Daisies has been described by film critic Daniel Hoofman as “a philosophical film in the form of a farce.” Farce is a form of drama that includes crude characterizations and ridiculously improbable situations to elicit comic relief. At first glance, I would have categorized the Maries’ deliberately preposterous actions as nonsensical and purely for laughs, but a deeper look reveals that the absurd representation of the film symbolizes the decline of morality and the inanity of restrictive societal expectations on women. This farcical story is the director’s way of challenging all the ridiculous social norms and injustices in our vapid world. The scene where the crowd is even more entertained by the Maries absurd acts than the show the skillful performers are putting on stage is suggesting that we as the audience are complicit in contributing to the “spoiledness” of the world. I think it’s also very ironic to say they are spoiled (a behavior with negative connotations and is supposed to be frowned upon) but laughs and cheers at their spoiled exhibitions.
Hoffman posits that because Marie I claims that she is a doll/virgin, she is “declaring herself to be like a puppet” who is both “inanimate and animate at the same time.” This theory can be proven in the puppet-like way they acted in the opening sequence. I've watched the entire movie, and I’ve yet to find a scene that situates them to be sympathetic in any way. They display no sympathy for each other, women and especially men. Rather, I find myself sympathizing with the Maries. This puppet-like theory is heightened in the scene where the Maries seem to have a little fight in their bedroom and one of them is genuinely surprised when the other calls her out for her “fooling around.” She responds, “We’re supposed to be spoiled, aren’t we?” As a puppet, she is “constrained by her choice to be spoiled” and therefore doesn’t know any other way to act than “fooling around.” Even though they sometimes dislike each other, they are still bound to follow their pact to be destructive. This feels like an analogy to how we are all bound by society’s expectations of us and are never truly brave enough to violate or subvert them. And I sympathize with them about that. Additionally, they seem to be having an existential crisis as well, something most of us are bound to go through in life. It’s as if all these absurd behaviors (their gluttony, destruction, pranks) are all to find out about who they are and where they belong. They say they are happy, but they don’t look like it.
I think this movie can be described as feminist solely for the fact that the protagonists in the film are two women. (It would've passed the Bechdel Test today.) As mentioned above, the director is highlighting the gender inequalities of the times and the norms and standards of behaviors ascribed to each gender. This can be seen through the perfunctory naming of the two women - Marie I and II even when they are the main characters of the film. Chytilova undermines the feminine decorum at every turn with their exaggerated characterization: laughing loudly, licking their fingers, misbehaving childishly, and most notably, an uncanny appetite for food. They take up a large amount of space and make deafening noise in a society that has forbidden them to do so. These violations of gender expectations displayed in the film are enough for Daisies to be called a feminist film. But I do understand why the director would not want to embrace the label. While it can be seen as a feminist film, I think Chytilova made Daisies to be representative of not just one theme but many. Boxing it with a label will defeat the aims of the making of this film.
One of the formal techniques that caught my eyes is the editing of the film. If I can use one word to describe it, it’s “erratic.” The shots jump from colorful to black and white to sepia. I thought I could find a pattern in it, but I feel like these decisions are made randomly just to showcase the uncertainty and absurdity they display. I believe that those scenes in color may be signaling that these are when the characters are being their truest selves. Those are the times we see one of them “attempting” to commit suicide and having disagreements about their spoiled behaviors. And we always see them in full color when they are in their bedroom. I think the different colored filters might have been applied to symbolize the “fun” they are having in fooling around with men. I also really like the mise-en-scene in some of the shots. Namely, the one symmetrical shot of them sitting down in the restaurant and looking at the dancers against a red wall.
“This film is dedicated to those who get upset only over a stomped-upon bed of lettuce.” I think this is the director’s way of saying that this film can be seen as an awakening to those who are so consumed in their own spoiled lifestyles and interests that we forget about the larger tragedies in life, as pointed out by Hoffman. This film is made 2 years before the Prague Spring. Coupled with the war and explosion footage, I believe that this film is larger than just two silly girls wreaking havoc wherever they go. Daisies is a political statement that asks us to examine the state of our society right now and our complacency with the rules that come with living in it.
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