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Queer Women’s History Month Edition
review by Gregg Shapiro, Chicago Free Press, February 28, 2007
“The Films of Su Friedrich” (Outcast Films)—The
groundbreaking and celebrated films of lesbian filmmaker Su Friedrich
have recently been collected for a multi-disc DVD set.
One of the most notable things about the set is the way it presents
a marvelous cross-section of Friedrich’s styles. Volume 1,
for instance, is titled “The Ties That Bind” and begins
with a devastating interview documentary about her mother Lore.
Except on the rare occasion, it is Lore’s voice that we hear
in this black-and-white documentary. Friedrich’s questions
are written out, and her mother addresses each one.
As Lore says, throughout history, when something good should happen,
evil arises. Such is the premise as she tells her daughter (and
the viewer) about her childhood in Germany and Hitler’s rise
to power. As someone with Jewish friends, and for not joining the
Hitler Youth movement, Lore tells of being punished at school. But
she and her family stuck to their convictions, in spite of the cost.
Interspersed with Lore’s recollections are the building
and destruction of a model of a house, as well as Friedrich’s
1982 visit to her mother’s hometown and examples of her own
activism. Included on the same DVD is “The Lesbian Avengers
Eat Fire, Too,” a color 1993 documentary about the famous
queer activist organization and their social and political actions,
as well as the impact they had on the community.
Friedrich’s family is also the subject of “Sink or
Swim,” from 1990, on the third volume of the set. In this
black-and-white film, swimming is a metaphor for different aspects
of life, from zygote to birth and beyond. In more than two-dozen
sections, Friedrich tells her personal story, focusing on her complex
relationship with her parents (who divorced when she was young)
and the role that swimming played in her development as a person.
Friedrich is a filmmaker of exceptional vision and talent, and having
her films collected on DVD is a gift to be experienced repeatedly.
Several other queer women’s titles on DVD provide plenty
to see during the course of Women’s History Month and throughout
the year.
—“Women in Love” (Outcast Films)—Not
to be confused with the 1969 Ken Russell film of the same name,
this one was directed by Karen Everett (“I Shall Not Be Removed:
The Life of Marlon Riggs”) and examines the meaning of love.
—“Born in Flames” (First Run Features)—Lizzie
Borden’s groundbreaking 1983 film helped to set the standard
for indie queer cinema, and starred lesbian musician Adele Bertei,
the late gay actor Ron Vawter, director Kathryn Bigelow and writer/actor
Eric Bogosian.
—“She Likes Girls” (Wolfe)—Six lesbian shorts
have been compiled on “She Likes Girls.” Filmmakers
include Abbe Robinson, Tamika Miller and Fiona MacKenzie, to name
just a few.
—“Female Misbehavior” (First Run Features)—Like
Su Friedrich and Lizzie Borden, filmmaker Monika Treutt has achieved
legendary status in the realm of queer indie cinema. “Female
Misbehavior” compiles five of Treutt’s short films that
explore “the outer limits of female sexuality and behavior.”
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