Jessica Chastain: Portrayal Of Women In Cannes Films Was "Disturbing"

The opportunity to sit on the Competition jury of the Cannes Film Festival is a dream for any cinephile (hey Thierry Fremaux, give me a call!). It’s an opportunity to experience some of the finest cinema the world has to offer, all in one shot, at one of the most prestigious movie gatherings of the year. However, for Jessica Chastain, her time on the Croisette this year proved to be eye-opening in a different way.

The actress, who was part of the Pedro Almodovar led jury, says that she was dismayed by how women were portrayed in many of the films presented at Cannes.

“Watching in that concentration, it became very clear to me, how the world viewed women and how little stories talked from a woman’s point of view, a story about a woman who wasn’t victimized,” she told the LA Times. “Of course, there were exceptions at the Cannes Film Festival. However, I found it really disturbing in general, the image that was portrayed of women in the lineup that I saw.”

Chastain doesn’t cite any particular pictures, but this year, Competition movies included Sofia Coppola‘s “The Beguiled,” Fatih Akin‘s “In The Fade,” Francois Ozon‘s “Double Lover,” Naomi Kawase‘s “Radiance,” and Yorgos Lanthimos‘ “The Killing Of A Sacred Deer,” all presenting stories centered around women. Certainly, in almost all of them, women are in some sort of peril.

Speaking with Time, the actress zeroes in further on a common narrative issue when it comes to female roles, particularly when they are the protagonist of a story.

“I have a problem with filmmakers who use violence against women, and especially rape, to make a woman stronger—where the woman needs to be victimized in order to become a butterfly. I find that pattern in cinema really disturbing,” Chastain explained.

“We have grown up watching women be used as props on a man’s journey. It’s not our fault that that’s what we saw as children. But we need to acknowledge that and do better,” she added, about what needs to change within the industry.

The #metoo movement has opened the door to discuss how women are treated as people in the industry, but how that translates to how their stories are told on screen is also an important element that must be addressed. As 2017 turns over to 2018, and Hollywood faces a new dawn, let’s hope as attitudes change in the boardrooms of the industry, it follows with a shift in how films are developed too.