing its characters and staging their incidents in crude fashion , despite superficial production gloss . a limited u . s . theatrical launch april 11 is unlikely to significantly heighten visibility for a pic already available on demand and destined primarily for smallscreen sales .
based on a notorious canadian case , where teenage sisters drowned their mother in a bathtub , it’s the story of sandra ( abigail breslin ) and beth ( georgie henley ) , sisters whose whole world is each other . these girls have faced a difficult childhood , forced to take care of their younger brother and linda ( mira sorvino ) , their depressed alcoholic mother ; they see each other as their one constant . as sandra says , “it was always me and my sister against the big bad world . ”
unlike abigail and mira , nowhere in “perfect sisters” could i find the beautiful , innocent , and fun - loving georgie henley . neither could i find the sweet lucy of narnia or the dreaming jane of “jane eyre” ( 2006 ) . all i saw was a depressed and murderous beth . georgie just disappears . she smokes , drinks , swears , and kisses her boyfriend justin in public a few times . no disney - like suspian plot here ! gothic hair , makeup , and clothing – plus an excellent canadian accent – complete the character of beth , a hardened teenager with few inhibitions and maternal feelings .
the sort of true - crime melodrama that has fueled countless lifetime television movies - - director brooks is a veteran producer of such fare - - perfect sisters attempts to rise above its sordid material with a stylistic ambitiousness that includes fantasy sequences in which the girls imagine their mother as they’d like her to be and , later , depictions of imaginative methods for dispatching her . screenwriters fabrizio filippo and adam till infuse the first part of the film with a deceptively lighthearted , whimsical tone , including voiceover narration , before the narrative lurches into darker territory . but director brooks is unable to handle the tonal shift with sufficient finesse .
naturally , then , the sisters’ shared spirit of mischievous do - goodery—preaching without fear of four - letter words and a little controversy—comes from an upbringing that encouraged speaking one’s mind , making people laugh , and the necessity to use both as tools for enacting change .
if you can get passed the really bad acting , the story looked good , and it ' s based on
the bathtub sisters
in real life , but i couldn ' t watch for over a half hour of the corny acting , it was very irritating .
graphic tees paying homage to bands are all the rage from target to brandy melville , but the jenner sisters completely missed the point . rather than make the musicians the center of the design , using the legendary logos as a background completely minimized the importance of those symbols .
after five years of searching , in 1999 andréa finally met robin , her half - sister who had grown up on the california coast in monterey . over the next few years , the sisters developed a deep bond , finding out how much they had in common . in 2010 , their shared love of vineyards propelled them to start a craft winery together . their brand , which spans both their homelands , falls under the mcbride sisters banner : urltoken wines uses grapes from new zealand , and truvée wines sources from the central coast of california .
once the deed is done – with beth drugging their mother , sandra drowning her , and beth making the fake 911 call – the sisters indulge in wild parties . sandra also blabs to her friends and new boyfriend about the murder , news that quickly spreads through the school . whether they’re experiencing joy in new - found freedom ( beth ) , or grief for an act they initially hatched as a fantasy ( sandra ) , the sisters just try to cope . they want the fantasy of life without their mother , and getting away with the murder , never to end .
role models is certainly up for debate , but they are constantly in the public eye . and if their millions of followers on instagram and twitter is any indication , the sisters have quite an influence over their young fans ; the same fans who watch their show , and buy their lipstick .
the unimaginative telepic tenor is varied — but not improved — by broad bits in which sorvino plays various caricatured “ideal” mother figures . mixing the heroines’ puerile fantasies with their much - less - than - ideal reality is a potentially interesting idea , but “perfect sisters” is no “heavenly creatures , ” to say the least . nor does the cliched dialogue or just - ok cast ( in which henley comes closest to creating a rounded character ) help ground disturbing events in a credible everyday milieu a la “razor’s edge” and other fact - inspired tales of teen homicide . still , the pic somewhat improves in its last third , when the deed is done and the girls prove very poorly equipped to keep their secret .
2 . add your sorority flower to your bouquet . even if your sorority flower doesn’t match the rest of your bouquet , hide it at the bottom of your bouquet . others might not notice that it’s there or what it means , but you and your sisters will , and that’s what counts .
when sandra is called upon to be the adult of the family and attend her brother’s parent - teacher conference , she wears the same outfit as their perfect mother wears in their fantasies . dressed in these clothes , sandra clearly resembles linda . she takes on her maternal responsibilities , using this perfect image of linda as a role model and fixation on remaining in control to create as much distance as she can between her and her mother’s embarrassing weakness . long after beth has given up on her , sandra continues to make excuses for linda and try to understand her . in the wake of the murder , her prized control dissolves and sandra repeats her mother’s self destructive mistakes , drinking and flirting and sharing her story with anyone who’ll listen . beth becomes ashamed of her , in one scene saying , “you remind me of mom . ”
breslin , an academy award nominee for her role in little miss sunshine , and the chronicles of narnia ' s georgie henley play two teenage sisters who plot their addict mother ' s ( mira sorvino ) death . they attempt to get away with the murder until rumors that they killed their mother surface at school .
“she is stunningly brilliant and knows how to articulate complex genius without any hoity toitiness , ” sarah says about susan . as sisters do , susan said essentially the same thing about sarah : “she’s just so brilliant . she’s that brilliant in life , too . she just cuts to the core of everything and gets it . ”
mixing genres is just about the toughest cinematic trick to pull off , particularly for people whose last name isn’t coen . stanley m . brooks’ directorial debut , made after 24 years of producing television films like call me : the rise and fall of heidi fleiss , behind the camera : the unauthorized story of ‘three’s company , ’ and gym teacher : the movie , tries to blend family melodrama and “dark quirk . ” surprisingly , brooks somewhat gets away with it . perfect sisters isn’t that interesting as a whole , but there are moments—just a few of them—where audiences expecting yet another rote teen drama ought to rise from their vodaze and say , “hey , i’ve never quite seen this sort of thing done this way before . ” considering the film’s provenance , that’s something of a victory .
of course , while arcade fire’s clap back is a well - meaning satire that will do the band’s selected charity some good , one has to wonder if the famous sisters will clap back on their own . after all , arcade fire is using images of kendall and kylie on their shirts . but somehow it doesn’t seem at all offensive .
