Larry Oliver Film Reviews

  Inspired by a real-life case of serial abuse, the film Women Talking , adapted from the novel by Canadian author Miriam Toews by actress turned writer-director Sarah Polley, imagines a group of women living in a rural colony contemplating their response to being injected with cow tranquiliser at night and raped by their menfolk. The adult men in the unnamed community are entirely amorphous, unified by the violence towards women, which we deduce is borne out of entitlement – violence is never shown, only its aftermath. The community is deeply religious, though there is no church, no religious leader signing off on such action. We might perceive this community as a metaphor for the Middle East, where in many countries, misogyny to a lesser or greater degree is institutionalised. The lack of specificity here is an impediment to drama. Put crudely, there is not enough going on to hold our attention for the full 104 minutes, in spite of the cast and the premise. The one male character...