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Antonia's Line Reviews
This is a beautiful movie of hope, a chosen family, and integrity. I am puzzled by some of the (men's) reviews that characterize the film as feminist. Is having some strong female characters ‘feminist'? Yes, the movie is told from a woman's perspective but it also includes a close relationship between Antonia and Bas. They adopt a line of people, women and men, who are outcasts. This is not a feminist treatise, it is a human one.
One of my all-time favourite films and one of only three that I have watched several times. A beautiful, uplifting story filled with wonderful characters — especially strong females.
This movie brings warmth and humour to the joys and hardships of life. It is a soft reminder to shoulder our burdens and seek beauty around us. For those learning Dutch it is also in language that is easy to understand.
Super delightful, one of the most straightforward feminist films I've ever seen, and simply inherently without even mentioning the word or concept! Was stunning and beautiful, felt like I was watching a novel.
This is one of my favorite movies of all time. It is funny, moving, and unpredictable in all the right ways.
Antonia's line is indeed a true celebration of life. A well crafted film. It's a film with excellent narrative and a well-woven script. Like life, which does not resolve around one problem or one conflict or in fact one person, this film too does not hover around a conflict. Conflicts are born and they die. People are born and they die. The film is not a story of a person but of a village and a family. Like life, which would be incomplete without others (people) in your life, even this film would be incomplete without the various characters in the film and their bond with each other. Marleen Gorris has proved herself as a genius at establishing characters and their relationships. All characters have their own identity and no two characters seem similar. Moreover, the film is visually stunning and emotionally gripping. A must see!
I'm sorry, but I was bored through the whole thing. Perhaps as entertainment at feminist festivals it's worth something. And don't accuse me of being a boor. I generally like foreign "intellectual" movies. Not to the point, but I just saw an hilarious French comedy with Charlotte Gainsbourg. I can certainly see why bent finger hung himself. I would have to if I had to spend eternity in that film.
This movie focuses on the life of one woman (Antonia) and the small town in which she lives. At first I wondered how interesting this could be as a premise, but the movie delivers. Themes are robust - morality, sexuality, religion. There's also a spattering of the fantastical and philosophical. It balances beautifully between lighter and heavier moments. Humour is used effectively. Viewers become attached to the characters and their lives.
Best movie I've watched in a while :) Foreign language films sure kick Hollywood's ***
Enjoyable Dutch film (best foreign film Oscar winner) about a strong woman ahead of time and the community of misfits she builds around her, scoffing at tradition and sometimes religion. Celebrates life and freedom and serves as a moving paen against prejudices.
Another reviewer objects to the reliance on exposition in "Antonia's Line" while I wonder if he dislikes Jules et Jim, Like Water for Chocolate and Amelie for similarly relying on voiceovers for narrative thrust. When I was in college a good friend lent me her copy of Dutch Feminist classic "Antonia's Line" which tells the story of four generations of autonomous and opinionated woman and the eccentric characters they attract and inspire over the years.
Family Is What You Make It The problem, I think, is the emphasis on an era. Netflix reminds us very firmly that the story is about a woman coming home after World War II, and that leaves us with certain expectations. However, the war hardly matters in this movie; one building we see early in the story has a large welcome to Allied troops painted on it, and a character is mentioned as having been shot for hiding a Jew, but for the most part, it is the changes that took place after the war which are more important. It also means that this isn't quite the same story I was expecting, and if I'd known that, I might have watched it some time ago. Netflix refers to this as a heartwarming drama, and while I suppose you could call it that, it's also extremely funny. "Heartwarming drama in a small town after World War II" has a very specific implication, and I am delighted to announce that this movie doesn't go along with that. It is probably true that their lives could not have progressed the way they did had the war not changed so much, but it's also true that this is more a twentieth century story than a post-war story, and I'm not sure we have enough of those. Antonia (Willeke van Ammerlrooy) has returned home. Her mother (I'm not sure) is dying, and that's the only thing that brings her back, since her mother is horrible and crazy. Antonia and her daughter, Danielle (Els Dottermans), take over the family farm, and in many ways, it's as though Antonia has never left. She knows everything about the town, though there is a new farmer, Boer Bas (Jan Decleir). He proposes to Antonia, partly in hopes of a mother for his sons and partly because of genuine affection for Antonia. One day, Danielle decides that she needs a child, and she and Antonia go in search of a father for one. Not a husband. They meet Letta (Wimie Wilhelm), who sets Danielle up with her brother; Danielle does, indeed, get