amid the backlash of their brand , the jenner sisters removed the offensive products from their website and apologized for disrespecting the “cultural icons . ” a rep for the kendall + kylie brand told billboard there was no ill intent when deciding to create the “repurposed” vintage tees and that the iconic images used on the shirts “were randomly selected and not well thought out . ”
the supporting cast was amazing ! zak santiago plays a passionate one - eyed detective gates , with two eyes into this crime . lorraine james plays the representative from social services who offers the sisters advice and tells them they can live with their aunt martha . she’s played by the talented rusty schwimmer . zoe belkin ( ashley ) , jeffrey ballard ( justin ) , jonathan malen ( david ) , and stephan james ( donny ) admirably play sandra and beth’s friends – the second and fourth ones as the sisters’ boyfriends . i really liked that malen’s character was such a gentleman – doing the right thing as an act of love , even if it cost him his relationship with sandra . and james russo as bowman ? he scared the daylights out of me !
the film is elevated by the quality of the performances , with breslin and henley movingly affecting as the closely bound sisters and sorvino convincingly conveying her character’s inability to function . equally strong work is delivered by russo ( in a part he can by now play in his sleep ) and rusty schwimmer as the girls’ concerned aunt , who turns against them once she realizes their complicity in the crime .
but the $ 125 tees were not well received by the artists and their families . biggie small’s mother , voletta wallace , and black sabbath frontman ozzy osbourne’s wife / manager , sharon , were especially vocal , blasting the jenner sisters on social media . the doors and wallace’s lawyers quickly filed cease - and - desist letters after the exploitive , overpriced t - shirts made their debut last week .
) and their other relatives let them down ( their dad wants nothing to do with them , and their aunt tells them to be more supportive of their mom ) , the sisters decide to kill their mom . they drown her in the bathtub , making it look like an accident , and initially , the authorities think it is . but being teenagers , they don ' t have the common sense to
guests traveled by bus to the reception at sens restaurant , where food representing all their cultures was served . mediterranean spreads were offered , in addition to new zealand lamb and southern fried chicken , a nod to andréa father’s roots in alabama . middle eastern fattoush salad preceded a traditional new zealand dessert of pavlova , a light meringue so named for the famous russian ballerina . mcbride sisters’ wines were served throughout .
based on the true - crime murder mystery known as the “bathtub girls” case , breslin and henley play sisters sandra and beth , a pair of neglected teen girls whose addict mother ( sorvino ) moves them in with her abusive boyfriend , giving them no other recourse but to make plans to murder her . after achieving that goal , their guilt and ego has them talking to their friends which finally gets them on the list of suspects .
as things get worse , and linda’s boyfriend gets grabby with beth , the sisters realize just how powerless they are . their biological father , shellshocked by memories of linda’s drinking , has cut the emotional cord with his two daughters . calls to help centers are fruitless , since all they have are hunches that “it’s going to get bad . ” the girls decide the only logical thing they can do is kill their mother and collect the insurance money .
the truth is that , even though the pairing of a comedian and rabbi sounds like beginning of a “walk into a bar…” joke , sarah and susan silverman have much in common , beginning with the fact that both outspokenly champion the issues they’re most passionate about . when the sisters hit the stage at 2014 women in the world summit april 4 for a panel on how they chose such different paths and inspire one another , expect them to touch on just that .
in a darkly comic montage , the sisters crowd around a computer with their friends and watch their mother die over and over again in different scenarios . part reality tv viewers , part judges scoring a performance , they watch and laugh as their mother is strangled and suffocated , pushed down the stairs and set on fire . in the end , they decide drowning will be quick , easy to make look like an accident , and it’d get the biggest insurance payout .
to hear sister talk about her other sister , it becomes clear that their paths to the unconventional careers they’ve chosen in life were marked early . but especially when hearing one sister talk about the other sister’s accomplishments , and the gravity and professionalism they bring to their respective careers , it becomes ever easier to believe that the two sisters who have arrived at superficially polarizing occupations are not only cut from the same cloth , but madly in love with each other , too .
director stanley m . brooks has said his aim in the film was to show the sisters as sympathetic characters , not evil or sociopathic , but immature young women who make made bad decisions . he attempted to be accurate to the real events and says he fictionalized almost nothing about the case . whatever the truth is , this approach is more cinematic , giving viewers likable ( to a point ) characters and room for discussion over their level of awareness of their actions and the nature of evil .
here , they’re morbid ( in one scene , sandra is distracted from a kiss by the sight of a dead bird ) and jaded . still , they’re good girls with perfect disciplinary records and honor roll grades . over the summer , they’ve each reinvented themselves . beth dyes her hair matte black and wears heavy eye make - up to attract the gothic romance of her dreams , while sandra yearns to be popular and lose her goody - goody rep . she makes up rumors about herself to get attention , strangely they are the type of things most girls would try to cover up . sandra wants to be a bad girls , desirable and dangerous , so she tells everyone she’s pregnant by her therapist .
i noticed two interesting tidbits in this film . first , beth’s fake id is actually a photo of georgie henley at the alberta ferretti fashion show in january 2011 . a home video of sandra and beth at the beach when they were younger is real footage of georgie’s older sisters rachael and laura . alex also noted that a photo of sandra on a school folder is actually from abigail breslin’s photo shoot for “janie jones” ( 2011 ) at the tribeca film festival . georgie and abigail’s mothers were thanked in the credits .
in the final , emotionally raw scenes sandra and beth are dragged apart by police officers to serve ten - year sentences without any contact . the sisters who swore they’d look out for each other must now face the consequences of their murder of their mother alone . as alex says in her review , “the relations between the girls were so real that for a moment i thought they were going to break the arms of the men that were holding them back . they screamed for each other and it was so real . ”
of course , they’re convicted and sentenced to jail time , but that’s not the real tragedy in the sisters’ eyes . in the end , they’re literally ripped apart , kicking and screaming by security officers and forbidden from communicating with each other for the duration of their sentences . in trying to save themselves , they each lost the one person who made them feel whole . both girls are now released and attending college , and due to canadian law regarding young offenders , their identities are protected ( their names were changed for the film ) .
