In this episode of Cinema Besties, we discuss the 2016 psychological thriller, The Handmaiden. ⁠It focuses on Sookhee, an orphaned pickpocket, who teams with a con man to steal the inheritance of a Japanese noblewoman, Lady Hideko.⁠

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This episode may be distressing for some individuals. Please skip this episode if you find the themes discussed difficult to hear.

Film analysis referenced in this episode:

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/the-handmaiden-a-sexy-feminist-thriller-undermined-by-puerile-voyeurism/2016/10/27/78e3ef24-9873-11e6-bb29-bf2701dbe0a3_story.html
• https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/194024/in-the-handmaiden-objectification-undermines-a-feminist-flick/
• https://www.sinema.sg/2020/10/16/handmaiden-feminism/
• https://www.anothergaze.com/review-the-handmaiden/
• https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.newyorker.com/culture/jia-tolentino/the-handmaiden-and-the-freedom-women-find-only-with-one-another/amp
• http://berlinfilmjournal.com/2016/12/review-the-handmaiden-reframes-lesbian-sex-and-queer-feminist-cinema/
• https://www.straight.com/movies/824071/handmaiden-averts-male-gaze-its-portrayal-women
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF0K1-0tpew
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLjqFWfZVIA
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4sK4KB7sDE

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Besties Rating: 6/10