pregnant, and she gives birth to Thérèse (Carolien Spoor, Esther Vriesendorp, then Veerle van Overloop). Thérèse is incredibly intelligent. Her grandmother also took in Deedee (Marina de Graaf), who was raped by Pier (Dirk Zeelenberg), her brother, but then got married and had children. Her oldest boy, Simon (Carlo van Dam, Igor Corbeau, and then Reinout Bussemaker), loves Thérèse, and they have Sarah (Thyrza Ravesteijn). Antonia is a charming woman. She is a pillar of freedom and liberation; it is because of her that the priest (Leo Hogenboom) leaves the Church and ends up having many children with Letta. It is she who decides that it is perfectly acceptable for Boer Bas to make love to her without being married to her and that it is perfectly acceptable for Danielle to want a child but not a husband. Heck, she even lets Danielle's girlfriend, Lara (Elsie de Brauw), move in with them. We know of at least five irregular couples under Antonia's roof, and who knows how many of Deedee's and Letta's children are in relationships with various other people over the years? It wouldn't surprise me to discover that it is she who arranges for Mad Madonna (Catherine ten Bruggencate) and the Protestant (Paul Kooij) to be buried in the same grave. She and Danielle are also the first ones with the strength to give Pier what he deserves. Frankly, Antonia is so forceful at speaking her mind that I wonder how she got through the war without being shot. I also like that Thérèse doesn't end up with someone of her own intellectual level. Of course, the only person we see who is definitely of her intellectual level is Crooked Finger (Mil Sehers), who is old and bitter. She dates college-level psuedo-intellectuals for a while, but she quickly realizes that they are less than they think they are. It isn't necessarily that Simon is her ideal lifemate, because I'm not sure he is, but they do still manage to make each other happy. His seems to be a quiet, fawning sort of happiness, but she isn't all that demanding of him. She wants to have her books and her music, and she isn't even all that sure if she wants to be a mother or not. She goes along with it in part because it seems to be what Simon wants. I also can't help wondering how much it's because she cannot bear to be the one who breaks such a strong line of women. Yes, Antonia's mother was crazy, but Antonia and Danielle were intelligent, strong, and creative. Just because Deedee's line wasn't as good doesn't overpower the desirability of passing on Antonia's genes. I think the best of Antonia can be summed up by the moment when Letta and her two oldest show up at the farm. Letta is pregnant, probably for the third time, and she tells Antonia that she has nowhere else to go. Antonia doesn't hesitate to let her come sit at the family table. Even the priest, who had formerly been comparing Danielle to Jezebel, is allowed at the table. Pier hadn't changed from his wicked ways, so he cannot share the meal, but everyone else is welcome. Antonia will not turn people away. It's up to everyone to decide whether her sexual morality is valid or not, but her welcoming nature is the best thing about her. Thérèse is scarily intelligent, so Thérèse will be provided for the best Antonia can manage. Danielle had wanted a daughter, and art school, and whatever else, so Antonia provided it for her. And one day, Antonia decided that she had given her family everything she could, and that it was time for her to move on. She had been happy, and what made her happy was taking care of those she loved.
drammatico, delicato, divertente, irriverente e sfrontato. Non a caso uno dei capisaldi della filmografia femminista.
Antonia's Line is a quirky and whimsical story of Antonia with themes on love, family, and community that also gently explores topics on feminism and independence. Emotionally engaging, pleasant, and precious masterpiece. Remarkable.
A woman recalls her entire adult life on her deathbed. This film is way too expository, relying almost solely on narration to tell the story. It's not really a film because it uses almost none of the elements inherent to film; rather, it's a short novel with pictures and actors. A perfect example of the film's flaws is the impact of the second rape scene. Out of the blue, we hear that a character has been raped, and then we see Antonia's response to it, taking a gun and kicking the rapist out of town. But this sequence, ripe with emotional resonance, has almost no impact on the audience because there wasn't an adequate set-up, so that we can feel suspense and fear for the victim, and there wasn't any visual, graphic or implied, that allowed us to see the result of the crime. The sequence becomes mere Cliff's Notes, and the same problem pervades the entire film. And the titular character is almost a minor role. I'm surprised that the film didn't center around her and the other interesting character, "Crooked Finger," more. Overall, <i>Antonia's Line</i> is like the connective tissue of a Victorian novel, over-narrated, maudlin, and unspecific.
A lovely film that showcases a strong, nurturing female at the core of the story. This is the story of Antonia who returns to the village where she was born with her daughter in tow to take over the family farm . The film showcases how Antonia is able to build a strong familial community amongst the villagers and how her influence is felt down through the generations of her family and close friends. A feel good film whose message of feminism is subtle but still strong.
One of my favourite movies for sure! I can watch it over and over again