The Danish Girl

[Carol]

I agree Liz. My wife invited me to see it with her on Australia Day. Strangely I found myself empathising with Gerda, the wife, rather than with Lili.

[Anonymous]

I agree that it does indeed powerfully raise some key issues of relationship identities! – having also seen the film with my wife last week. I did read a reviewer complaining about ‘another trans movie made for straight/cisgender people’ but I also felt the balance was actually pretty good for a wide audience – some of the lines indeed cut through very well, and it would have been strange if the development of both persons in the marriage had not been developed. The scenes with the first doctors were also duly scary and upsetting. Being a historian, I was also moved by the remarkable courage of people of that period and saddened again by how the rise of Hitler cut off the positive progressive explorations of sexuality and gender in Germany at that time – thank goodness we have moved forward, but it is so good to be reminded of the costly lives of pioneers. I guess though that it is an open question too what some could have made of their relationships in days past if ideas of what constitutes a marriage/partnership had been more flexible? What difference do the varied aspects of our personal journeys (biological, psychological, spiritual, ageing, career etc) make to our relationships/what are the breaking or growing points? I guess we are all very much still working that out?!

[Adrian]

The Danish Girl is billed as a true love story, which may be good marketing as the cinema was nearly full when I saw the film. But it would be more accurate to say that the plot is loosely based on the life story of one of the first transsexuals to attempt sex reassignment surgery.
And rather than documenting the blossoming of love between two people it explores how that love is challenged and eventually destroyed by the relentless drive of a transsexual to become a woman.

The film starts with two artists (Einar and Gerda) in a happy loving relationship and finishes with the happiness of Einar in her new body as Lili.
Though the Danish Girl is set in the min-1920’s it speaks to contemporary issues that many of us have faced in reconciling our relationships with the need to express our gender. Because the drama of the plot is so immediate to us you may find the film deeply moving – I certainly did.

I approached the film expecting to find annoying mistakes in Eddie Redmayne’s portrayal of a transsexual – I hardly expect a cis-gendered actor to get it right.

So I found it disarming that Einar’s struggle with his femininity was so convincing that it was like seeing snapshots of my life, and in the character of Lili I frequently had flash-backs of familiar faces from our community.

The film touched on so many aspects of a transgender life, good and not so healthy. Frequently it was in the small details where I saw a reflection of my own experiences.

It showed the irresistible drive to express our femininity – often catching loved ones by surprise,
the way we study other women and so modify our behaviours,
our naivety in assuming that we are fooling others with our femininity,
and the impatience to complete our journey evidenced by overdosing on hormones.

The Danish Girl paints the medical profession in a very poor light. It was painful to watch the inappropriate treatments they came up with for the transsexual condition. Although it shows how far we have come in the last 100 years, it highlights behaviours that you can still observe in contemporary practice. How many more years will we have to wait?

A film just following the journey of Einar into Lili would have provided a good insight into the transgender struggle for anyone interested.
But the Danish Girl is about not one, but two Danish girls.

Gerda’s reactions to finding her husband transexual will probably speak powerfully to most cinema audiences. Alicia Vikander as Gerda gives a convincing portrayal of the emotional roller coaster rise we so often give our partners. Although, she comes across as the injured party, loosing a husband and his love, her unwavering support to the end is a very positive message to send to the audience.

I can unreservedly recommend that everyone should see the Danish Girl.
It can be an emotional experience so take a hankie.
I expect it will be a seminal movie in promoting a wider understanding of the transgender experience.

[Deleted User]

I second this. My wife and I just had to see it as soon as it came out and Eddie Redmayne blew both of us away. Neither of us could believe how accurately he did things that made us go ‘that’s you’ or ‘that’s me’.

It’s probably worth mentioning that this movie is based of the book of the same title which is based off the real diary of the real Lili Elbe.

In the end this is a film you should see if youare trans, if you are a parent to a trans person, if you know someone who is trans, if you know someone who is partner to a trans person. Ok basically if you’re a human you should see his film. It is pretty close to perfect but the huge value of this film is not the film itself but the conversations it opens up afterwards. That was certainly the value for my partner and I.