until the murder begins to unravel them , the sisters have an appealing symbiosis . they share a made - up language , shared fantasies and beth knows to corroborate sandra’s lies unprompted . for their shared point of view on the events , the girls make one singular person , constantly clinging to each other . sandra also acts as beth’s mother , holding her when she’s scared at night and fighting off linda’s boyfriend bowman ( james russo ) when he attempts to attack her . though they both have love interests , their primary bond is with each other .
figuring they might actually be better off without mom — but with an insurance settlement — the sisters hash out potential matricidal scenarios with best friends justin ( jeffrey ballard ) and ashley ( zoe belkin ) , though whispers quickly spread beyond that close circle . nonetheless , the real - life figures ( whose names aren’t used here , since they were still minors when convicted ) managed to pass the deed off as an accidental death for a time . they remain controversial figures in canada , since they were incarcerated for only a few years each and subsequently attended universities on scholarship .
the fantasy aspects of this film were extraordinary and original , bright images masking the pain of reality . the cinematography in the courtroom scenes , thanks to stephanie weber - biron , also astounded me . at one point , the camera focuses on the words ‘justice’ ( left ) and ‘mercy’ ( right ) behind the judge’s head . as he delivers his sentence on the sisters , the camera focuses on ‘justice . ’ sandra and beth find no mercy here . the original score by carmen rizzo was also beautiful and haunting , with “the worst part” written by abigail breslin’s band cabb .
the police’s entrance into this situation , thanks to a phone call by a family friend named david ( jonathan malen ) and an undercover sting operation led by detective gates ( zak santiago ) , dramatically destroys the sisters’ illusions . the small life they had with their mother and her boyfriend , gradually expanded by parties with their classmates and friends , is exploded in the packed courtroom scenes . the fantasies end and reality intrudes when justice is served . sandra and beth must deal with an outside perspective on their deeds , one that says other minors had endured worse pain but didn’t resort to murder .
because linda is incapable of leading the family , her daughters sandra and beth must take her place as the responsible one . a happy , exhibitionist sandra believes their mother can change ; a hardened and depressed beth does not and takes every opportunity to ridicule her . yet they don’t want to be the parents . sandra and beth fantasize of a mother who is normal , sober , and responsible so they can be free to become just normal teenagers , to finish their academic studies and follow their dreams . the sisters also return to happy family memories when they were younger , when they and their parents plucked seashells from the beach .
things go from bad to worse with the arrival of their mother’s new boyfriend ( james russo ) , whose gruff manner soon turns physically abusive and , in beth’s case , sexually threatening as well . with the help of their friends justin ( jeffrey ballard ) and ashley ( zoe belkin ) , the sisters devise a plan to murder their mother by dosing her with pills and drowning her . they manage to pull off the killing , and despite the suspicions of a one - eyed detective , it seems like they’ll get off scot - free . that is until beth , who’s showing signs of following in her mother’s addiction footsteps , begins blabbing about the crime to their high - school classmates .
“i remember deciding , ‘oh , maybe i’ll be a rabbi , ’” she says , only sort - of cheekily when asked when she got “the call . ” “i called the rabbinical school on a friday afternoon and asked for the person i needed to talk to and she was like , ‘oh , he’s gone for the day . ’ so i was like , ‘maybe i’ll call back tomorrow . ’ and she said in this booming voice , ‘ tomorrow is the sabbath . ’ and i was like , ‘oh fuck , i hope i didn’t leave my name . ’” ( rabbi susan says things like “fuck . ” maybe it’s not that hard believing she and sarah would be sisters , after all . )
my sisters , my brother - in law and my nephew and me are staying in this charming hotel . it was very last minute booking but receptionist was very helpful . we took 3 rooms . rooms are small but big enough for 4 / 5 days . bathroom is small too . rooms are clean . hotel staff is friendly . beach area has lots of places for sunbathing . sea water is turquoise colour . we have kastellorizo greek island view . we decided to eat here at nights too so we paid extra money for it . first night meal was good . ( not many dishes but what ever they cooked were delicious ) breakfast ordinary it could be better . in the afternoons they have food with tea and it is free . the hotel arranged a boat trip for us tomorrow . they are also arranging kastellorizo trip for you . i would definitely come back again . it is no a luxurious hotel but i would highly recommend this hotel if you like peaceful holiday . ps . bar area is very nice too . ps . there are some bigger rooms with view so ask the hotel before reservation .
the movie marks the directorial debut of stan brooks . as founder of his own production company , stan & deliver films , the emmy - winning producer and now director based the crime thriller on toronto ' s infamous
bathtub girls
case .
produced by juliette hagopian of julijette inc . and damien ganczewski , and executive produced by michael rotenberg , cathy rollo and tony rollo , the film will have its north american distribution handled by gravitas ventures .
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the film , opening friday in select theatres across north america , notes that both girls are now in university — one of them in law school — but instead focuses on what led two young girls to murder their mother .
filmed in winnipeg , the movie stars abigail breslin , known for little miss sunshine and georgie henley , known for the chronicles of narnia series . it’s based on the book by former toronto star reporter bob mitchell , the class project : how to kill a mother : the true story of canada’s infamous bathtub girls .
director stan brooks says he was determined for the story to be as accurate as possible to the real events and fictionalized almost nothing . but the story is portrayed through a far more sympathetic lens than mitchell’s book .
“it wasn’t so simple as to say , ‘these were sociopathic girls . they were just evil , ’” brooks said in an interview .
“i see how teens can make bad decisions in bad situations . i , as a parent myself , i’m much more cognizant of what might have taken place that got them there , without condoning what they did . ”
it was a very fine line to walk , between making the girls immediately unsympathetic and trying to understand their motives , brooks said . the film focuses on their unstable lives with their alcoholic mother and her abusive boyfriend .
mitchell , who covered the story extensively as a reporter , says he understands movie audiences need someone to root for , but he does not see the girls as sympathetic figures .
“if you didn’t know the whole story , the movie comes across as these poor girls , basically , who were pushed to the limit and this is how they figured out how to get out of it , but then in the end they get caught , ” mitchell said in an interview .
