Of course, the surprise for me is not only this, but the film itself is also loved. This is a new film made in 2012. The film reflects the reality of Saudi Arabia, and the topics discussed are also global. From the narrative of the story to the performance of the actors, it is quite impressive. The director is a Saudi woman. This is the first film she directed, and it is said to be the first film to be filmed in Saudi Arabia, so some people call it the first film in Saudi Arabia. The film premiered at that year's Venice Film Festival, where it received many accolades.
Saudi Arabia is a mysterious country, hidden in the vast deserts of the Middle East. Mecca and Medina in its country are the holy places of Islam. Saudi Arabia, which is rich in oil, is very wealthy, but also has strict rules and many taboos. Especially for women. Therefore, in such a country, filming has always been an unimaginable thing, and it is even more shocking and vulgar to think about paying attention to women's lives and extending the lens into women's boudoirs. And Waganda did just that. Not only does it discuss sensitive women and family issues, but the entire film is dominated by women, and the modernity presented by the film as a whole is also impressive.
The story of the film is very simple and can be described clearly in a few sentences. Wajda is a twelve-year-old girl who was born into a middle-class family in Saudi Arabia and attends a girls' school. This is a very sunny and very creative girl, her wish is to want a bicycle. Around how to get a bike, constitute the content of the entire film. The plot is easily reminiscent of movies such as "Little Shoes", but it is very different from Iranian movies. Iranian films focus more on poverty and inspiration in poor circumstances. And this film is concerned with a concept and the influence of this mainstream concept on the lives of ordinary people.
Saudi Arabia is an Islamic country that is richer than Iran. We can also see from the movie that people's lives are also richer, and the daily necessities of life, such as food, clothing, housing, and even education, are not the focus of Saudi society. In Iran, there are far more poor people than in Saudi Arabia, and the gap between rich and poor is much wider. Therefore, poverty can easily become a hot topic in such a society, and how people in poverty work hard can resonate with the whole society. Due to the abundance of oil, Saudi Arabia can be said to have basically eliminated poverty, and poverty has become people's memory. Warehousing the truth and knowing the etiquette. In a wealthy society, people are more concerned about their own rights, and the unequal rights and interests of women are more likely to enter people's eyes and touch people's sensitive nerves.
The Waganda family in the movie is undoubtedly a happy family. Her parents both worked, lived in the suburbs next to the capital, had their own house, and lived a decent life. At first glance, this standard family of three is not much different from the rest of the world. However, as the story progresses, a contradiction begins to emerge, that is, the inequality between men and women. There are many details in the film that show this problem, but the main thing is two things. One is that the girl Waganda cannot ride a bicycle as freely as boys of the same age, and owning a bicycle has become her greatest wish. Second, although Waganda's mother fell in love with her husband and liked her only child, she could not prevent her husband from marrying again, because she could not bear another boy for her husband.
Wajda's story shows that discrimination against women is deeply rooted in Saudi society. From an early age, the rights enjoyed by gender have been divided, and with age, this gap will become larger and larger. Her mother's story shows that women are in a weak position in the relationship between the sexes, unable to have the autonomy of marriage, let alone control their own family life. The story of the mother and daughter constitutes the main contradiction and conflict of the film, and this contradiction and conflict is actually the intersection of various interests in a society like Saudi Arabia. In a rich and closed society like Saudi Arabia, the contradiction between men has taken a back seat. Although the contradiction between men and women is covered by heavy black veils, it is still undercurrent under the still water. The film "Waganda" was very forbearing in its performance, but we still felt this kind of contradiction and conflict, which was gentle and endless.
The ending of the film can be said to be both sad and happy. In the movie, the father remarried another wife, leaving only the mother and daughter Waganda to live next to each other. Although her mother was reluctant, she could only accept the truth with tears in her eyes. After all, it is impossible for her generation to change this custom. Fortunately, Waganda's wish came true, her mother bought her a bicycle, and she finally ran freely with her companions, and society treated her riding with tolerance, which made people I also saw hope and saw that perhaps among the women of Waganda's generation, they will have a better fate than her mother. Can she decide her own marriage? Probably have to put in more effort.
In all types of civilization, inequality between men and women exists to varying degrees. It's just that with the development of the economy and society, this inequality is gradually disappearing, and women's rights are gradually being respected, which is a kind of social progress. In Islamic societies, this process seems to be slower due to various factors. However, in a prosperous society like Saudi Arabia, economic development is no longer the main demand of the society. With the popularization of education, the awareness of women's rights will inevitably awaken. Even if Saudi Arabia is more conservative and stricter than other Muslim countries, the situation in the film also occurs, and the film "Wajda" is also produced, which focuses on the existence of this inequality. Although this film, directed by a woman and mainly expressing women's views, has a moderate protest against discrimination against women, this kind of attention and expression itself also means that the tolerance of society is expanding. Saudi Arabia, a conservative Muslim society, also He slowly opened the door and observed the outside world.
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