[Deleted User]

I have yet to see this movie, the local cinema were advertising it as ‘coming soon’ but this has been removed from the list. I was looking forward to it I suppose I shall have to travel or break the law.
But I appreciate the thoughts already discussed here, if it makes people think about transgendering as less than ridiculous or not in a comedic way it has to be a plus. There are enough discussions, seemingly mostly negative, about the film from the trans community. We have heard them I am sure, “Should have been a trans woman actress” etc. I am ambivalent over this, there are pros and cons and I don’t want to get into the argument. I am just pleased that the main stream press are very positive about it and hopefully, eventually, main stream everyone will take something positive from it.

[Carol]

I had a temporary disappointment when my local Hoyts advertised it as coming soon but removed it from the list by release date. I checked other chains and independents in the area and there it was. Look around Claire you might get lucky.

[Deleted User]

Carol wrote:

I had a temporary disappointment when my local Hoyts advertised it as coming soon but removed it from the list by release date. I checked other chains and independents in the area and there it was. Look around Claire you might get lucky.

Shall do Carol, sadly the nearest alternatives are a few hours drive. Both Balarat and Geelong. I haven’t been to the cinema as Claire in years. Hmmmmmm….

[Anonymous]

Thank you Adrian,

Beautifully written and very much hits the nail on the head (for me).

I went with my wife, my two daughters and a stepdaughter and it was interesting to note that they all saw it from different perspectives.

[Martina]

I regret I have not been able to see “The Danish Girl” yet but will do so at the first opportunity. In the trailers I have seen, Eddie Redmayne did seem to be well cast for the role.

I did see one interview with Eddie Redmayne about his role and he seemed to empathise closely with transgenders and the transgender cause. At the end the interviewer asked him if he was transgender himself but Redmayne refused to answer leaving the audience in a state of suspended speculation.

And thanks Adrian for the tip about having a few hankies handy; I am sure I will be affected.

[Anonymous]

Hi all
I would have loved to have seen it but by the time I heard it was at my local cinema (a 100km away) it has finished I will have to read the book but I’m afraid it will probably lose something in the translation

[Deleted User]

I also went to see this movie with my wife , a while ago and also found it very moving much sympathy for both Gerda and Lili particularly as she finally suffered the consequences of inadequate medical treatment for her condition.
On the other hand there were no experts back then perhaps not even now, but at least medical care has advanced considerably in the surgery area and to a great extent on HRT.
The one thing that I found unsatisfying in terms of a story of Transgenderism was that it appeared in the movie that Gerdas husband appeared to be “High Polarity Male” UNTIL Gerda asked him to put on some stockings shoes etc to help her in her own art , this gave the impression i would expect to some movie goers that the mere touch of feminie clothing might initiate an inevitable reaction to proceed along the same lines as Einar?lili had done in the film.

Otherwise a Great movie

caroline

[Martina]

I note that the last contribution to this thread was made 4 months and 5 days ago, so please forgive my tardiness but I finally was able to buy the video to watch at home only a couple of weeks ago. (The sods had run out of the DVD version and I had to pay extra for a Blue Ray edition instead.)

I thought the film was beautifully crafted and enjoyed the art and fashions of the time that were portrayed. Eddie Redmayne’s performance was sensitive and on the mark. However, I did find some aspects of the movie rather daunting including Lili’s total rejection of her former self and, as several have pointed out, her long-suffering wife along with it. Perhaps others can identify with this but I am unable to do so.

I think we should also remember that the film was a mixture of fact and fiction and be wary of accepting everything in it at face value. The statement “based on a true story” is very flexible indeed. The record states that Lili had four operations (not two as the film portrayed) and the doctor in the film only performed the last and fatal operation which was an attempt to transplant a uterus into Lili’s body with the inevitable consequences of rejection, infection and death. The doctor was also a Nazi, not that that would have anything to do with his medical skills.

Another article I read said that Einar’s wife was a lesbian but there is little evidence to back that up.

It would be interesting to read Lili’s diaries if they are available to perhaps get a more factual appreciation of what really happened but there is no doubt that Lili paved the way for others to follow.