Dr Kate Lister reviews the portrayal of women in period hollywood movies, analysing how their role in society and within historic institutions has evolved, if at all, over time.
She rates scenes from the hit film 'Little Women' (2019), starring Florence Pugh, Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson and directed by Greta Gerwig, which details the passage of four middle class girls from childhood to womanhood during the American Civil War in 1860s New England.
Next, Kate reviews 'Memoirs of a Geisha' (2005), the epic period drama film directed by Rob Marshall and adapted by Robin Swicord from the 1997 novel of the same name which follows nine-year-old Chiyo, sold by her underprivileged family to a geisha house in Kyoto, Japan in the late 1920s. Kate rates the film for its accuracy in depicting the lives of geishas and the inherent challenges they would they as they grew up living an extremely regimented life.
Moving on to 'The Remains of the Day' (1993), starring the brilliant Sir Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson, Kate analyses the complex relationship between a schizoid butler Mr Stevens and head housekeep Miss Kenton whilst examining the role of women within the household staff hierarchy in pre and post war Britain.
Finally, she comments on Kirsten Dunst's iconic portrayal of Marie Antoinette and her turbulent life before and during the French Revolution in the film 'Marie Antoinette' (2006).
