Daisies (1966) Film Screening!

Join us for an event at New House Art Space!

Femme Films is a volunteer run community cinema based in the Woking/Guildford area that aims to champion female-led films that go often overlooked in mainstream cinemas.

Věra Chytilová’s classic of surrealist cinema is the most adventurous and anarchic Czech movie of the 1960s. Two young women, both named Marie, revolt against a degenerate, decayed and oppressive society, attacking symbols of wealth and bourgeois culture. The Maries’ engage in a series of anarchic pranks and indulgent behavior as a form of rebellion against the conformist, patriarchal society they live in. The film's narrative is loose and fragmented, with the characters gleefully defying logic and convention as they wreak havoc on social order, playing with food, men, and societal rules with reckless abandon.

Daisies is celebrated for its avant-garde style, characterized by bold visual experimentation, rapid editing, and surrealist imagery. Chytilová employed a wide range of cinematic techniques, including colour filters, collage effects, and abrupt changes in tone and style, to create a playful yet subversive critique of the emptiness and absurdity of consumerism and authoritarianism. The film also contains a strong feminist undercurrent, with the Maries' refusal to conform to traditional female roles challenging the objectification and control of women in society. Instead of “realistically” portraying the female experience, the director moves into a surreal space in order to confront the absurd patriarchal fantasies that shape the surrounding reality. Marie and Marie are presented as hyperbolised images of femininity, dismantling the integrity of such representations.

Defiant feminist statement? Nihilistic, avant-garde comedy? Daisies remains a fascinating cinematic rollercoaster. Remarkable and refreshingly uncompromising, it continues to provoke, stimulate and entertain. Daisies is a riotous, punk-poem of a film that is both hilarious and mind-warpingly innovative, it has and continues to influence generations of filmmakers.

"One of the Czech New Wave's most revellious, irreverent and boundary-breaking talents... a vibrant innovator, whose uncompromising vision in a decidedly male-run industry made her known as the 'First Lady of Czech Cinema' - Carmen Gray, BFI.

Doors will be open from 6:30pm with an introduction and short film (Shapeless by Ameya) starting from 7pm with the feature film aiming to start by 7:30 the latest. Feel free to stick around and chat after the film finishes and share your thoughts!!

Light refreshments will be available. The paid Cafe will be open before the film to grab whatever drinks you want. Popcorn and sweets however will be available for free upon arrival!

Make sure to follow us on Instagram- @Femmefilmscinema , for more updates!!

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