The Viral French Feminist Film Everyone's Talking About

A short French film that uses simple role reversal to illustrate sexism has gone viral, surprising no one more, perhaps, than the filmmaker, Eléonore Pourriat, who created “Oppressed Majority” four years ago but just recently added subtitles. “What’s happened to my film is fantastic,” she told the New York Times. “I don’t know if it’s just the subject or the buzz.”

More on Shine: Snickers Ad Angers Some, Confuses Others. Is It Really Sexist?

Though the 11-minute film — which, WARNING, contains female nudity — received little attention when it was originally released in 2010, Pourriat uploaded it to YouTube with the addition of English subtitles in February. Since then, it’s reached more than 9 million views (compared to the 700,000, interestingly, on the French-only version) and spurred an impassioned social-media dialogue about gender oppression.

The film follows a harried father through his day in a society ruled by women (many of whom we see jogging past him, topless). And as he goes about his typical daily activities — getting his mail, dropping his kid off at daycare, bicycling to work — he is met with condescension, sexual harassment, an assault at knifepoint, and, while reporting the women who attacked him at the female-staffed police station, skepticism and rudeness. To top it all off, when his wife picks him up at the station, she blames him for dressing in “up-to-the-knee Bermudas.”

More on Yahoo: France Televisions Warned Over Sexist Comments

Bloggers and tweeters alike have reacted with excitement. “One of the strengths of 'Oppressed Majority' is the completeness of its matriarchal vision,” the UK newspaper the Guardian noted on its Women’s Blog. “No woman lets the side down. They all play their part, right down to Pierre's wife, whose lack of sympathy chills.” Liv Siddall, writing on It’s Nice That, notes, “There’s a reason why this French film has gone viral, and that’s because it’s bloody brilliant.” On Twitter, viewers have noted it’s a “fascinating reversal,” a “fascinating watch,” and a perspective that “really nailed it.” 


Earlier this month, the Guardian tried its own experiment in the same role-reversal vein, with reporter Leah Green going into the streets of London to sexually harass men and record their reactions. She used real-life examples from “The Everyday Sexism Project," based in the UK, to dictate how she would set upon her unsuspecting victims, who mostly appeared to be either confused or annoyed. It received many thumbs-up on Twitter.

Not everyone loves “Oppressed Majority,” though, especially in France. “The gender inversion was interesting and unusual, but I was not enthusiastic about the movie,” Eric Fasson, a sociologist in Paris, told the New York Times. “It ridicules men.” Also speaking with the New York Times, Michèle Fitoussi, a French writer and former columnist for Elle magazine, said she did not like how the man was depicted as “a victim of everyone,” explaining, “It’s too much.”

Still, the filmmaker seems to be quite happy with all the attention online. "Actually, when I made it I hoped there would be an interest like this," she told the Guardian. "In France five years ago people asked me if being a feminist was so contemporary. Today no one asks. The feminist fight is more important now. Five years ago I felt like an alien. Now," she says, referring to fights over abortion and marriage equality, "my film is making a buzz because rights are in danger."

Related:
Metro D.C. Transit Takes Sexist Turn With Ridiculous Ad
Clueless Sports Commentators Need a Primer on Paternity Leave