Written by Ilona Ahti and Daniela Hakulinen
Directed by Alli Haapasalo
Starring Aamu Milonoff, Eleonoora Kauhanen and Linnea Leino
Runtime 1 hour and 40 minutes
Opens in select theaters August 12

by Rosalie Kicks, Editor in Chief & Old Sport

Girl Picture is a great picture!

The number of films released each year in which the story is solely about women and made by them is minuscule. I think it is clear that, despite all the noise, Hollywood still does not care about women. Heck, studios are willing to flush $90 million dollars down the toilet to shelve a flick with “girl” in the title. These charlatans want us to believe that the reason they cancelled said movie was due to the picture not being up to snuff… this is laughable coming from an organization that has reigned terror on our eyes with various Zack Snyder productions. Sigh. Despite this devastating news though, I am here to make your day a bit brighter by telling you all about the awesomeness that is the cinematic production, Girl Picture.

This is a story told over the course of three consecutive Fridays, about three ladies on the cusp of womanhood. Throughout the narrative, they attempt to figure things out in terms of relationships, sex, love, and simply growing up. Besties and schoolmates, Mimmi (Aamu Milonoff) and Rönkkö are both employed at a smoothie shop in the mall. They share a bond like no other and clearly are open books to one another. One of their classmates, Emma (Linnea Leino) has a meet up at the smoothie stand with friends where she experiences a rocky encounter with the brash Mimmi. In retrospect though, this incident could be interpreted as Mimmi’s idea of flirting. Mimmi has a reputation for being a school outcast and upon hearing about Emma’s interaction, her friends decide to invite Mimmi and Rönkkö to a house party for entertainment purposes.

Rönkkö is thrilled over this proposition as she believes the event will allow her to continue her sexual exploration. Meanwhile, Emma clearly is attending out of the kindness for her best-friend and to show support of Rönkkö’s sexy-times reconnaissance. Sadly, Rönkkö’s adventure ends in much awkwardness while the unlikely pair of Mimmi and Emma strike up a friendship. Mimmi spots Emma secluded off by herself, bewitched by her cell phone. Apparently, both Mimmi and Emma share one thing in common afterall; neither wanted to be at the party. Emma is a dedicated figure skater would have rather spent the night practicing for her prospective championship but was forced by her mother to attend the party. She decides the best way to make the most of her time is to watch videos of triple lutzes, a feat that she has been struggling with as of late. The two end up ditching the party and spend the entire evening together in bliss, falling into a fast love.

There are moments while watching this movie that I found myself overjoyed by the scenes I was witnessing simply due to the fact that I could relate so strongly to what was being portrayed on the screen. Often movies, particularly those that feature women, are written and/or directed by men. This causes female characters to essentially become props within a story and their plot lines neglected in favor of the male’s. Girl Picture is what happens when you allow a person to create a film that has experience similar to those that are gracing the silver screen.

I truly believe that I would have loved this film as a teenager, especially due to the topics that it broaches. My extent of finding out about the birds and the bees was through a field trip in the fifth grade to some sort of human anatomy science center. Upon receiving the information, I recall being highly annoyed about my inevitable, pending menstruation as it was yet another inconvenience put upon me by my body (I am a really sweaty individual, ie think Creature From the Black Lagoon). With that said, my parents did not really delve further into this information regarding sex and my changing body. My knowledge, instead, would come through friends and first hand experience. There is a scene in Girl Picture, in which Rönkkö is instructing a guy on how best to pleasure her. This idea was given to her after speaking with Mimmi about her experience of not enjoying sex, in which Mimmi bluntly informed her that she needs to communicate what she wants. Initially he seems game for the insight and upon her reaching climax, he abruptly departs leaving her with his imparting “wisdom” that it was a “turn off to have a manual of your genitals”.

Witnessing this scene in a film outright pleased me as it brings into light the importance that sex is not just about one person’s pleasure or experience. Personally, I think it is a turn off to have a partner whom has no regard for another’s enjoyment for what is supposed to be an act that is enjoyed by all parties. Too many times have we seen the idea of sex from the male gaze which rarely portrays the dissatisfaction a woman experiences from their partner. I can only recall the moment within Lady Bird, in which Lady Bird McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) hastily loses her virginity to Kyle (Timothée Chalamet). Coincidentally, this picture also being written and directed by a woman (Greta Gerwig) solidifies my hypothesis that when you have a storyteller that is informed on said subject, it makes for a great picture.

I can’t recommend checking out Girl Picture enough and really enjoyed spending time with these three ladies. Prior to Girl Picture, director, Alli Haapasalo had made some shorts and worked in Television. After watching her feature debut, I can’t wait to see what comes next for this brilliant filmmaker. Part of me kinda hopes that maybe we can get a continuation of these girls’ story.