Silent Rebellion
A compelling historical drama about a fifteen-year-old maid who becomes pregnant after being raped and turns her trauma into a driving force for emancipation and resistance against the puritanical Swiss village community in which she grew up.
While the Second World War rages in the background and refugees are turned away at the border, a very different struggle is unfolding in Elsa’s village. The Protestant community sees her pregnancy as a reason for marriage rather than a reason to punish the perpetrator. Elsa, however, refuses to be silenced so easily.
This poignant debut film paints a moving portrait of a young woman trying to maintain her dignity in a world where women are expected to remain silent. The oppressive village morality is palpable thanks to Marie-Elsa Sgualdo’s clever use of silence combined with understated cinematography. A powerful and timely film about female autonomy, guilt, shame and moral courage in times of war.
Written by M.S.