Babygirl (Países Baixos e EUA, 2024)
Original title: Babygirl
Director: Halina Reijn
Writer/Screenplay: Halina Reijn
Main cast: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Antonio Banderas, Sophie Wilde, Esther McGregor, Vaughan Reilly and Victor Slezak
Runtime: 114 minutes (1°54’)
Babygirl generated a buzz after its release in Venice, with Nicole Kidman winning an award for her performance and many people talking about Halina Reijn’s ability to direct, after a transition in her acting career with her previous film, Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022). If the previous film is a horror comedy that immediately became a favorite among moviegoers, now it will certainly be a hit with those who are loving to see sexual desire being portrayed on screen again.
There is a cyclical movement of a new film being released about a BDSM relationship being formed, usually between a powerful man and a woman under his leadership. Of course, there may be exceptions, but here I am talking about the simplest stereotype, in the style of Secretary (2002), in which they begin to understand their dynamics as sexual partners and create a huge mess with their personal lives. Here, there’s an inversion of this dynamic. Romy (Nicole Kidman) is a very powerful woman, CEO of a leading company in her segment, with a balanced life and a family. Yes, she realizes that her sexual desires are not completely satisfied, but this ends up taking a back seat in her life. This changes when she begins an intense affair with one of her firm’s interns, Samuel (Harris Dickinson).
Perhaps one of the main differences is that the text is written and directed by a woman, who is able to better understand the protagonist’s point of view. Even the way the female and male bodies are treated, being sensual but never crossing the line into becoming unduly sexualized, seems very relative to this female perspective placed at the center of the production. While it’s able to draw attention to the less usual theme, what manages to keep the viewer engaged for the rest of the film is the emotional complexity that all the characters have, and their attempt to find more correct solutions for everyone involved. No one wants to see families destroyed, even if they understand the extent of what’s at risk in that relationship.
The film is very well planned so that all actions have consequences, just as all objects, clothes and even dog attacks have a narrative meaning. Of course, there is plenty of sex, but it’s never presented lightly. Even in the first scene, between Kidman and Banderas, there’s a framing focused on the female body at the height of its sensuality, from an angle that’s unusual in cinema. It’s with these small details that we are invited to deconstruct preconceived ideas about sex and embrace a fetishistic universe that involves the power play between two consenting adults.
This is one of those films that you watch and think about rewatching to capture all its nuances. And I will certainly do so, as soon as it’s available on Brazilian screens. But again, this wave of works that are very much based on sexual desire and all its possible expressions is interesting, and my curiosity only increases as to how it will be received in Brazil.
Translated by: Renata Torres
