This film by all accounts is very good, with Eddie Redmayne doing us all proud as he plays Lili Elbe in the film of the best selling book. Hopefully, it will help the general public to understand those of us who were wrongly gendered at birth. However, no matter how good it is, I won't be going to see it.
It's too close to home, too painful for me to even glance at. The trailers make me want to wince, not because it's so awful but because it reflects too clearly part of me, or how I used to be. I just cannot watch it.
Some years ago I remember helping in a trial of some device to try and find a means of diagnosing transsexualism from cross dressing. It involved reading out lists of words against the clock. I don't actually remember what the words were now, but the more they engaged with you emotionally, the slower you became in reading them aloud. All I know was I showed signs of classic transsexualism, which was probably just as well because I was post op by then.
I wish the film and its cast well and hope that it brings new understanding to those who watch it, but sadly, I won't be one of them.
Comments
But will Hollywood like it?
Eddie R has certainly taken on another hard role. From the trailer it seems that he has nailed it.
I think the critics will get the picture but will middle america? Are they ready for a non comedic TG film?
It's Being Promoted Heavily In the US
.......At least on the TV channels I watch.
I read David Ebershoff's book shortly after it came out. The book is a fictionalized account of what could have happened given the historical hard points. I remember that it was episodic jumping back and forth through time almost randomly. There was hope and a lot of sadness.
I saw "The Danish Girl" at a private screening
I saw the film "The Danish Girl" In it's entirety recently in Bolder Colorado, US. They were taking very good care of it lest a video of it beat out it's actual release. It is a very special film and I recommend it to everyone in both the cisgendered and transgendered communities. It gives a condensed version of the life of Lili Elbe. The acting and cast are excellent and the person who portrayed the title character should be nominated for an academy award.
While the film does portray both the good and bad about Lili's life and a lot from her spouse's POV as well, the bad parts are treated very tastefully and are not sensationalized. Lili is a heroine who helped pave the way for the GRS operations today. It is very sad that with such ground breaking work done in Germany for transgender care that the NAZI's destroyed most of the work and it had to be reproduced and reimagined later. (as portrayed in S2E9 of "Transparent")
With the present climate in Hollywood over the transgendered, this is a film where the timing is just right to reap the just rewards for its wonderful cast and crew. I recommend the movie be viewed by anyone and just have some tissue handy.
All my hopes,
Sasha Zarya Nexus
All my hopes
Ariel Montine Strickland
viewing of this movie
At times I wish to see the movie and others I know I will be an emotional basket case so I don't wish to see it. My partner and I are both diagnosed and full life transsexual so we will relate to this movie, maybe too well as Ang feels herself, but we are still debating if we want to spend the emotions to see and support a movie that represents us.I tend to agree that I am, as always, too emotional to see this movie. My life and history speaks for itself and who I am now is so much better than previous. Why do I need to dig through those memories again? Just from watching the trailers, I cry!
I hope that learning will be had by the viewers of this movie but in truth, the haters, bigots and religious zealots will never see this movie anyway so to what end is this made?
Dahlis
part of me wants to go see it
another part is terrified of how much it will hurt ...
I fully sympathize with you in this regard......
But my feelings are somewhat different.
Yes, it hurts to see something, or even read about something, with which you identify. Quite often the pain becomes so bad as to trigger a bout of depression in me.
However, I find myself revelling in the ability to feel, whether joy or pain. The simple act of feeling the breadth of emotions that I experience now makes me wish for more. Whether this is due to the newness of the feelings, or because for so long I felt nothing, I don't know - or care.
For most of my life, I refused to feel - burying everything underneath a hard shelled exterior, and only allowing my feelings out when hidden away from the world. A release from the horrors I had seen, and the often unfortunately necessary acts which my duty required of me. I would lock myself away when the cummulative effects became too much to bear, curl up on my rack, and cry it all out.
For too many years I suppressed all emotions, afraid to allow the real me the slightest bit of daylight. Now that I have let her out, and with the added effects of the estrogen which pervades my body, the woman that I truly am desires to feel everything.
Perhaps someday this will become old, but for now, I will live and experience everything to the fullest extent possible.
D. Eden
Dum Vivimus, Vivamus
Brave concept....
... in the making of this film and, certainly, a triumph for Eddie Redmayne........ It's very much an important milestone in the spectrum of transgender politics.
It's, I am sure for myself, by the trailer only - but I shall go and see it when released here in England - going to confirm everything I ever believed in as a crossdresser as opposed to a transgendered individual. I'm not one who was born in the wrong body and, no, if my chromosomes were analysed, I wouldn't have a wrong mix for my outward sexual manifestations.
Not at all..... it will prove to me that I just adore women, I love them so much, I'd really give anything to spend my life as one... but know I never shall........ I'm at ease with that now - after many years....... My wife would never understand, refused to understand and threatened banishment from the home if.... well, you know the rest. I write occasional stories about how it was for me as a young man... and I occasional fantasises about how I wish it would be, with a willing and co-operative wife........ Ahhhh, there's the dream. I love happy endings!
Happy Christmas everyone!
Love Ginger xx
Doubtful
Like many of us, it is doubtful that I will see it, at least in the theatres. Perhaps in a year or so when I can purchase it and view it at home, I don't know do I?
Though I'm post op and have been living as a woman for over a decade, lately I've been asking myself if I was simply gay, and my painfully devout attachment to a religion that condemns gays to hell and eternal torment prevented my seeing that. My conditioning in that area has most certainly weakened, and for the present I am quite contentedly a curiously non-binary asexual.
Many or most transgender folk endure staggering losses that if I had to re-live them in viewing a movie, I might go over the edge. I would be pleased to read someone else's review of it's authenticity however.
PS: I did just watch a youtube trailer of it. I could not finish it so do not know much other than I felt the same initial horror as I had the first time I was told I was GID in the late 80's. In retrospect, it would have been better ...
Much peace
Gwen
The Cronenberg Variations
THEY DID WHAT?!!!
Decided to implant a uterus and ovaries in LIly Elba as the world's first organ transplant recipient??? Without bothering to try it on animals first to see if they survived??
Who was her doctor... Frankenstein??
I don't know if the film deals with that part of her story but it astounds
and horrifies me that any medical professional could be so utterly STUPID!
I'll probably rent this film eventually but I'll definitely start fast-forwarding thru
it if it starts to get too morbid and icky and David (RIP, btw) Cronenbergish...
A portrayal of a sad life I can handle. A death that pointless, not so much.
~squicky hugs, Veronica
What borders on pure insanity?
Canada and Mexico.
.
Doctors as God
We used to hang on the words of Doctors, and thought that Psychiatry was total magic. Having studied medicine and psychology a bit, there is a large component of sadism in both. One of my psych professors is a complete judgmental ass, seeking to place everyone in an uncomfortable and damning little box. How could I have ever deluded myself as to think that Psych professionals were any less deluded than myself?
Gwen
I have seen it
Eddie Redmayne does do a wonderful job in the lead. The subject matter was handled nicely I would have to say. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to see a real story played out on screen.
I found myself blown away by the actress who plays the wife, Alicia Vikander. She sucked me into the story and I felt for her character losing her husband while discovering Lili.
Alicia played the Android role in Ex Machina earlier this year and the roles are so diametrically apart in terems of what is asked of her. So I may be biased in how I viewed her in this film.
Trying to avoid details obviously, but if anyone wants to talk via PM that would be cool.
{{Huggels}}