“i don’t think the movie dealt with how cold - blooded and calculating they were . ”
much more planning went into the murder than the film shows , mitchell said . and one of the girls’ biggest concerns in the immediate aftermath was that they wouldn’t be able to party for a few weeks because they had to seem sad , he said .
once in the bathtub , the older sister held the woman’s head under water for some four minutes . they nearly got away with murder .
their ploy to make their mother’s death look like an accident worked for about a year , despite bragging about it to friends , until a family friend went to police .
they were sentenced to the maximum allowed for kids their age who commit first - degree murder : 10 years , some of that behind bars , the rest under conditions in the community . their sentences will expire completely next year .
you’ll find lots of dog - friendly beaches on p . e . i .
with : abigail breslin , georgie henley , mira sorvino , james russo , rusty schwimmer , zoe belkin , jeffrey ballard , jonathan malen , stephan james , zak santiago , caleb pederson , braden pederson .
shot in winnipeg ( the actual events took place in mississauga , ontario ) , the pic is competent but rather flavorless in all tech / design departments .
reviewed online , san francisco , april 10 , 2014 . running time : 101 min .
production : ( canada ) a gravitas pictures release ( in canada / u . s . ) of a stan & deliver films presentation of a julijette production . produced by juliette hagopian , damian ganczewski . executive producers , michael rotenberg , cathy rollo , tony rollo . co - producer , fritzi horstman .
crew : directed by stan brooks . screenplay , fabrizio filippo , adam till , based on the book “the class project : how to kill a mother , the true story of canada’s infamous bathtub girls” by bob mitchell . camera ( color , hd ) , stephanie weber - biron ; editor , robin katz ; music , carmen rizzo ; music supervisors , mary ramos , holly adams ; production designer , gord wilding ; costume designer , noreen landry ; art director , scott rossell ; sound , stan mak ; re - recording mixer , cory mandel ; supervising sound editor , nelson ferreira ; assistant director , ronaldo nacionales ; casting , shana landburg , stephanie gorin .
with : abigail breslin , georgie henley , mira sorvino , james russo , rusty schwimmer , zoe belkin , jeffrey ballard , jonathan malen , stephan james , zak santiago , caleb pederson , braden pederson .
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this copy is for your personal non - commercial use only . to order presentation - ready copies of toronto star content for distribution to colleagues , clients or customers , or inquire about permissions / licensing , please go to : urltoken
it’s based on former star reporter and veteran crime writer bob mitchell’s 2008 book the class project : how to kill a mother . mitchell has updated the book to reflect what happened to the girls , who are now in their 20s and attending canadian universities .


duma ( dolls in arabic ) is a ground-breaking and controversial documentary about the abuse of women in arab and palestinian society .

made by palestinian female director abeer zeibak haddad , it sheds light on sexual abuse of women in arab society .

" duma is an extremely powerful documentary .

brutally realistic ; revealingly provocative , and exceedingly enthralling . "

( dr. eylem atakav , huffington post ) . .

duma ( 2011 film )

visconti ' s retrospective in the frames of sofia film fest . newspaper
duma
israel , 2011 | documentary , 55 min . director and producer : abeer zeibak haddad
israel / palestine , 2011 | documentary , 55 min . director and producer : suheil and abeer haddad
the 2011 edition of sofia film festival will feature a number of norwegian movies , as well as co - productions , representing the best of norwegian cinema of recent years .
the film
secret ingredient
will be screened at the 21 st edition of the shanghai film festival in the program spectrum , which is part of the international film panorama of the festival .
actress / educator - turned - filmmaker abeer zeibak haddad is hitting the road with her documentary “duma” — “dolls” in arabic — the first film by an arabic speaker . .
duma will be introduced by anna ball , senior lecturer in postcolonial studies at nottingham trent university , uk .
the sofia international film festival started 15 years ago as a thematic music film festival , but after the first couple of editions it developed into a general film festival and became one of the key bulgarian cultural events .
dragomir sholev’s feature debut shelter has become the first bulgarian film to win the grand prix of sofia international film festival’s ( siff ) international competition .
palestinian film breaks ground on women ' s issues
first film in the arab world to deal with sexual assault of women and girls released in israel / palestine
.
on wednesday , june 6 th 2018 , within the extraordinary assembly of the macedonian film workers ' association , a memorandum of cooperation was signed between the film agency of the republic of macedonia and the film workers ' association in order to strengthen the joint efforts to improve the working conditions , the quantity and the artistic achievements of the macedonian film production .
duma is played by 6 different cheetahs . all orphaned or poached cheetahs themselves ; were hand raised in different parts of africa . see more »
sochi international film festival & awards - is proud to announce its third world class event celebrating russian , british and international film making for cinema that rises above the international political agenda .
[ last lines ] xan : [ voiceover narration ] there are things you know without knowing . for duma , it was his wildness . for rip , his family . for me , it was my dad . everything he was , everything he believed in is now part of me . i was taking duma home , but he took me somewhere too . finding duma ' s true home brought me back to mine and showed me that love doesn ' t stop when time passes or you live in different places or somebody ' s gone . that ' s how it was with me and duma . see more »
choose from weekly or monthly film and event updates , what’s on for families and accessible screenings .
abeer zeibak haddad ( director ) is a palestinian filmmaker , theater director and actor . she teaches in this field at the bait - barel college . in 2011 , haddad produced and directed her first documentary “duma” which received the best television and video professional production award at urban tv 2012 ( madrid ) and was nominated for the best documentary at the documentary forum competition .
bristol based festival director speaks tedx leamingtonspa on the importance of palestinian film for helping us . . .
