From ‘Inside Out 2’ to ‘The Last Showgirl’ to ‘The Girl With the Needle,’ 2024 Films Tap Into Intergenerational Female Mentorship

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As a film enthusiast with a deep appreciation for stories that delve into the complexities of human relationships, I find these films incredibly compelling. Each one offers a unique perspective on the bonds that form between individuals, often highlighting the intricacies and contradictions that make us who we are.

2024’s impactful narratives often feature complex relationships between women, encompassing everything from inspiring and empowering to irritating and manipulative. These dynamics can be nurturing like motherhood or exploitative, showcasing a wide spectrum of gray areas in female mentorship.

In various movies such as “All We Imagine as Light,” “Babygirl,” “Emilia Pérez,” “The Girl With the Needle,” “Inside Out 2,” “The Last Showgirl,” “My Old Ass,” and “The Substance,” we see women forming relationships that can be just as dangerous as they are supportive. These relationships can foster camaraderie from competition, reflect a past or potential future self, often in an awkward manner.

Payal Kapadia’s film “All We Imagine as Light” explores the friendships among three nurses – Prabha (Kani Kusruti), Anu (Divya Prabha) and Parvaty (Chhaya Kadam) – as they navigate the intricate sociopolitical landscape of Mumbai. The director’s fascination with multi-generational friendships leads to a story that showcases how significant differences in generations can lead to conflicts, which in turn, spark change in both parties.

Although Parvati yearns for independence (“Being alone as a woman in India isn’t easy, unlike in Western societies,” Kapadia points out), Prabha longs for her missing husband from her arranged marriage (“she yearns for family life”), while Anu continues an illicit relationship with a man who her family wouldn’t accept. All three provide and receive guidance and motivation, often just by observing each other’s decisions. “[Anu] has the freedom to choose that Prabha doesn’t, and there’s a tinge of jealousy and respect in that,” Kapadia states.

I viewed the progression of this individual’s life as a single timeline – encountering her at various stages, such as when she resembled Anu, then evolved into Prabha, and eventually took on the form of Parvaty.

Titled “The Girl With the Needle” by Line Langebek and Magnus von Horn, this film offers a loose retelling of the true story of Danish serial killer Dagmar Overbye (portrayed by Trine Dyrholm). The narrative follows Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne), a headstrong factory worker, as she strives to live freely in post-WWII patriarchal Copenhagen. Dyrholm and Sonne collaborated extensively to portray the complex dynamic between these two women, which allows Dagmar to manipulate Karoline while their bond deepens over time.

Dyrholm states, ‘When they first meet, Dagmar is attempting to assist Karoline, yet I believe she requires Karoline to shoulder some of her responsibilities.’ A intricate reflection occurs between these two women, where initially, Karoline relies on Dagmar, but eventually, it shifts so that Dagmar becomes dependent on Karoline.

Sonne notes that Karoline seems to have a sense of security, even empowerment from Dagmar, despite being taken aback by the criminal acts she’s unknowingly involved in. As Sonne explains, “It was both this kind of Faustian darkness within Karoline, and on the other hand, [Dagmar] had this independent, rebellious approach that Karoline could almost mimic, find shelter under, and be guided by.

In the movie “The Last Showgirl”, Pamela Anderson portrays Shelly, an experienced dancer who faces a critical juncture when the Vegas revue she performs in unexpectedly shuts down after three decades. This happens at the same time that her long-lost biological daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd) reappears in her life. Director Gia Coppola, working from a script by Kate Gersten, presents a contrast between Shelly’s possible future and those of her younger counterparts Jodie (Kiernan Shipka) and Mary-Anne (Brenda Song). Shelly finds herself both competing with these women for jobs and serving as a maternal figure to them. According to Coppola, Kate’s script excellently illustrates how one can prioritize their work family over blood relationships.

According to Anderson, her character Shelly often feels an overwhelming sense of guilt and embarrassment when she acknowledges she’s not her children’s mother, especially since she has a daughter herself. Anderson describes Shelly as someone who wears her emotions openly, but eventually, she encounters a limit – and at that point, she becomes seen as the antagonist. Coppola, on the other hand, appreciates Shelly’s complexity as a character and finds her flaws endearing, symbolizing human imperfection.

In her debut full-length film “Santosh,” director and screenwriter Sandhya Suri explores the dynamic between the protagonist (Shahana Goswami), a widowed woman who assumes her late husband’s role as a constable, and Geeta (Sunita Rajwar), a senior officer. As they navigate their roles in a predominantly male police force, their bond is complex and tense, particularly when Geeta tasks Santosh with assisting in the investigation of a murdered young girl.

In a different phrasing, Suri expresses that the subtly romantic bond between Santosh and Geeta doesn’t always require a definition, yet its vague nature adds complexity to their relationship when Santosh is involved in police brutality, causing Geeta to decide whether or not to shield him from consequences. “At the end of the movie, her sacrifice for Santosh appears rather unexpected given her mentorship,” Suri notes. “This leads me to believe that it must stem from a profound love for Santosh at some point, and the intensity of this feeling would catch us off guard.

In “My Old Ass,” directed by Megan Park, 18-year-old Elliot (Maisy Stella) encounters her 39-year-old self (Aubrey Plaza) in an unusual circumstance. This occurs after the younger Elliot consumes hallucinogenic mushrooms, leading to some puzzling and often unwanted advice from her older counterpart. Despite being nearer in age to the “mature” Elliot, Park explains that portraying this concept through the perspective of an “innocent” 18-year-old, who is quite naive and self-absorbed as most of us are at that age, offers a more engaging perspective. The audience is taken on a journey that reminds them of their own experiences, yet it’s presented through a contemporary young character. To create a sense of nostalgia and timelessness, the film was designed with a modern touch while maintaining an evergreen feel.

Twenty-year-old Stella, who appears as the younger version of Elliot in her first film role, acknowledges her older sister for shaping her into a mature adult. However, she demonstrates a greater modesty and self-awareness than the character she portrays, which is a know-it-all. “Megan and I often joke that when I read the script, I read it from an old person’s viewpoint, but in reality, I am still very much like a young learner, navigating everything.

Although Meg LeFauve, co-screenwriter of “Inside Out 2”, claims she never perceived the anthropomorphized emotions as gender-specific characters, Amy Poehler and Maya Hawke portray a complex, sometimes conflictual dynamic as Joy, a veteran cheerleader, and Anxiety, a young strategist. In the story, they establish distinct territories within 13-year-old Riley’s growing emotional terrain. LeFauve explains that despite their affection for Riley and their attempts to aid her, their methods often backfire and are unhelpful.

Poehler and Hawke argue that the two characters they portray have deeper similarities than they appear to at first glance. “Anxiety needs to understand how to live in the present, while Joy needs to grasp that not every moment can be perfect,” explains Poehler. “Without happiness, anxiety is a very unhappy existence,” Hawke adds. “Therefore, I’ve always viewed them as partners in trouble, and every solid partnership requires a rocky start.” LeFauve suggests that the lessons their characters teach each other are also valuable lessons for Riley – and many other women – to learn.

According to LeFauve, the key lesson Joy gains from her interactions with Anxiety is self-empathy. He explains that it’s essential to either genuinely love oneself or, at the very least, accept all aspects that exist within oneself.

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2024-12-18 19:46