Women Are Guilty Until Proven Innocent: Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
Anatomy of a Fall has a very simple premise. Daniel, a blind boy, goes out on a walk with his dog and when he comes back, his dad is dead and his mum was the only person in the house. Did he fall? Was he killed? You would think this is the question investigators will try to answer but it rapidly turns into “how did she do it?”
The film offers a very accurate portrayal of how women are treated by the justice system overall. You are guilty until proven innocent. She is treated as a suspect from the start. It parallels how women are treated for reporting sexual assault or rape. You are to provide the proof and you are a liar trying to destroy a poor man’s life. This is why most crimes go unreported.
When a woman in France shot her abusive husband to end her nightmare, it was considered aggravated murder but when a man kills a woman for leaving him or trying to “it’s a passional crime”. She was still given a prison sentence and served one full year. If you want to read more about the double standard in sentencing for the death of a partner, this article will explain it perfectly.
This double standard is what Justine Triet showcases. The justice system isn’t to solve and bring justice- it is to protect men no matter if they are the victim or perpetrator.
The trial scenes highlight how women are held to an impossible standard. They have to be the perfect victim. In 1986, Christie perfectly summed up that to be seen as a victim by society you have to be seen as weak, respectable and blameless. If you want to read more on ideal victim theory, this is awesome. If you are anything less than perfect, you should have known better and you are responsible for the crime you are a victim of.
Sandra is a modern feminist woman. She knows what she wants and she isn’t afraid of going after it. She doesn’t fall into patriarchy’s traps. She is ambitious and has a successful writing career. Despite her being a white woman, she is also a foreigner so seen as other by the media and the legal teams involved.She has all the qualities that a patriarchal society like ours punishes women for having. In this case, it is by assuming she did it and never looking at another option.
Daniel is placed in the care of someone from the legal department. Sandra now lives with a stranger who observes every move and interaction she has with her child. They can’t prove she is guilty but already suspect her of manipulating the child. Showing how swift the justice system can be when it comes to condemning women before a verdict has even been reached only makes the case even clearer. As she is not the perfect victim, taking away her child is another form of punishment for not subscribing to gender norms.
They were never looking for the truth only to convict her. The boy makes a mistake about where he was. He is a child and his father just died. The policemen are very insistent on him having said he never made a mistake. When he changes his statement, they think he is protecting his mum and not telling the truth despite his explanation. The boy understands it so well that he requests to be left without her and only under the supervision of the woman from the legal department so they couldn’t accuse her of manipulating him before his trial appearance.
It isn’t to say she is without faults. The film makes it clear she has toxic traits too. They both are and their relationship wasn’t the healthiest one. But why is it that when men expect their partners to abandon their careers for them, carry all the mental load of the whole household and take care of their kids, it is seen as normal but when the genders are reversed she is an oppressive monster holding him back?
When the recording of their fight comes to light, the paradox of patriarchy is fully in the spotlight. Every single thing that he accuses her is because he considers it his right and not a privilege to have. She tells him what every man tells a woman who says she is doing everything, that no one asked her and she should do less without him offering to pick up the slack. Not nice, isn’t it?
They even try to make the point that because she describes murder scenes in her books and takes inspiration from her life, it means she can actually kill and murdered her husband. Every part of a Sandra’s life is dissected. She isn’t a grieving woman who just lost her husband but a vindictive woman who castrated her husband and kept him from living up to his potential. On the other hand, him recording her in secret is perfectly fine.
This is what makes the twist even better. It isn’t a full mind-blowing twist. It is shedding light on a new perspective. We discover the boy had an accident while he was in Samuel’s care and Samuel has felt guilty ever since. He moved them away from their lives in London to his family property so he could renovate it. Actually, she has sacrificed a lot to make the things he wanted to do come true. He didn’t see it as a sacrifice but more as a normal thing to do. Again, women are just expected to do this.
Then it comes out he tried to kill himself six months before the fall. She didn’t bring it up at first and she is blamed for it but if you didn’t know your partner would die, why would you remember every detail? She didn't even know it was a failed attempt. We only put the pieces together because he told their son his dad might not be alive anymore.
He is a victim of the same patriarchal systems trying to frame her. He is never seen as having mental health issues. He is struggling but in our society men aren't allowed to struggle or talk about their issues. In the UK, men die by suicide 3 times more often women according to the Mental Health Foundation.They have to be strong and provide. By society's expectations, he has failed to be strong, to provide and protect his family. In the end, toxic masculinity kills him.
Women and men both fight against different sides of the same coin. Anatomy of a Fall shows how everyone is affected by patriarchy and how it is toxic to everyone. It ruins both of their lives. She is recognised as innocent but it is never made it clear whether she really is or not. It is up to the audience.
I noticed very interestingly that most of the time the people who are still convinced she is guilty are mainly men. They might not be sure she is guilty of murder but if we dig deeper, to them, she would have always been guilty of taking away from her husband what they perceive as rights they are entitled to and not privileges afforded by the patriarchy.
The complexity of the subject is reflected in the cinematography and choices of colors. Cold, icy colours make her look more unlikable and they make the film feel more unsettling. The score makes it feel like there are be twists, revelations coming in every shot. The combination of long slow shots with that score was just chilling.
This film appeals to your worst unconscious bias. It questions how you make judgements. Will you listen to facts and evidence or fall for your own biases. This is so underrated but so brilliant. It shows once again that even with the best of facts and scientific evidence, it is so hard to make people change their minds when they have already decided with their biases
It brilliantly shows what you can expect from the justice system if you are not a white straight cis man. It clearly demonstrates how much power our biases have even when presented with cold, hard facts and how these biases influence life-changing decisions we can make for someone else’s life. If you haven’t seen it yet, it is available on Amazon Prime & Apple TV in the UK.