72 y . o . actress with an award from sofia film fest . newspaper
24 hours
the latest project of skopje film studio for a feature fiction film with the working title
homo
, directed by igor ivanov , received the decision on the approved financial support by the kosovo cinematography center .
the short feature film
touch
directed by stojan vujicic produced by lunar continues with its festival life .
united russia scrambled to address the drop in its support . sergei neverov , a top party official , was forced to deny rumours that boris gryzlov , the party chairman and speaker of the duma , would resign .
bristol palestine film festival is committed to providing an opportunity for moviegoers in the southwest to experience the lives of palestinian people through film . by bringing to bristol , palestinian film , art and culture we invite viewers to explore the multiple realities and identities of the palestinian people . it is this focus on humanness and the expression of the everyday lives of palestinians that is at the core the mission of this festival .
this years fourth edition of the short film festival in ljubljana will take place from 20 th – 25 th of august in ljubljana , slovenia .
a structured and strict concept of a powerful film festival has been formed , and you managed to prove its feasibility . congratulations on what you have achieved , luba . you ' ve got proof of concept under your belt now ! i thank sochi mayor anatoly pakhomov for supporting the new important film festival .
we are informing you that the deadline for project submissions to the matchmaking forum during the 65th edition of pula film festival is now extended until 26th of june .
yet the tide of discontent continues to grow .
it is clear that putin ' s voter base has fallen apart ,
said pavlovsky .
the putin majority existed from 1999 to 2011 – this is the date of the end . i ' m sure it was an unexpected surprise . he was sure voters would be enamoured of his return .
during a nightly porsche ride with his doting rascal xan , white south african farmer peter finds and adopts an orphaned cheetah cub , dubbed duma ( just swahili for cheetah ) . it becomes the boy ' s inseparable playmate , even taking it to bed . peter made clear from the start that the cheetah should be returned to the wild before its full adulthood . but the father is stricken down with a disease just before the cheetah could be returned . xan ' s mother sells the farm and moves in with a city aunt . the cheetah escapes , but finds xan at school , where the new boy is bullied . he decides to run away to the mountains with duma . on the way they face countless perils , which courage , xan ' s intelligence and duma ' s instinct overcome . written by kgf vissers
anger has been steadily growing inside russia since putin , currently the prime minister , announced his intention to run for the presidency in a march 2012 vote . his united russia party fared poorly in a parliamentary vote on sunday , losing 77 seats in the duma , or lower house .
efa ' s meeting , wenders , zulavski and paskaljević among the festival ' s guests and a lifetime achievement award for claudia cardinale . serbian student film
october
successfully presented .
this thought - provoking and intimate film diary follows the director’s attempt to recreate her village’s lost history , including the story of her childhood hero suuad , the legendary local “bad girl . ”
the film is beautifully shot , – the women are shot from the back , looking out a window , one is looking out at the sea , or slightly distorted in a window or mirror . this element of anonymity in the film makes it so authentic and emphasizes the fact that these four women are a voice for all those who have suffered similar experiences in their youth . blog amy kronish
the film is beautifully shot , – the women are shot from the back , looking out a window , one is looking out at the sea , or slightly distorted in a window or mirror . this element of anonymity in the film makes it so authentic and emphasizes the fact that these four women are a voice for all those who have suffered similar experiences in their youth . blog amy kronish , israfilm blog
bristol palestine film festival returns in a year where events in gaza have dominated the headlines . the festival will run from the 3 - 16 dec with events in the cube , easton community cinema and watershed .
duma ( dolls in arabic ) is the first film in the arab world to deal with the sexual assault of women and girls in palestinian society . director abeer , the creator of a puppet show which deals with sexual abuse in childhood , takes her camera and journeys from the north to the south of israel , documenting arab women who dare to reveal the sexual abuse they have endured in their close circle of family and friends . together they aim to break the systems of silence which were imposed not only by society , but also by the families who were meant to protect them .
we are informing you that the balkan film market has officially launched its calls for submissions to albascript plus and pitch balkan which will be held during the market in the period between 3 - 7 october 2018 in tirana , albania .
the film is an adaptation of a novel by marin preda , a controversial novelist who died during the communist rule soon after the book was published . it tells the story of an intellectual , . . . see full summary »
congratulations on making history , luba . thanks to anatoly pakhomov , of course ! sochi is the ideal choice for the concept of creating an international film festival designed to restore the face of art to the world through cinema . ( … ) russia has always presented to the world the best examples of literature , philosophy , cinema and , in general , culture ! and now the new sochi international film awards wrote a new chapter in history with the same concept .
luba , this is a crucial time for artists to recover their voice , you are helping to restore the connection between all of us , film makers from all over the world . i applaud the philosophy that underpins what you are doing .
this is a dramatic chain of events in the most glamorous , swinging era of hindi films . . . the 1960s . it was a decade when film stars tasted success and carried their larger than life screen . . . see full summary »
admirable lubov balagova - kandour . president and producer of the “irida” first sochi international film awards . majestic woman and lady of the world . her motto - nothing is impossible . a woman of words and deeds . beautiful person and magnificent woman .
i am very pleased that this first international film festival is taking place in sochi ; that the organisers’ initiative has been taken up by the ministry of culture of the russian federation and by leading figures in cinematography in our country and in great britain .
an inner perspective into the phenomena of sexual abuse in palestinian society . the creator of a puppet show ,
duma
( dolls in arabic ) , which deals with sexual abuse in childhood , decides to document arab women who dare to reveal the sexual abuse they endured in their close circle of family and friends . together they aim to break the systems of silence which were imposed by family and society .
we are informing you that the center for dramatic arts ( cdu ) from croatia opens a public call for the admission of audiovisual works to the second edition of the unseen mini film festival , to be held in cavtat from 26th of september – 1st of october 2018 .
the first press - conference on the topic of the 39 th edition of the international cinematographers film festival “manaki brothers” took place on 28 th of june in skopje , and the festival director , gena teodosievska , announced another rich edition offering various content and a multitude of novelties .
unesco venice office and the central european initiative are supporting this international roundtable on film distribution and development of innovative business models in the central and south - east european region held in the framework of the “sofia meetings” and the participation of numerous experts from the south - east european region and beyond .
duma ( dolls in arabic ) is based on stories of sexual abuse in arab society in israel . abeer , the creator of a puppet theater show which deals with the subject of sexual abuse during childhood , decides to take her camera and journey from the north to the south of the country and document women who have experienced sexual violence . in her journey she meets four women who dare to reveal the sexual abuse they endured in their close circle of family and friends . they all look for a way to express their pain and to break the silence that was imposed on them by their relatives and by society .
in 2008 , shpilkin estimated that united russia actually won 277 seats in the duma instead of the constitutional majority of 315 that it was awarded . this time around , it is somewhat more difficult to tell how the alleged falsification might have influenced the results because half of the duma was elected from single - mandate districts , from which united russia got a majority of its deputies . shpilkin estimates united russia actually got about 40 percent of the party - list vote , which would have reduced its party - list seats from 140 to around 110 . but , with a projected 343 deputies in the new parliament , united russia once again has enough votes to unilaterally alter the constitution . although pamfilova has promised to investigate reports of fraud and election officials have already annulled results in at least three polling stations , she maintains that there was no systematic falsification and that the vote was legitimate . on september 20 , russia’s prosecutor - general’s office denied there were any significant violations during the voting and said the number of complaints was “significantly lower” than for previous elections . but videos recorded by official cameras from several polling stations seem to tell a different story . in almost all of them , local election officials can be seen working as teams to apparently stuff ballot boxes and prevent outsiders from observing their actions .
