Pepi, Luci, y Bom; continued

So maybe I'm a a little strange, but I loved it.

I think that it's interesting that the topic of film discussion came up in our class because in my personal life I've recently decided that it is time for me to become better versed in film. I had had Almodovar on my to-do list but never really got around to it. Until our class in Monday, that is. And as anyone could presume was the general sentiment in the room during the film (I mean the way that people reacted and nervous polite laughter is always a tell tale sign), it was the kind of movie that left you very confused, not quite sure what you were supposed to get out of it. Which I think is right up my alley since I understand better the subtleties of reading as opposed to the brash demonstrations of many movies. This movie was fun and interesting in that the style was hyper exaggerated to make you feel a little like "WTF?" But by doing this, one gets to get a clearer sense of how "WTF" our established systems of gender are if looked at closely under the microscope.

I loved all three of the women in their ow strengths and the fact that they did not follow the usual movie/television template of three-women-of-differing-backgrounds-and-personalities-that-in-being-friends-collectively-make-up-one-real-person. Each character had her own style and taste to offer to her role, sometimes differing from what she appears to be (ie Luci.) And honestly, isn't that one of the greatest struggles that women face? Being placed in the box of "you're a woman so you're like this?" The fact that this film addresses this and other issues is a great part of what gives it its bite. In fact, one of my favourite scenes was the little sequence of advertisements that Pepi had put together. Not only was it just hilarious and entertaining due to the superficial absurdity of it but it was also really candid and sincere. The issues of "what to do when you have to pee in public", "what to do when you have to pass gas with a lover", and "what to do when you're horny" are legitimate things that women often times have to face in silence because it's considered embarrassing and moreover improper for a women to respond in these scenarios with the same freedoms a man might have.

I think there absolutely is a lot of comedy and entertainment in poking fun at the silliness of our societal constructs but I feel even more important than this is the fact that when we blow up these images and scenarios we our allowed to see many of our mannerisms for what they really are, laughable, we are then confronted to question them.

--Jheanelle G.

p.s. I think my post might have saved funny because I hit the back button by accident, sorry :)

Tradition and Modernity

Something I found interesting about Pedro Almodovar’s “Pepi, Luci, Bom” was the contrast between tradition and societal change.

When Luci’s husband tells her he does not like independent women, he is saying he wants Luci to be the opposite: a dependent woman who cannot fend for herself and needs to be taken care of by a man. He also does not like it when she wears trousers, a conventionally male clothing item, because when women wear them they undermine this concept of patriarchal dominance. Man’s business is in the public sphere and in keeping order in his home and family; woman’s business is in shopping, cooking, and sewing, as demonstrated by Luci and Charito’s conversation about food prices and Luci’s cover story for spending time with Pepi and Bom. Tradition demands that these gender roles remain distinct, and that means trousers and power for men only. By extension, then, this power dynamic is also epitomized by the rape scenes: The husband has no qualms about forcing himself on unwilling women because in his view, men’s sexuality takes precedence over women’s sexuality (and desire).

Meanwhile, Pepi, Bom, and their friends subscribe to a different paradigm, one that celebrates openness and sexual freedom. What is described as a “wave of eroticism sweeping the country” is really a rebellion against the oppressive conservatism of societal tradition. Within the subculture Luci enters is an openness about, for example, fetishes, as well as a kind of fluidity in both sexuality and relationships. This fluidity is evident in the discussion the two young gay men have about the wealthy older man who will pay them for sex, and in the fact that Luci has two relationships, one with a man and the other with a woman. This untraditional way of life also rails against patriarchal dominance by ensuring greater gender equality. Women are given more power, as evidenced by Pepi’s success at getting done what she wants done, be it revenge or finding work. Additionally, women also find more equality in their relationships—or, as Luci refers to it, “fulfillment,” as her husband does not fulfill her masochistic needs and Bom does. Finally, neither of the rape scenes occur within this context of equality; all the sexuality seen is consensual.

Almodovar pits tradition against more modern ideas of gender and sexual expression, ultimately portraying tradition in a negative light and making the freer lifestyle seem like the much more comfortable choice. He makes Pepi and Bom’s world non-oppressive and much more egalitarian than the one the husband represents, which is corrupt and violent.