Femme Review
9.5/10
Film festivals can be a remarkable way to discover films you haven’t heard of before. I saw Femme at Beyond Fest in Los Angeles and I had no idea what to expect beyond the synopsis I read. The film is described as a revenge drama about a drag performer Jules (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) who becomes the target of a brutal homophobic attack by a gang of thugs. This horrific beating destroys his life and love for his career. He later meets one of his attackers Preston (George MacKay) in a gay sauna and decides to seek revenge.
This could have panned out in numerous, often predictable ways. Those approaches to the story would not have been incorrect. There have been plenty of brilliant revenge dramas over the years that manage to feel fresh thanks to the unique spins they put on the subject. Femme went in a completely different direction than I was expecting. Revenge is an essential element of the story, and it drives the narrative, but the film becomes a more psychological examination of retribution and forgiveness. Can you really have any degree of sympathy for somebody who ruined your entire world and shook the core of your existence?
The film was written and directed by Sam H. Freeman and Ng Choon Ping, and it is an adaptation of their 2021 BAFA-nominated short film. This was their debut feature film too, which I was blown away by. Often with a filmmaker’s debut, they throw everything at the wall to see what sticks. There is a mentality among first-time directors that they won’t get another chance to make a feature-length movie, so they think “eh, screw it I’ll overload this film with tons of ideas!” This tends to be either because they are overconfident, or they lack confidence in their abilities enough to streamline their ideas down to the most compelling ones.
Femme feels like it was made by veteran filmmakers with many years of experience with the craft. There is confidence evident in every aspect of the film from the writing to the masterful direction and the brilliant performances. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Jules delivers one of the best performances of the year. He carries an unthinkable trauma and makes the character’s vulnerability his eventual strength. There is a moment in which Jules is about to meet with his attacker and starts to have a panic attack. The anguish Stewart-Jarrett conveys here is unfathomably raw and intense.
George MacKay is also incredible as Preston. Many will be familiar with his earlier performance in 1917, but he has been on my radar since he impressed me in the 2016 film Captain Fantastic. Preston is complicated and difficult to engage with initially. He wears his bravado like a badge of honor. His macho image has been precision-engineered to push away any hint of emotional connection with others. His tough guy front becomes a kind of mirror image costume to Jules, with one major difference. They both play the role of a seemingly different person than themselves, Jules with his drag performance and Preston with the thug persona he has developed. With Jules, drag is not just wearing a lavish costume. It’s a way for him to be fully himself and be a part of a community that loves him. Preston does not gain any of those benefits. His bruiser facade only hurts himself and those he associates with who enable his behavior.
The tension between Jules and Preston are some of the most unnerving and intense scenes of the year. For a while, I couldn’t tell whether or not Preston remembered what he had done to Jules before. Their sexual relationship is a back-and-forth chess game of domination. Preston gets off on having power over his new partner, and Jules is conflicted about his feelings for his attacker. Do not approach this film wanting a power fantasy revenge thriller where the heroes and villains are 1-dimensional caricatures. This is a nuanced and complex portrayal of jaded people, both lost in their own ways.
Preston starts out as a typical British track suit-wearing tough guy like we have seen countless times. Throughout his new relationship with Jules, we see how deeply he has buried his insecurities and vulnerabilities. He has no idea who he truly is, resorting to rage and homophobia to repress his desires. The film sometimes reminded me of Paul Verhoeven’s subversive gem Elle from 2016 in how it takes the nature of a revenge drama and reframes it in ways the audience does not expect by questioning power-dynamic and gender norms.
One thing that bothered me during the screening was the row of people behind me. There were a few of them who could not help laughing throughout the film, even during the more brutal and dark moments. I don’t know if they were merely drunk, uncomfortable with the subject matter, or mocking the film. It did not spoil the experience since I was too engrossed in the film to allow that to happen. I just found it unfortunate that these people were either too off their heads to appreciate the film or felt the need to make fun of it.
I do not have sufficient life experience to delve into the topic of gender/sexual identity in Femme. There is a moment in the film where Jules is finally able to push his trauma aside temporarily to enjoy a sequence of jubilation with his friends. It is a catharsis for him and sorely needed after his prolonged period of isolation. When he is at his most relaxed and honest, Jules reveals that he sometimes wonders if this drag persona he created is the true him and perhaps Jules was the fake character this entire time. The film does not elaborate on this idea, but it’s enough to give more nuance to his character and his evolution. It was an interesting choice for the film not to pivot to this new reveal. Instead, it just offers another facet of who Jules is becoming and lets the audience sit with this realization.
Femme ended up being my favorite film of Beyond Fest 2023. Even though I have no way to personally connect with the struggles portrayed in the film since they are not my own, I loved standing back from myself to get a glimpse into a world completely different from mine. There are universal truths and emotional realities that anyone can resonate with, even if you don’t share the issues of the characters you are watching. Sometimes you may surprise yourself with what kinds of films you end up loving.
