Less than two months after the release of “There is No Evil in the World” in Israel, which consists of four short films dealing with executions in Iran, “Walking Dead Women” arrives, consisting of nine episodes dealing with executions in the United States. Israeli film by Israeli filmmaker Hagar Ben-Asher Already in 2018, and the timing of its rise is probably coincidental.The focus here is completely different, although the two films share the humanistic point of view.
“Walking Dead Women” focuses on death sentences in the days and hours before the end. None of them claims to be innocent, and in the horrific situation Ben-Asher locates moments of compassion in the last human contacts before parting from life. Therefore, although the film is suffocating, it is also exciting and full of beauty, almost throughout its length. The first story takes place 14 days before the date of the execution, and follows Donna (Tuesday) Van Carill from “Mind Hunter”), who goes out of her way to hear from the judges if her pardon request has been granted. Her lawyer asks her to stop smiling at the cameras waiting for her on the way, but she’s not really trying to overcome herself. The smile is erased from her face only that she sees her little son sitting in the back with his grandmother. Donna demanded that he not come, because she wanted to erase all her memory from his mind.
From the movie “Walking Dead Women” (Photo: PR)
Donna killed her husband and parents, it says on a black screen at the end of the episode. This narrative strategy continues in subsequent films as well, with story after story approaching the date of execution. Each film reveals to us the vulnerability and humanity of those sentenced to death, before revealing to us what they were accused of. Thus the film hurts our hearts and does not allow it to be sealed ahead of time. The cumulative impression is that they all, black and white, came from low socioeconomic backgrounds and faced difficult to unbearable lives. But only the last convict, Becky (Mia Eshet), tells her warden what was done to her as a child by her father and brother. And it resonates with the subtitles at the end of the second film, in which it is told that Wendy (Joy Nash), whose mother refuses to come visit her, murdered her father and son. It turns out that even though the stories are separate, they complement each other, creating an intimate picture of destructive neglect.
From the movie “Walking Dead Women” (Photo: PR)
Some of the themes develop from film to film. Thus, for example, the third episode also deals with the encounter between a prisoner and her son, but this time he is more mature, and decides for himself what he wants to do. Troy (Ashton Sanders from “Moonlight”) was born in prison and given up for adoption. When he turned 18 he asked to meet his biological mother Helen (Mia Lynn Robinson from “The Conners”, the sequel to “Roseanne”) just before her death. She wants to give him something of herself – letters she wrote to him, and paintings in which she imagined him. He wants to know what she likes to eat, and whether he will be a killer like her.
The judge in the first film says that life should be treated with kindness and respect. And this is the attitude that the film shows to all its protagonists – those who murdered, and also the attentive guards, who try to give them a drop of comfort and for that purpose flex the rules. For all the pain it presents, the film almost completely avoids sentimentality, as well as direct political indications about the very practice of execution. All the actors deliver great performances, leaving a strong impression in the few minutes they are on screen. Had it been for dramatic bows that run across a full-length film, “Walking Dead Women” would surely have swept a host of acting awards.
From the movie “Walking Dead Women” (Photo: PR)
Ben-Asher (“The Breakthrough”), who wrote and directed, is not the only Israeli behind the camera. Like her, photographer David Strazmeister (“The Death of the Cinema and My Dad too”) did a great job here. In principle, this is a rough shot from a shoulder camera, but in key moments you can notice a thin ray of light that transcends realism and separates the characters from the depressing space in which they are. The musical choices are also effective. “Walking Dead Women” actually started as a network series, and not all movies are equally complete, but watching them in sequence is a very unique and intense experience.
★★★★ 4 stars
>> Dead Women Walking Directed by: Hagar Ben-Asher. With Dale Dickie, Mia Eshet, Dot-Marie Jones. USA 2018, 101 min