this year , the number of women in congress dropped for the first time since 1978 . last year , women held only 15 . 7 percent of board seats and 14 . 4 percent of executive officer positions in fortune 500 companies . a new study shows that the number of women working as writers and directors on prime - time television programs dropped significantly in the 2010 - 11 season . women now account for only 15 percent of writers on the major television networks ' prime - time dramas , comedies , and reality shows , down from 29 percent in the 2009 - 10 season . only 11 percent of directors in this year ' s television season were women , compared with 16 percent last season , and only 25 percent of series creators , producers , executive producers , directors , writers , editors and directors of photography were women , representing a decline of two percentage points from last season . by every significant measure of social , political , and cultural power , today ' s women are losing ground . the cultural climate of 2011 appears even less likely to produce a movie of comparable significance than it was 20 years ago .
based in malad west , mumbai , sameer lives a middle - classed lifestyle along with his live - in rather pushy girlfriend , shikha , who constantly questions and nags him several times during the day . he is employed with a bollywood film distribution firm owned by rajan mehra . when shikha decides to visit her family in indore , he is relieved and decides to live it up . things look up for him when rajan hires his gorgeous sister , sanjana , to work with him . both soon become close , and she accepts his proposal for marriage despite of being aware that he is in a relationship . watch what impact this news has on shikha .
pamfilova has said that such videos do not constitute proof of fraud and , shpilkin recalls , courts rejected dozens of fraud cases based on similar videos in 2012 . shpilkin hopes his analysis will help pamfilova come to grips with what he sees as massive fraud embedded in russia’s election system from the ground up . “i am not entirely sure that ella pamfilova has a good understanding of the actions of the heads of polling stations on the ground , how they compile their protocols , how they fill in the data and submit it to their regional election commissions , ” shpilkin said . “moreover , she most likely does not understand how the results are aggregated and how many votes were added in for those 96 , 000 polling stations . ” shpilkin emphasizes that his analysis does not mean that the genuine opposition parties that did not get seats in the duma would have , if not for the alleged falsification . “it is possible that some changes might have been seen on the local level in places like moscow and st . petersburg on the level of single - mandate districts , ” he said . “but on the level of federal party lists , the position of the opposition looks entirely hopeless . ”
callie khouri ' s triumphant final image of the two heroines locking hands as louise drives them over a cliff is impossible to forget . some feminists fretted that this ending represented the ultimate punishment for the women ' s defiant journey of self - discovery . although it ' s implied that they commit suicide—we do not actually see them die—this was still a choice that they made , and one that struck them , and many viewers , as preferable to life in prison or death by lethal injection . if they were only able to live on their own terms for a single lost weekend , at least they would grant themselves the dignity of dying on those terms as well . in the world of the film , what other choice did they have ? as louise says to thelma when thelma suggests that they turn themselves in ,
who ' s gonna believe [ us ] ? we just don ' t live in that kind of world .
we still don ' t .
something ' s crossed over in me and i can ' t go back ,
explains thelma ,
i mean , i just couldn ' t live .
she has lost the desire and even the capacity to return to her old life of downtrodden domesticity and her brutish , domineering husband . earlier in the film louise tells her ,
you get what you settle for ,
and , by the movie ' s end , both women are through with settling .
i don ' t remember ever feelin ' this awake ,
says thelma as they drive through the desert in the middle of the night , leaving their old lives behind .
everything looks different . you know what i mean . . . everything looks new . do you feel like that ? like you ' ve got something to look forward to ?
in today ' s movies , getting a ring from a man has replaced authentic moments of personal transformation and spiritual awakening as the high point of women ' s lives .
when asked in an interview why her heroines commit suicide at the film ' s end , callie khouri famously responded :
to me , the ending was symbolic , not literal . . . we did everything possible to make sure you didn ' t see a literal death . that you didn ' t see the car land , you didn ' t see a big puff of smoke come up out of the canyon . you were left with the image of them flying . they flew away , out of this world and into the mass unconscious . women who are completely free from all the shackles that restrain them have no place in this world . the world is not big enough to support them . . . i loved that ending and i loved the imagery . after all they went through , i didn ' t want anybody to be able to touch them .
i share khouri ' s sentiments about the ending , which i have always loved . to me , it represented not death or punishment but hope , and even a kind of radical , ultimate fulfillment . today , movies about women end with a wedding . even its proponents can hardly argue that the aim of marriage is to set women free .
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three relatively educated , independent bedouin women are caught within traditional society , trying to survive , each in their own way , a life of polygamy .
the incredible story of reut , a young jewish homeless girl , struggling to return her first born son , adopted by a jewish settler family , to the arab village in which she lives .
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hotel transylvania 3 : summer vacation stars plan their dream summer getaways to some memorable movie settings .
explore popular sci - fi movies and tv shows available to stream with prime video .
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women of freedom follows the stories of women who were murdered in the name of ‘honor killing , ’ women whose lives are under threat , women who survived murder attempts , even that of a killer expressing remorse .
the documentary tries to unravel the social and political circumstances that have led to this custom . the murder of a young woman in my hometown of nazareth 43 years ago has left me agitated . in order to investigate the causes for this enduring phenomenon , i embark on a physical and emotional journey through israel and the palestinian authority .
tickets available through watershed box office tel : 0117 9275100 or online at urltoken : £5 . 50 full / £ 4 . 00 cons .
دمى ( dolls in arabic ) is based on stories of sexual abuse in palestinian society . abeer , the creator of a puppet theatre show which deals with the subject of sexual abuse during childhood , decides to take her camera and journey from the north to the south of palestine and document women who have experienced sexual violence . in her journey she meets five women who dare to reveal the sexual abuse they endured in their close circle of family and friends . they all look for a way to express their pain and to break the silence that was imposed on them by their relatives and by society .
