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Linda Thornberg
États-Unis 2005
120min English o.v.
“A muse is always a woman and a lover, ” Hilary Stevens tells her interviewers. She has once again entered fame after years of hiding out. With her new volume of love sonnets she has sparked interest from a new generation. This is the story of a 70-year-old lesbian poet who shocked the world in the 1920s by writing a novel about a love affair between two women. Based on the semi-autobiographical novel by May Sarton, the film marks the first and only adaptation of her work, a project that has taken director Linda Thornburg 22 years to bring to the big screen. Mrs. Stevens Hears the Mermaids Singing takes place in 1964, where two interviewers have arrived at Hilary’s home. Expecting no more than a “transparent old woman” they are taken aback by Hilary’s frank and very personal responses. Through beautiful and intense flashbacks, Hilary recollects lush memories of all the women that have inspired her work. Revealing not only her past lovers but also the affects political shifts had on sexuality, taking the interviewers, and us, on a historical journey from the sexually liberated 20s to the McCarthy witch hunts of the 50s, and the growing consciousness of women in the 1960s. A faithful and fanciful adaptation of a much-loved lesbian novel, Mrs. Stevens Hears the Mermaids Singing showcases exceptional acting (most notably from festival favourite, Moynan King), a tight script and lush cinematography. A must for both the literary and the romantically minded. – NH
Shown on:
saturday, november 12, 9H30 PM parisien 7 - pgm74 (Kathleen's Closet + Mrs. Stevens Hears The Mermaids Singing)