Respond to these rapid questions in our Suffragette quiz and we will tell you which Suffragette character you are. Play it now.
Films about political revolutions typically suffer from one of two issues:
1. The film limits the scope of the events by viewing them through the lens of one person’s experience.
2.) The movie sacrifices emotional complexity in favor of a methodical, careful approach.
Both of these issues are present in “Suffragette,” a film about the campaign for women’s suffrage in the UK from 1911 to 1913, albeit the first issue is more problematic. The suffrage movement allegedly saw a depth-charge of commitment because one (fictional) woman (Carey Mulligan) spoke about her struggles to future Secretary of State for War Lloyd George in the film “Suffragette,” which was directed by Sarah Gavron and written by Abi Morgan. The movement actually had a combative and fragmented nature (and, incidentally, far more interesting than one mousy woman deciding to get involved).
Living with her husband and son, Maud (Mulligan) works at a laundry that is notorious for its appalling working conditions, pitiful pay, and sexual abuse. Violet, a coworker, persuades Maud to attend the covert gatherings held by Edith and Hugh Ellyn (Anne-Marie Duff) (Helena Bonham Carter and Finbar Lynch). Maud is drawn in. She is detained and then freed, a pattern that will persist even as the detentions get more violent and involve forcible feeding and hunger strikes. Although a cop (Brendan Gleeson) doesn’t support women’s voting rights, he is worried about Maud because he sees working-class women being used as “fodder” and taking risks that upper-class women won’t. He is neither totally right nor wholly insensitive. Gleeson adds a valuable depth to the movie.
But you shouldn’t waste any more time and start this Suffragette quiz.
The excellent Eduard Grau, whose last picture was Joel Edgerton’s “The Gift,” is the cinematographer on “Suffragette,” which has a documentary-like aesthetic but also drowns in subjectivity (Maud’s face is repeatedly in closeup). The periphery, which is where the wonderful stuff occurs, is little noticed. The fact that newsreel video of an actual occurrence is included in “Suffragettemost “‘s poignant passage is telling.
Suffragette Quiz
Anyone who is familiar with history will recognize the events described in “Suffragette”: hunger strikes, bombs placed in mailboxes, and the destruction of Lloyd George’s vacation residence. A turning point occurred in 1913 when Emily Wilding Davison (played in the movie by Natalie Press) was crushed to death after stepping out in front of King George’s galloping horse on Derby Day while holding a banner reading “Votes for Women.” an atheist. The funeral procession attracted a huge crowd of spectators who lined the streets. It’s all in “Suffragette,” but you’re constantly wishing Maud would step out of the way so you could see more clearly.
Also, you will find out which character are you in this Suffragette quiz.
As the movement’s leader Emmeline Pankhurst, Meryl Streep makes one appearance. Police are looking for Pankhurst, who emerges from concealment to deliver a speech from a balcony. Rebecca West, a suffragette, journalist, and one of the “witnesses” in Warren Beatty’s “Reds,” referred to Pankhurst as a “reed of steel” in a 1933 piece. In the two minutes (tops) that she is on screen, Streep imbues her ringing hoity-toity voice with a genteel overlay of breeding, but her speech is filmed in such a haphazard manner that what it ultimately becomes about is her enormous hat.
About the quiz
On the other side, Bonham Carter enters “Suffragette” and grabs it from Mulligan. The law was passed without Edith’s consent or vote, so she resolves to break it. Edith is a pharmacist with a happy marriage. She is weak on the inside yet strong on the outside. In contrast, Mulligan’s painting comes across as fuzzy and wet. For instance, Lloyd George (Adrian Schiller) tells a group of women in one scene that the suffrage law was unsuccessful. Because they believed him to be an ally, the women feel deceived, and cries of “Liar!” fill the air. When Mulligan yells “Liar,” nothing is happening beneath her surface. Her expression is uninspiring and uninspired. Bonham Carter, who is standing next to her, is glistening with wrath and a realistic, tight-lipped resolve. She embodies a “reed of steel,” being dogmatic and fearless.
Also, you must try to play this Suffragette quiz.
Recently, “Stonewall” came under fire for depicting the Stonewall Riots through the perspective of a fictional white lad, despite the fact that the riots were started by primarily black and Latina demonstrators, many of whose names are already famous. The issue in “Suffragette” is similar. These are actual heroes. Let them play the lead in their own tales. Comparatively speaking, “Reds” by Warren Beatty showed the divisions within the American Left, the factions, and the unpredictable alliances without losing heart or depth. It also featured real-life characters and had a personal story. Or “Selma” by Ava DuVernay, which features ideological disagreements, battles over the most effective strategy and portrayals of the diverse real-life characters engaged, including students, women, clergy, and laypeople. Complexity is something that movies like “Reds” and “Selma” are willing to accept. The battle is complex in nature. Although “Suffragette” has its moments (several ladies recant when bombs are mentioned), the movement is diminished by Maud’s personal struggles.
Like many movements, working-class women, women of color, unmarried women, and others who disagreed with conventional wisdom were first excluded. A list of dates indicating when various countries granted women the right to vote concludes “Suffragette.” All women were granted the right to vote in America in 1920, but state rules and intimidation prevented many black women from exercising their right to vote until decades later. It’s an obvious oversight that once more demonstrates a resistance to embracing reality’s deep complexity.
For more personality quizzes check this: 90 Minutes In Heaven Quiz.