The post-war drama “Woman Unknown”, by Danish filmmaker May el-Toukhy, won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival this Saturday, with its lead actress Mathilde Arcel also taking the Best Actress award — a rare double victory.
El-Toukhy was the only woman to direct a feature film in the main competition, composed of 21 films, a disparity that drew criticism during the festival and prompted a new analysis of the barriers women face in cinema.
Set shortly after World War II, “Woman Unknown” follows a housemaid played by Arcel, whose past relationship with a German soldier threatens to ruin her future.
The film unfolds against the backdrop of a newly liberated Denmark, where women accused of fraternizing with the German occupying forces were often subjected to mob justice.
The South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong won the Silver Lion, second place, for “Promised Love”, while the Russian-born director Ilya Khrzhanovsky won the Best Director prize for “DAU”, an extremely ambitious project shot largely in Ukraine before the ongoing war, which drew intense scrutiny and controversy.
In his acceptance speech, Khrzhanovsky, who renounced Russian citizenship, dedicated the prize to Ukraine.
John Malkovich won the Best Actor award for his role as an aging and nonconformist CIA agent in Martin McDonagh’s sharp comedy, “Nine Wild Horses”.
The Venice Festival marks the start of the film industry’s awards season and tends to reveal major Oscar favorites.
However, many of the studio-backed big contenders — which used to crowd Venice’s program — were absent this year as Hollywood revisits how to market its films and cut costs.
Gaza in Focus
In a tonal shift, the festival offered a program filled with global politics and social upheaval, including “NAZA” — a pointed documentary by Israeli directors Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor that won the Special Jury Prize.
Based on anonymous interviews with 24 Israeli intelligence officers and soldiers, the film accuses the Israeli Armed Forces of routinely approving mass civilian deaths when attacking militants in the Gaza Strip. Israel denied the accusation.
The documentary received a record 25-minute standing ovation at its Thursday premiere — the second consecutive year in which a Gaza film made an impact in Venice, following “A Vox Hind Rajab”, a factual account of the killing of a Palestinian girl during the war.
Stephane Brize, Coralie Amedeo and Olivier Gorce received the Best Screenplay award for their acclaimed French drama about the workplace “A Good Little Soldier”, while Malou Khebizi was named best emerging young actress for her role in another well-received French production, “A Place To Heal”.
The festival’s director, Alberto Barbera, defended this year’s predominantly male lineup, insisting that the selection decisions were based on artistic merit and not quotas, and urging the industry to work harder to help women enter the sector.
El-Toukhy stated that women filmmakers continue to face greater difficulties securing funding, which limits budgets, casting opportunities and, ultimately, access to major festivals.
The chair of the main jury, American actress and director Maggie Gyllenhaal, also weighed in, telling reporters that women filmmakers often struggle to secure funding because the stories they want to tell are not considered important.
