Review of the film 'Babygirl': The Reversal of Sex and Power Structures Seen in the Chugging of Milk
I watched Babygirl, starring Nicole Kidman, which is currently streaming on Amazon Prime. When I saw the opening, I had the impression that it was a soft-core porn film for women—something along the lines of a Harlequin romance—but as I continued watching, that assessment was completely overturned.
In reality, it was a unique work that depicts the "tug-of-war between sex and power" between men and women from a highly contemporary perspective. This time, I would like to talk about how I perceived this film, strictly from a male point of view.
---Spoilers start here---
First of all, I felt that the impression one receives from this film changes significantly depending on whether you are a man or a woman. If you empathize with the husband played by Antonio Banderas from a male perspective, the fact that his beloved wife (Nicole Kidman) has never felt ecstasy and has been
faking it the whole time hits home as a true horror more terrifying than any monster in a horror movie.
It is also a symbol of the abyss of the 'other who can never be reached' that perhaps every man harbors somewhere deep down. Even if the ending, where the couple finally confronts each other's true feelings and manages to "fulfill" one another, is portrayed as a happy ending, as a man, I don't know how to take this..., and it left me with a complex lingering feeling.
Especially in the final act, there is a scene where Banderas, having a panic attack, is cared for by his wife and ends up apologizing to her. From a male perspective, this scene looks like a "total defeat," both sexually and mentally. Nevertheless, the fact that a happy ending follows immediately after made me feel that it functions more as a "romantic fantasy from a female perspective." (Or perhaps my consciousness is just trapped in masculine, macho thinking...)
The structure of the film was very interesting precisely because it is not something that can be easily swallowed by the reality of male psychology.
On the other hand, from the wife's perspective, it depicts a story of wavering between immorality and infidelity, trying to fill an unfulfilled "sexuality" through a relationship with a young intern (Harris Dickinson). This is, so to speak, a female version of the 'popular older man' movie with the genders reversed, but I felt a very modern nuance in the fact that the young man has no intention of career advancement or exploitation, and the affair is nothing more than a "mutual agreement to satisfy sexual desire."
In the middle of the film, there is a scene where Nicole glares at Harris and chugs a glass full of milk he gifted her.
Milk is a sexual metaphor symbolizing "masculinity" or "dominance," but here, by daring to accept it head-on against someone trying to force shame upon her, it becomes a provocative performance that reclaims the initiative.
Her expression, a mixture of desire, anger, acceptance, and rejection, was a masterpiece scene that encapsulates the 'tug-of-war between sex and power' depicted in this film.
Furthermore, the scene after their relationship ends where a male colleague flashes a lewd smile and says, "I'll play along with your fantasies," was truly disgusting and was a moment that exposed the toxicity of men as explicitly as possible. The scene where she firmly says "NO" to that provided a catharsis that even I, as a man, could feel.
Sexual imbalance, the severance of affection, and the will to overcome them—.
I felt that 'Babygirl' is a film that hides the "pain of reality," which is gritty regardless of whether you view it from a male or female perspective, beneath the guise of a romance.
……That said, to be honest, I am a bit of a coward who is relieved that I didn't watch this with my spouse.