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( dolls in arabic ) is based on stories of sexual abuse in arab society in israel . abeer , the creator of a puppet theater show which deals with the subject of sexual abuse during childhood , decides to take her camera and journey from the north to the south of the country and document women who have experienced sexual violence . in her journey she meets four women who dare to reveal the sexual abuse they endured in their close circle of family and friends . they all look for a way to express their pain and to break the silence that was imposed on them by their relatives and by society .
although ella pamfilova , the chairman of russia ' s election commission , has promised to investigate reports of fraud , she maintains that there was no systematic falsification and that the september 18 vote was legitimate .
robert coalson is a senior correspondent for rfe / rl who covers russia , the balkans , and eastern europe .
radio free europe / radio liberty © 2018 rfe / rl , inc . all rights reserved .
with an introduction by anna ball , senior lecturer in postcolonial studies at nottingham trent university , and followed by a skype q & a ; with director abeer zeiabk haddad .
russian riot police detain an protester in moscow as crowds opposed to vladimir putin take to the streets and post - election violence breaks out . photograph : reuters
anger over a russian election marred by widespread violations and the shadow of vladimir putin ' s likely return to the presidency broke into violence late on monday , as thousands of people took to the streets of moscow in protest .
several thousand people , mainly young men , filled a park in central moscow to listen to liberal opposition leaders call for putin ' s ousting in a meeting approved by city authorities . but when they attempted to march to lubyanka , the headquarters of the feared federal security service , they were met by baton - wielding riot police who beat some protesters over the head and dragged others into waiting lorries .
hundreds appeared to be detained , including opposition leaders alexey navalny and ilya yashin , as well as several journalists . police put the number of protesters at 2 , 000 but some russian media said the number was as high as 8 , 000 .
widespread examples of vote falsifications and violations – uploaded by the hundreds onto youtube , facebook and twitter – have fed the anger .
international observers also questioned the results . the organisation for security and co - operation in europe said the elections were marred by
frequent procedural violations and instances of apparent manipulations , including serious indications of ballot box stuffing
. britain ' s foreign secretary , william hague , said the report raised
serious concerns
.
the us secretary of state , hillary clinton , said washington had
serious concerns
about the conduct of the elections .
russian voters deserve a full investigation of all credible reports of electoral fraud and manipulation and we hope in particular that then russian authorities will take action ,
said clinton .
people continued to register alleged cases of falsification on monday , and news reports on state television appeared to show results that implied turnout in some regions was as high as 146 % .
yevgeniya chirikova , a popular environmental activist , called at the protest for the election results to be overturned . the crowd shouted
putin , leave !
, waved flags and blew whistles – a nod to his public booing and whistling at a martial arts event last month .
the protest , one of the biggest liberal opposition demonstrations in years , is certain to worry a state that looks down on opposition and is long unused to a politically conscious public .
groups of society have emerged that have a lively and serious interest in the vote results ,
said the political analyst gleb pavlovsky .
they consider the results their own and that ' s why they are fighting for it .
several protesters told the guardian it was their first time at a political demonstration .
putin ' s concern showed when he spoke to supporters at the united russia headquarters following sunday ' s vote .
i want to speak to all citizens of the country and , above all , those who voted for the party ,
putin said , his eyebrows twitching and his gaze wandering as he betrayed his normally calm demeanour .
despite a rather complicated period in the life of our government , despite the [ financial ] crisis , despite the fact that responsibility for these difficulties has laid and lies on the shoulders of the party , people – our voters , our citizens – kept us as the leading political party in the country .
the vote on sunday delivered the first concrete sign of russians ' unhappiness with putin ' s announcement that he would seek re - election for the presidency . with 96 % of the votes counted on monday , united russia ' s support stood at just under 50 % – a sharp drop from the 64 % it received in elections four years ago .
observers are now anxiously watching how the former kgb agent will react .
on the one hand , there ' s the option of moving towards the style of [ belarussian dictator alexander ] lukashenko ,
navalny said .
on the other , they realise that the harsher they are , the worse the result .
state - run television , from which the majority of russians get their news , has not covered anger at the election result . but the internet has become an increasing source of information for russia ' s youth .
opposition leaders called for protesters to keep up the pressure until the march vote . however , putin ' s victory is widely expected as no serious opposition candidate has been allowed to emerge . although his popularity rating has dropped from the sky - high levels he regularly enjoyed after first coming to power in 1999 , it still remains higher than any other politician in the country , coming in at around 50 % , according to most pollsters .
another party official , andrei vorobyov , sought to put to rest worries that the result could put putin ' s victory in the presidential vote in doubt .
these 10 years [ that putin has been in power ] , it is very easy to lose confidence , but today it is at a very high level ,
he said .
our candidate is known . it is putin , our leader , and we will do everything in our power to ensure that our candidate wins in the first round .
© 2018 guardian news and media limited or its affiliated companies . all rights reserved .
on a break from his pushy girlfriend , a male falls for the sister of his employer .
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the main anchorman of israel ' s public tv for more than 40 years chaim yavin , gets out of the studio , and meets the arab citizens of israel .
when it was released in the summer of 1991 , thelma & louise was declared
the first movie i ' ve ever seen which told the downright truth
by a lesbian activist in los angeles and a
paean to transformative violence
by commentator john leo . new york daily news columnist richard johnson complained that it was
degrading to men
and
justifies armed robbery , manslaughter and chronic drunken driving as exercises in consciousness raising .
with a handful of exceptions , women loved it .
the movie starred susan sarandon and geena davis as friends who set off on a road trip and become outlaws after sarandon ' s character shoots a would - be rapist . may marked its 20th anniversary . in 1992 , screenwriter callie khouri became one of a handful of women to win an academy award for best original screenplay , and thelma & louise earned more than $ 45 million at the u . s . box office . sarandon and davis were each nominated in the best actress category , and director ridley scott was nominated for best director .
at a screening of
thelma & louise
earlier this month , i was struck by how many lines of dialogue i remembered word for word . i was only 9 when it came out in theaters and i didn ' t see it until many years after it was released . when i finally did , at age 25 , i was electrified . at 28 , i was again entranced , silently mouthing my favorite lines along with sarandon and davis , laughing semi - hysterically at every sad - funny scene featuring thelma ' s twitchy - eyed sexist jerk of a husband , and choking back a sob when louise bade her final farewell to jimmy .
