She's Beautiful When She's Angry

I'm not a feminist in the modern sense, but as a lover of history I really enjoyed this documentary. Such wonderful stories about the origins of the feminist movement in the US.

I find it interesting how random groups of women worked together for change and achieved it. I loved how it showed the movement as divided and no a single idea, but various conflicting groups of women who never gave up.

At no point did I feel like someone was pushing an agenda or opinion or trying to convince me of anything, it was just people sharing stories.

Western women today owe so much to these women and they probably don't even realize it. The last 5 minutes got boring for me, but I guess its relevant as a call to arms for women.

Very well made film, I can't find much fault with it.

This film is not only a comprehensive history of a powerful and multifaceted movement in the not-too-distant past, it is a call to action. For young people, in particular, who came of age in times when job postings are no longer segregated by gender, when woman-centric health information and health services are (slightly) more accessible, when women with careers were not (always) denounced, this film offers a peek at what life was like for women before the mid-1960's and helps us understand the origins of the concept of gender equality that many of us take for granted. We are also reminded that much of what was won decades ago is once again in jeopardy.

There are clips from mass marches, meetings, poetry readings, and consciousness-raising sessions. The filmmakers interviewed many women who became the face of feminism and these women's reflections upon how the movement developed, what issues and what actions galvanized the activism of the time, are passionate, often profound, and sometimes very funny.

The film does not shy away from the reality that the feminist movement was complicated and messy. The internal political divisions, the divisions of geography, race and class, and the almost casual homophobia, are all exposed and examined. The film is ultimately a celebration of the diversity, creativity, intelligence, and fortitude of these early feminists who continue to inspire us to take up struggle for women's rights in the Twenty-First Century.

She's Beautiful When She's Angry (2014) was directed by Mary Dore.

This is an important documentary movie, because it concerns itself with the feminist movement in the U.S. in the late 1960's and into the 1970's. I lived through this period, so I was familiar with much of the material portrayed. However, today, 40 years later, many people may not realize that what we take for granted had to be fought for meeting by meeting, petition by petition, publication by publication, and demonstration by demonstration. This is an important lesson, especially for people who take what the feminists accomplished for granted.

The film has several premises, and I agree with all of them. One is that women's rights were won by struggle, not given. Another is that you never "win" the battle for any civil rights, including rights for women. Everything you win can be taken away or pushed back, so the struggle has to continue today and, sadly, always.

Another important historical point is that feminists didn't speak with one unified voice. As within any movement, there were disagreements and hostilities. Many of the women who had high profiles in the feminist movement were White and relatively privileged. What about poor women? What about women of color? Women of color had to fight two battles--to be recognized as equal to men, and recognized as equal to White women.

Even in the discussion after the movie, some people felt that the comments made by other people denigrated their own work. It's hard to achieve your goals, and to keep a movement unified, or at least not totally fragmented.

It was interesting to hear interviews with high-profile feminists like Susan Brownmiller and Kate Millett, but the interviews with lesser-known feminists were fascinating as well.

The documentary footage was well chosen and illustrated the topics discussed by the women being interviewed. Production quality was high.

This movie is worth seeing, and I recommend it. We saw it on the large screen at the excellent Little Theatre in Rochester, NY. However, it will work very well on DVD.

A documentary chronicles the Women's Liberation movement in the U.S in the late 1960s and the early 1970s.

There are many strengths in this film. The best include interviews with over twenty likeable women who were part of the movement in its heyday. The vintage photos and TV clips can leave one nostalgic for an era that had much fire in its heart compared to the long era of materialism that followed (and still lingers).

The film is well structured in its discussions of the many issues involved which include low wages, the lack of job opportunities, rape, abortion, health issues, sexuality, and childcare.

The fairness in this film is also admirable. It is honest about the movement's extremities in its later years. Also, after revealing the marginalization of women in the New Left, anti-war movement, it's also later revealed how black women, lesbians, and poor women also felt marginalized within the wider women's movement. More coverage could still have been given, however, regarding the poor and working-class. There is an interview with a woman of a working-class background but she talks of her experience at UCLA - a situation that would be very rare for most women in the working class.

While this film is a good chronicle of events in the U.S., it could have paid attention to feminist movements in other countries. A sore point is a reference to a recent protest movement that began in Toronto. If the event had begun in a U.S. city, there's little doubt the city would have been mentioned.

Despite the U.S-centric tone, this movie is a worthwhile experience especially with the reminder of what can happen when like-minded people get together and learn that they are not alone and that others share the same experience. It's much like the Margaret Mead quote: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." And as the film reiterates, "The personal is political."

This amazing documentary about the women's fight for their independence and for the reproductive rights it is a great learning about the history of feminism movement and of his implications in the current society. Using statements, videos and photos, the doc. shows to his public how have emerged the feminists organizations in the patriarchal society from 1960's. Essential questions, even in the current days, are presented in the historical and social context with seriousness and emotion by the documentary, starting from the most important point of view, of the women who fought for their rights in a time when do not there was any right for this group. Images of speeches and memorable protests builds a scenario of the reality lived for the women in the 60's decade and the courage, brilliance and intelligence of the first feminist group in the USA. Exploring the differences between the many kinds of movements existing in a fight so multiple, the Mary Dore's job explores the fundamental flags of the feminism, like the body rights, the abortion question, the financial equality and equal opportunities, the black feminism and the women's history. All of this presented dynamically, without become tiresome. The documentary brings a hope from a world more egalitarian and more free for the personal decisions, mainly for the women, in a decade where their rights are threatened around the world.