"the danish girl" review
- qwueerd
- Jun 28, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 24, 2022
AN OVERPRAISED CINEMATIC PRODUCT
"A pretty picture about a transgender pioneer"[1] is the applauding words of the Washington Post for The Danish Girl - a cinematic work of the talented filmmaker Tom Hooper. The praise is for the exceptional openness to the subject of transgenderism and the captivating visual values of the movie. However, regardless of great admiration, this movie is still considered a big loss for the Transgender community for its casting limitations and its romanticized portrayals.
Poster design by P+A, Photography by Jason Bell, via IMP Awards
The Danish Girl is Tom Hooper’s loose adaptation of a well-read selfsame-titled novel by author David Ebershoff. Inspired by the extraordinary life of a trans icon Lili Elbe, this movie focuses on painting a graceful picture of her life on her self-discovery journey of her suppressed identification.
The argument over the absence of LGBTQ+ representations in queer-focused cinematic products has always been a matter of controversy, and The Danish Girl is of no exception when a cisgender actor is cast to play a transgender role. This lack of diversity in casting shows that the movie conspicuously ignores the importance of queer representations in the film industry. It grants the cisgenders the opportunity to take all the credits and praises for what should’ve belonged to the trans despite the fact that transgenders are still fighting tirelessly against the biases to get a spot in the industry.
Image by BBC/ABC/ITV/Brian Michael Smith/Lime Pictures/SHOWTIME/Getty Images via Digital Spy
Having too much gloss is another great problem with the production of The Danish Girl. The movie doesn’t thoroughly and accurately portray Lili’s tremendous hardship of being transsexual and undergoing sex rearrangement surgery. As for Lili Elbe, it was a matter of life and death, but as for the portrayed character, it’s painted as a moment of joy and happiness rather than a significant struggle. Plus, The Danish Girl tends to demonstrate an idealized society with much understanding and acceptance instead of the reality of things at that time. All of these glamorizing distortions give the audience a misconception and misleading knowledge of the life of Lili Elbe, as well as of transgenderism in general.
Lily Elbe. Image via Wikipedia
Due to its limitations of casting diversity and non-transparent historical demonstrations, The Danish Girl isn’t a highly recommended movie in terms of LGBTQ-focused themes. This cinematic product might be of good value for entertainment purposes, but if you’re looking for an informative one with accurate knowledge of transgender, the tear-jerking documentary called Born to Be can be a superior alternative.
Image by Kino Lorber via IMDb
REFERENCE(S):
[1] Hornaday, A. (2015, December 10). Movie review: ‘The Danish Girl’ is a pretty picture about a transgender pioneer. Washington Post. Retrieved from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/ movies/movie-review-the-danish-girl-is-a-pretty-picture-about-a-transgender-pioneer/2015/12/09/76aef0a
Comments