after the screening , there was a panel discussion of how far women had come twenty years later .
this movie would never get made today ,
sighed one of the panelists , and the audience members murmured their assent . it ' s shocking enough that it was distributed in 1991 , but at least back then american women were experiencing something like momentum : anita hill stood up for herself at clarence thomas ' s confirmation hearings , callie khouri won an oscar , and , when four women were simultaneously elected to the united states senate , 1992 was dubbed the
year of the woman .
there are no such movies today . the bechdel test ( named for cartoonist alison bechdel ) is a means of assessing a movie ' s treatment of its female characters . in order to pass the test , a movie must have : ( 1 ) at least two women in it , ( 2 ) who talk to each other , ( 3 ) about something other than a man or men . a popular variant of the test additionally requires that both women have names . twenty years ago , thelma & louise passed the bechdel test easily . i can think of only three widely distributed movies that passed in the last year : something borrowed , bridesmaids , and the help . none approached the depth or level of nuance of thelma & louise , and only the help featured actresses of the same caliber as davis and sarandon .
bridesmaids is an enjoyably ribald comedy that dips a tentative toe in the darker waters of changing friendships , loneliness , and disillusionment . it ' s frivolous and fun , but hardly earth - shattering , despite the tremendous amount of credit its makers were awarded for assembling a movie with a predominantly female cast . the overwrought and forgettable something borrowed only passes the bechdel test on a technicality : kate hudson and ginnifer goodwin spend about ten minutes of screen time discussing something other than a man or men . ( that
something
is their longstanding friendship , which goodwin ' s character ultimately trades in for a man ) . though inspiringly female - centric , the help is about women ' s lives rather than individual women ; it ' s not focused enough to create main characters as vivid and enduring as thelma & louise .
thelma & louise is powerful in part because it ' s about more than friendship . movies that examine the bonds between women are few and far between , but they exist , from beaches to terms of endearment , the color purple , steel magnolias , fried green tomatoes , and a league of their own . thelma & louise transcends the genre ; it ' s about transformation and liberation that at once intensely personal and deeply political . it ' s about escaping , however fantastically , the agonizing constraints of gender , class , time , and place .
in 1991 , even gossip columnist liz smith found thelma & louise ' s liberation troubling , particularly its sexual aspect .
nobody in ' thelma & louise ' worries about aids , using condoms or encountering a serial killer ,
smith primly noted . surely the number of hollywood sex scenes that depict a character of any gender reaching for a condom mid - action is low . what really bothered people is that
thelma & louise
understood and realistically portrayed the way women experience sex . much has been made of brad pitt ' s performance , which was widely hailed as his breakout role . he played a sweet - talking hitchhiker / felon who shows thelma
what all the fuss is about
in bed . their scenes together are funny , touching , and genuinely erotic .
khouri knew that women like context—thelma and her new friend didn ' t have time to go to dinner and get to know each other , but their chemistry is believably established in the scenes they share together outside of bed . the actual sex scene stayed with me for years not because brad pitt had such a nice body—though he did—but because he and davis seemed to get along so well . you feel as if they like each other , not just each other ' s bodies . they flirt and tease and laugh and play together . it was her first taste of real intimacy with a man that made the sex so good for thelma , not the way her lover ' s body looked in jeans ( although she liked that too ) . that scene possessed a humanity that is absent from every major movie sex scene i ' ve watched since .
melissa silverstein , who writes and edits a blog called
women & hollywood ,
was among the panelists at the screening i attended .
thelma & louise is still a touchstone for so many people because it has never been recreated ,
she observed .
when a movie is successful , it ' s usually recreated over and over and over again .
why didn ' t thelma & louise usher in a new era for women in hollywood ? as the reactions of certain critics in 1991 revealed , even smart , educated people are disturbed by female characters who assert control over their lives and bodies and aren ' t punished for it . and as callie khouri told the observer in 2001 ,
bad guys get killed in every goddamn movie that gets made . . . that guy was the bad guy and he got killed . it was only because a woman did it that there was any controversy at all .
at least back then we got to have the controversy . today , we don ' t make movies about women that are even worth fighting about . whenever i ' m dispirited by the crassly sexist ethos that governs hollywood ( as well as television , politics , and the corporate world ) today , i think of
thelma and louise
and remember a time , not so long ago , when women were allowed to be human , if only in the movies .
raina lipsitz is a brooklyn - based writer . she writes frequently about race , gender , and popular culture .
urltoken copyright ( c ) 2018 by the atlantic monthly group . all rights reserved .
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the awards has already received immense international media attention . the event will be attended by seasoned industry professionals and distinguished guests from around the globe .
sochi has again confirmed its leading status as the country’s festival centre , where the most promising projects in the field of culture are realised .
i ' m sure that every day of this wonderful project will contribute not only to greater international cultural cooperation , but also to an increase in interest in the european audience in russian cinematography .
during a tough chapter in uk - russian relations i was pleased to have been able to attend luba ' s special evening . . . luba , you are a brave and valiant woman to spearhead such a high - profile project in a hostile environment . but those of us who spent the 23rd with you had the privilege of breathing the same air as the legendary stephen frears , the american star nick nolte and the superb string ensemble ( kandour quartet ) .
a smashing success ! thank you for bringing moscow and sochi delegations , for the unexpected sochi - wood glamour , the feedback from staff members and external guests was unreservedly positive .
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we are informing you that the call for submissions for connecting cottbus ( coco ) is open . connecting cottbus is an east west co - production market and a networking platform focusing on eastern european cinema during the filmfestival cottbus .
interview with the director atanas hristoskov , the screenwriter yavor mihaylov and the composer a . t . i . l . a . for urltoken
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i liked it very much . directed and edited in a style much different from the one offered by hollywood movies , deals concrete problems of life . it ' s a good lesson for young naive women , who under the influence of a burning passion , can take wrong decisions , from which will suffer all their life . it is also a good opportunity to see things from parent ' s perspective - who opposed some of our decisions sometimes and we just couldn ' t understand them .
how can be wrong when i know and i feel it ' s good ? parents just don ' t understand ! !
well , this movie shows you very clearly how something we felt it was perfectly good , can be awfully wrong . . .