"I've Always Wanted to Strangle a Guy with my Thighs."
As I walked down the street to the movie theater in the middle of a rainstorm so I could go see “Felt”, I was verbally harassed by two men. You would think people would have better things to do in the middle of a rainstorm than catcall women, but I digress. I also had a strange encounter with a man about my age outside the theater. He was standing next to some dudes I assumed were his friends, and as I walked past him he made eye contact with me and stretched out his arms in what looked like an invitation to hug him.
There was nothing friendly about any part of his body language except for that gesture. His body was tense, and he didn’t say a word, and his eyes appeared challenging and cold. “Go ahead,” his eyes seemed to say. “Keep walking. I don’t expect you to actually step into my arms. But I WILL tell my friends what a bitch you are as you walk away without a word”.
This five second exchange as I stepped into the theater made me so, so tired. And it may have colored my experience watching the film just a tad.
There was nothing friendly about any part of his body language except for that gesture. His body was tense, and he didn’t say a word, and his eyes appeared challenging and cold. “Go ahead,” his eyes seemed to say. “Keep walking. I don’t expect you to actually step into my arms. But I WILL tell my friends what a bitch you are as you walk away without a word”.
This five second exchange as I stepped into the theater made me so, so tired. And it may have colored my experience watching the film just a tad.
“Felt” is a story about Amy, a woman suffering from some sort of sexual trauma (it’s never explicitly stated, but it is implied that her ex-boyfriend sexually tortured her), who explores the nature of her traumatic feelings by dressing up in hyper-masculine doll-like costumes and running around in them by herself in the woods. Beyond that, I’m not sure how to categorize this film, and that feels strange to me because it’s BEGGING to be talked about. It’s a character study, certainly, and Amy (played by co-writer Amy Everson) is a fascinating character, in a grotesque way, one clearly greatly changed by her experiences. The realistic, handheld camerawork coupled with the meandering, awkward scene structure lets us feel intimate with her, feel like her friend, feel like she’s a little quirky maybe, but normal. Then the tinkling, ominous music kicks in and she pulls out a piece of artwork she’s made and you’re forced to reckon with the fact that yes, something is terribly wrong with her, and that something can’t be fixed, the way her friends seem to think, with a new relationship.
“Felt”, however, has a fatal flaw; if the audience is not on Amy’s side, if the audience can’t empathize with her or is given any reason to believe her pain is manufactured, the whole narrative falls apart. And it’s easy to see how this could happen. The bulk of the film involves her getting close with a “normal” man, a man you can see actively ignoring the more dangerous and disturbing parts of her personality. You watch him justify her fascination with castration and sharp objects and her off-color humor as things that are unique about her, as if she’s just another manic pixie dream girl in a different kind of film. The level of empathy placed on this man is necessary, because as the film draws closer to its inevitable climax, you find yourself asking him, in worried hushed tones, why didn’t you run when you had the chance you stupid bastard?
You could say the same thing about Amy. How could she let herself become this way? Why didn’t she run?
I am not being articulate about this film, but “Felt” is not an articulate movie. It doesn’t eloquently state its thesis, doesn’t make clear the reason it was made. What it does is draw you into its grotesque, yet simplistic, web, and invite you to watch everything go as wrong as it can go. All it really asks of you is to listen to what it tells you, and feel whatever the story makes you feel.
DRINK:
Our main character doesn’t drink. So you drink whatever the hell you feel like. Something that makes you feel a little sick (Chartreuse?)
POSSIBLE RULES:
-Drink whenever you see genitalia (real or fake)
-Drink when a man gets irritated with Amy
-Drink when Amy laughs
-Drink when Amy dresses up in a costume
-Drink when that super scary musical motif plays and you realize that nothing is all right.
This review was written by Hollis Beck (Krissy Pappau). “Felt” is produced by Jason Banker. This film is Not Rated, with a runtime of 80 minutes.
“Felt”, however, has a fatal flaw; if the audience is not on Amy’s side, if the audience can’t empathize with her or is given any reason to believe her pain is manufactured, the whole narrative falls apart. And it’s easy to see how this could happen. The bulk of the film involves her getting close with a “normal” man, a man you can see actively ignoring the more dangerous and disturbing parts of her personality. You watch him justify her fascination with castration and sharp objects and her off-color humor as things that are unique about her, as if she’s just another manic pixie dream girl in a different kind of film. The level of empathy placed on this man is necessary, because as the film draws closer to its inevitable climax, you find yourself asking him, in worried hushed tones, why didn’t you run when you had the chance you stupid bastard?
You could say the same thing about Amy. How could she let herself become this way? Why didn’t she run?
I am not being articulate about this film, but “Felt” is not an articulate movie. It doesn’t eloquently state its thesis, doesn’t make clear the reason it was made. What it does is draw you into its grotesque, yet simplistic, web, and invite you to watch everything go as wrong as it can go. All it really asks of you is to listen to what it tells you, and feel whatever the story makes you feel.
DRINK:
Our main character doesn’t drink. So you drink whatever the hell you feel like. Something that makes you feel a little sick (Chartreuse?)
POSSIBLE RULES:
-Drink whenever you see genitalia (real or fake)
-Drink when a man gets irritated with Amy
-Drink when Amy laughs
-Drink when Amy dresses up in a costume
-Drink when that super scary musical motif plays and you realize that nothing is all right.
This review was written by Hollis Beck (Krissy Pappau). “Felt” is produced by Jason Banker. This film is Not Rated, with a runtime of 80 minutes.
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