A New Take on the Period Drama

“Colette” is a new film that looks at the life of the French writer Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, who fought to get her novels published under her name after ghostwriting for her husband. Colette was a woman ahead of her time and the movie deals with Colette’s fight to be independent from her husband and her relationship with artist Mathilde de Morny. As the Reuters article points out, the movie deals with many topics that are still being addressed today such as feminism, gender identity and sexual identity. “Colette” also comes as other period movies are exploring feminism and sexual identity, such as the new “feminist take” on the Lizzie Borden story in the new movie “Lizzie.” Most period dramas do not tend to focus on stories where women challenge the gender and sexuality norms of the time, making “Colette” a movie with a unique and important story to tell.