It's difficult to shake the image of Terry Jones in a chador while watching Riad Sattouf's not-as-clever, not-as-savvy gender inverted social satire, Jacky in the Kingdom of Women. While the Python clan cast in for the purpose of comedy, Sattouf cross dresses his cast to make a point, to make lots of points. Actually, to make too many points. Many points that conflict with other points. Some pointed points. Some pointedly pointless points. A lot of general pointlessness.
Suffice to say, Jacky in the Kingdom of Women isn't particularly focused. Thankfully, putting the dubious messaging aside, the film is fun enough. Its gimmick (and it's not robust enough to be much more) finds neo-Cinderella figure, Jacky (Vincent Lacoste), left in the care of his three evil stepfathers after his mother's death. As the whole of his fascist woman-led state prepares for the selection of the "Grand Dummy" by the head General's daughter (Charlotte Gainsbourg), Jacky has to rely on his "menanist" uncle to get him into the grand ball for his shot at the big prize.
Despite its (presumably) good intentions, Jacky in the Kingdom of Women's gender politics are far from kosher. Sattouf reinforces gender roles, inter-gender violence and servitude and ultimately falls into the Tootsie trap of intimating that men know better how to break out of prevailing inequalities better than women - just use guns. Worst of all, his film basically ends up asserting that a female led society will literally feed its citizens shit, though that point may relate more to the fascists, or the religion... hell, I'm not sure anymore.
Laughable, for better and worse.
★★☆
Trailer:
Disclaimer: Due to excessive work and excessive film going, MIFF posts are going to be pretty sketchy this year. I'll come back to some of the better ones and write them up proper-like if the mood takes.
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