Last night, I watched the world’s first firefight at a nuclear power plant. The Ukrainian plant’s cameras were streaming online as Russia attacked and shelled the facilities of Zaporizhzhia. It’s the largest nuclear plant in Europe. These cameras were confirmed as real footage by multiple journalists. Tracers sometimes shot through the night. Bright flashes erupted regularly – I couldn’t tell if they were from vehicles firing or being hit. At one point, a building on fire was hit, and then it wasn’t really there anymore. It was replaced with a fire that was several stories tall.
I’ve seen these sorts of scenes played out in movies and video games countless times. They’re often fetishized for their godly feel of destruction from on high. Planes, missiles, artillery can all hit targets without even seeing them. They’re presented with cool detachment – at best a disconnect from the result and a justification for the action driven by that detachment. At worst, they’re a Michael Bay-styled fetishization of destructive power.
All I knew as I watched is there were lives there. Then there weren’t. They were ended by people who couldn’t see those lives. As I watched, I didn’t feel the power of destruction. I didn’t feel detached. It didn’t feel fetishized. I felt hollow. I’ve seen historical war footage. That’s disturbing enough, but it all happened. It already is. People already did it. This, I watched live.
I don’t know that this is the right place to put this. I have no conclusion. While men may have a higher tolerance or interest in the fetishization of mass violence, it’s not unique to us. I’ve seen women and men directors create shining, gleaming military sequences where lives are ended with the cool admiration of technology, as those giving orders watch a world away, somehow managing not to feel hollow. I don’t know that this is the right place to put this. It’s the article I’m writing the intro to the next day and right now this is the only thing I can write.
Just please, if you’ve ever believed you had the power to change the world, the ability, the drive, whether you think you can succeed or you think it’s tilting at windmills, you’re needed. We need to change it. Whatever combination of hope and hopelessness, calm and anger, fulfillment and desperation, whatever it is that drove us so well as a community for four years to oppose Trump, that kept us loud and involved and active, we need to still be using that. We need to pick that up again. Please.
NEW SERIES
Pieces of Her (Netflix)
showrunner Charlotte Stoudt
directed by Minkie Spiro
Toni Collette plays Laura, who one day displays an unexpected aptitude for violence. The series follows Bella Heathcote’s Andy as she tries to piece together who her mother really is. “Pieces of Her” is based on the thriller novel by Karin Slaughter.
Charlotte Stoudt showruns. She’s previously produced on “Fosse/Verdon”, “Homeland”, and the U.S. “House of Cards”. She started out as a researcher on various TV series.
Minkie Spiro has directed on “Better Caul Saul”, “Dead to Me”, “Call the Midwife”, and “Jessica Jones”. She started out as a photographer.
You can watch “Pieces of Her” on Netflix. All eight episodes are available today.
The Dropout (Hulu)
showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether
half-directed by women
Amanda Seyfried stars as Elizabeth Holmes in a series based on real-life events. Holmes dropped out of college before founding Theranos, an overnight success in healthcare technology. An instant billionaire, Theranos fell apart over the next several years as Holmes and her inner circle were exposed for massive fraud of its patients and investors.
Showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether has written and produced on “New Girl” and “Bless This Mess”. Francesca Gregorini and Erica Watson each direct two of the series’ eight episodes.
You can watch “The Dropout” on Hulu. The first three episodes are available now, with a new episode dropping each Thursday.
NEW MOVIES
Fresh (Hulu)
directed by Mimi Cave
Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sebastian Stan star as a new couple who are both exhausted by the modern dating scene. It seems like they’re saved from it by each other. A little bit of cannibalism can’t be the worst red flag she’s ever encountered.
Director Mimi Cave is best known for directing a number of tUnE-yArDs music videos. She’s also directed for Sleigh Bells, Sylvan Esso, and Vance Joy. This is her feature-length debut.
You can watch “Fresh” on Hulu.
American Girl (Netflix)
directed by Feng-I Fiona Roan
A 13 year-old girl is forced to leave Los Angeles after her mother develops cancer. She returns to Taiwan in the midst of the 2003 SARS outbreak.
The Taiwanese film is the first feature from director and co-writer Feng-I Fiona Roan. She won Best New Director at the Golden Horse Film Festival, Taiwan’s equivalent of the Oscars. (The film also won Best Cinematography and Best New Performer there.)
You can watch “American Girl” on Netflix.
Meskina (Netflix)
directed by Daria Bukvic
In this Dutch comedy, a Moroccan-Dutch woman sees her family try to set her up. They look down on her for being cheated on by her former partner and now single. They desperately want to ‘solve’ the situation. The film is told in Dutch and Arabic.
Director and co-writer Daria Bukvic is a Bosnian-Dutch director. She entered the Netherlands as a Bosnian refugee at the age of three, alongside her mother. She’s become one of the Netherlands’ most exciting theatrical directors. This is her first film.
You can watch “Meskina” on Netflix.
The Weekend Away (Netflix)
directed by Kim Farrant
Based on the novel by Sarah Alderson, two women vacation in Croatia. One of them is accused of murdering the other, and she attempts to clear her name.
Director Kim Farrant has previously directed on “Strangerland” and “Angel of Mine”.
You can watch “The Weekend Away” on Netflix.
CW: sex trafficking
The Scary of Sixty-First (Shudder)
directed by Dasha Nekrasova
Two roommates living in Manhattan discover their apartment hides a secret – it was once used by Jeffrey Epstein for sex trafficking. In what’s advertised as a horror comedy, it’s difficult to know exactly how this subject matter will be engaged.
Director and co-writer Dasha Nekrasova is an actress you may have seen on “Succession”. This is her first feature.
You can watch “The Scary of Sixty-First” on Shudder.
Take a look at new shows + movies by women from past weeks.
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Gabriel Diego Valdez 