With a historical subject and a powerful cast, Mrs. America focuses on recounting the emergence of the feminist movement in the 1970s in the United States. This mini-series, available on Canal +, is it worth a look?
WHAT IS IT ABOUT ?
USA, 1970s A model lawyer and housewife of six, Phyllis Schlafly is also a conservative activist. When she leads the movement to prevent the ratification of the amendment which aims to guarantee equal rights between the sexes, she unleashes the anger of feminists, led by their leaders, Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan …
Available on myCANAL and Canal Plus.
WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE ?
WHO IS IT WITH?
Mrs. America can boast of having an impressive cast headed by Oscar winner Cate Blanchett who finds here her first major role on television, that of Phyllis Schlafly, an ultra-conservative activist. Rose Byrne and Tracey Ullman respectively camp feminist journalists Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan while Uzo Aduba (Orange Is the New Black) plays politics as Shirley Chisholm, the first African-American woman elected to Congress. The rest of the excellent female cast include Sarah Paulson, Margo Martindale, Elizabeth Banks, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Kayli Carter, Ari Graynor and Melanie Lynskey. John Slattery and James Marsden embody the two recurring male figures in the series.
WELL WORTH A LOOK ?
Created by Canadian Dahvi Waller, writer on Mad Men and Halt and Catch Fire, Mrs. America is a choral mini-series inspired by real events that portrays women activists who participated in the emergence of the feminist movement in the United States in the 1970s. Against the great figures of the time fighting for equality gender, legalization of abortion and other progressive advances, such as Gloria Steinem, Shirley Chisholm, Bella Abzug and Betty Friedan, one woman stands out to lead another fight: “Mrs. America” Phyllis Schlafly, an ultra-conservative activist who campaigns against the women’s liberation movement and for the defense of homemaker status by preventing the ratification of the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment).
If Phyllis Schlafly remains the common thread of the series, Mrs. America endeavors to narrate this political and ideological struggle between two women’s camps through the points of view of all the women concerned, who each have the right to their episode centered on their life, their course, their convictions, their actions but also their disillusionment. With its vintage credits, retro vibe and efficient staging, Mrs. America is proving to be a tasty, important and inspiring kind of political Mad Men with a feminine character. Through the struggles of these women, this mini-series dissects the behind the scenes of the first discussions on the place of women in society and the genesis of movements for the liberation of women.
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With intelligence and force, the series avoids falling into a Manichean pattern and exposes the difficulties encountered by all women against the patriarchy but also within their activist groups, whatever the camp. Sharp and masterful, Mrs. America is a major and necessary series that deals with the foundations of an ongoing debate that resonates terribly in our present-day society. Cate Blanchett is amazing in her role as a cold activist, conservative and determined to stand up for housewife status. Sometimes bordering on caricature, she is nonetheless a villainous character that we love to hate. But her fight against the ratification of the amendment aimed at guaranteeing equal rights between the sexes will paradoxically lead her to extricate herself from her status which is dear to her and to rub shoulders in high places with men who will use her popularity to their advantage. advantage.
The rest of the impeccable cast comes to titillate the omnipotence of Phyllis and makes it possible to question the convictions of each one to understand their interests, but we regret that certain characters are not developed further. More than a historical drama, Mrs. America is above all a political series that will appeal to fans of the genre. The dialogues are well written, the spikes are sharp and the words are chosen with a painful but realistic irony. If certain aspects of the American bureaucracy sometimes seem blurry, the pawns are gradually taking place on the chessboard and we gradually understand the ins and outs of this major period in American history through the shenanigans. of Phyllis and the actions of Gloria Steinem and her sisters in this exciting FX series.
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