Gesker

just two girls forced to grow up before their time

to survive. to see better days.

light thats not how the book works

MICROSOFT TEAMS

Pulling up this movie I completely expected to only encounter Sister Agnes as the one woman we see in the trailer, the conclave a space that has been kept from the female members of the church. Now, color me surprised when I started the movie and most of the establishing shots we got were focused on all the women working in the Vatican.

And it is such a deliberate choice, it does the film a disservice not to talk about it.

Because while Cardinal Lawrence is having his fifteenth breakdown during sequestering and Bellini finds the ambitious asshole within himself, Ray does all the leg work, and Bel---- we see the women work.

We see the kitchens, we see them cook, we see them stand aside. Most of the time when the Cardinals are conspiring it is the women who interrupt because they are busy working, walking, running errands.

And there is power in that.

I think it is very deliberate how often (and with such lingering gaze) the camera shows us the lives of the other half - partially to connect to the wider themes of the movie, on how Bellini asks for women to get more power but never thanks them, and how Benitez stumps them all by thanking the women preparing their meals when asked to say the prayer (considering his own probably tumultuous relationship to gender within the church).

But it also stands in direct opposition to a long tradition in story telling: servants don't exist. How often the heroes of a regency romance are "alone" because the two hand maidens and three maids don't really count.

Conclave doesn't do that.

It doesn't let us look away.

Between all the petty drama, the politics, and the real life consequences of the conclave, we never stop looking at the people doing all the work.

Yes, we follow the ups and downs of Lawrence and Co, but in doing so the movie reminds us again and again of the women working the kitchen.

(Here's going to be a sort of rambling rant post about certain kinds of people in the fandom uhhh but like, no harassing or anything. I'm airing out some annoyances. Sorry if I sound really angry. I get passionate about these things.)

You know how Amity Blight had a pretty bad home life in the Disney show "The Owl House"? How stuck up and rude she acted sometimes? How she listened to her parents despite not liking their orders? Well since she moved away from that and got to open up to Luz and friends, the fandom seemingly forgave her. (As they should have! She was a teenager.)

Well the same doesn't seem to be the case with Mesmer Jr. from Reverse 1999. (My clear favorite character.)

When it comes to her, media literacy is so low that they (A saddeningly good portion of the fandom,) start victim blaming this girl relentlessly. I've seen her called a "Schizo" in a derogatory way, even.

They fail to recognize that the very real character flaw of her bigotry also comes from a place of self hatred and guilt. Not to mention the relentless brainwashing and mental grooming from ALL the adult figures in her life! (Except Dorothea, but she wasn't there for long.)

Yes, she was mean to Vertin! YES. She can be rude and cold and snarky and follows the Foundation's as well as her family's orders! But SHE'S A TEENAGER! A TEENAGER STUCK IN A EXTREMELY SHITTY PLACE IN LIFE! A VICTIM OF CONSTANT FORCED CHILD LABOR IN A PSYCH WARD SINCE SHE WAS 12! SHE LITERALLY CAN'T ESCAPE FROM HER SITUATION!

IF SHE BREAKS DOWN IN FRONT OF ANYONE PUBLICLY AND INEVITABLY REVEALS HER TRUE, TERRIBLE, MENTAL STATE UNDER THE YEARS OF EMOTIONAL REPRESSION, THERES A DECENT CHANCE HER FAMILY WILL SEND HER TO A FUCKING ASYLUM WHERE SHE'D PROBABLY DIE. (Because she isn't the perfect family prop anymore.)

She's so dehumanized that nobody even calls her by her real name... Just her family name. Just a Mesmer. Just a machine. A tool. The most refined one there is.

Oh, but keep calling her a downer (As if she doesn't have valid reasons to feel that way), keep calling her a mean little racist snitch or even another cog of the big bad Mesmer family. Keep calling her that and pay attention to nothing else. Yeah. Don't take into account that she had just learnt about what the Storm can do to people through very traumatizing means at that time and wanted to save her only friends. And that Constantine was using really manipulative and disgusting language all throughout that scene.

Sigh...

I really hope Vertin gets to take her away from that awful situation at some point in the story. I hope that she canonically gets the love and care and clean quiet room she clearly deserves.

Her "friends" in Laplace are nice and all, but she NEEDS a route of escape here. Just like Sonetto.

So, what I'm saying is...

Mesmer Jr. slowly healing and unlearning her internalized Arcanist bigotry in the suitcase arc? (Not calling it redemption cause... it doesn't feel right.)

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hey why the fuck are you juggling on • my post you’re interr•upting my —

DUDE YOUR BALLS ARE ALL OVER MY POST