CHERI

Thanks to Melissa Silverstein over at Women & Hollywood, I was able to attend a screening of CHERI, a new film starring Michelle Pfeiffer who returns to the big screen for her first starring role in five years.

Pfeiffer plays Léa De Lonval a famous Parisian courtesan who unexpectedly falls in love with a man half her age named Cheri, who is played by the seductively handsome Rupert Friend.

The story is about De Lonval, who is a woman on the verge of aging - but does not want to give in without a spirited fight.  Strong willed, sexually savvy and fiercely independent she remains a much-desired courtesan of breathtaking beauty and wit.  Yet, she can't help but conclude that, at the age of 49, now is the time to end her career on a high note.

Set at the very tail end of France's Belle Epoque - the "Beautiful Age" - when the upper classes lavished in leisure and wealth just before the onset of World War One - the film deals with issues of changing gender roles, sexuality, money, aging, and society. The film is based on the novels by French feminist writer Colette and will surely inspire any woman, at any age, the desire of unbridled, rebellious romance. I found the film to be quite enjoyable - full of amusing dialogue, playful romance, sexual exploration, exquisite costumes and set design.

It did, however, bring up many curious questions that all women surely have about their own sense of sexual power. Can sexuality be something we control without the onset of emotion? Can women who avoid the constraints of marriage find true happiness as independent people? How does society judge women who do see sex as an object to be bought and sold? What really happens to a woman and a man who fall in love - is it ever a good thing to separate your head from your heart?

And finally - how do we really feel about women as seductress? Can we disrobe the purity myth and embrace female sexual power?

The ending of the film was a bit of a shock - proving that when it comes to love and desire, it seems that we are all at the mercy of our emotions and sometimes no amount of distance or effort can change the way we act or feel. It is this sentiment that carries the seemingly counterculture nature of the film into something that every person in the audience can identify with.

In the end, I felt empowered to fall in love. In any particular way I choose. It's often difficult to shake loose the judgments of others who try to tell you what is right or wrong when it comes to relationships, sex, intimacy and love. But really, it's not up to them. It's not up to anyone, but you, no matter what age you are.

....Well that's all I can share without totally spoiling the film, so make sure to watch the trailer and go see the film this weekend on Friday, June 26th.