Movie Review: Damsels in Distress

Damsels in Distress

Directed by Whit Stillman

Starring Greta Gerwig, Adam Brody, Analeigh Tipton

B-

This is a silly, ironically funny movie. The main characters are college girls who run a suicide prevention center on their campus, which is known for its high rate of suicide attempts (real or perceived). The girls have a lot of rules and theories about life that others see as utter absurdity. While telling their story, the movie mocks these silly girls. As it progresses, the girls evolve; their absolute way of viewing college life unravels for some of the characters. This change has a lot to do with the interactions between the girls and a new transfer student.

The movie is enjoyable and it leaves the audience questioning odd scenarios and situations. The students think all other students are prone to suicide and depression and during the course of the movie there is an increase in the number of people who attempt to kill themselves by jumping off a two-story education building. Of course this doesn’t work since the building is not tall enough. Additionally, one of the characters leaves campus for a day and the other students mount a mass search party to locate her and there is an article in the school’s daily newspaper about the missing woman. Also, there is a dorm building where there are stinky students and when they are given a bar of soap we are led to believe that they have never seen one before. There is a young man who doesn’t know his colors. At first I assumed that meant he couldn’t see and differentiate them, however it turns out he just didn’t know that blue was called blue, etc. Another laughable aspect of the movie is how the characters walk and run. In numerous parts, some of the girls are half running others are walking beside them. The girls are lumbering forward, leading with their chest and without moving their arms. The comical movement is similar to how I would think the undead would move.