Director: Shahad Ameen
Writers: Shahad Ameen
Stars: Basima Hajjar, Ashraf Barhom, Yaqoub Alfarhan, Fatima Al Taei, Haifa Al-Agha, Ibrahim Alhasawi
Synopsis: Set in a dystopian landscape, Scales is the story of a young girl who stands alone against her family and overturns the village tradition of sacrificing the female children.
[/info]
Shahad Ameen presents a feminist parable with Scales, a challenging narration about a girl that is supposed to be sacrificed for the well-being of her town, but that instead proves that she is destined to live. Not to be interpreted as optimistic or celebratory, the film is a tale about what it means to be a girl or a woman in this world, something that acquires a more urgent meaning when we consider that the filmmaker herself is from Saudi Arabia, a country that has started to take baby steps towards the liberation of its female citizens.
Filmed in black and white by João Ribeiro, its photography is probably the most astounding aspect of the film, which captures in beautiful frames the desolate landscape of an undefined island (filmed on location in Musandam, Oman) populated by seamen and women that stay inland. Austerity is everywhere, giving the film the air of existing under a minimalist perspective where sea and humans have a close, but castigated relationship.
There is no accompanying music, only the sound of the waves, the air, and frequent local chants (“Oh mighty sea, our sacrifice is small, from the depth of your water and your sand, bless us with your maiden, we need her strength.”) These lyrics give a clue of the role of women in this place: both undervalued and vital for everyone’s survival.
As the audience is welcomed in the film, the camera follows Muthana (Yaqoub Alfarhan) as he takes his newborn girl, Hayat, to the sea as part of the local ritual. She is meant to be sacrificed to the sea creatures so the village can continue with their fishing expeditions. Ameen – who is also the writer – is not interested in offering context or explanations about this dark tradition. Instead, she only shows the practice through haunting camera directions that make us feel as if we were the ones about to be drowned.
Just as Muthana is ready to let go of his daughter, he has a change of heart and rescues her instead. The story jumps 12 years in time to find Hayat (Basima Hajjar) as a teenager, constantly harassed and blamed for the bad fortune of the island. Everyone – including her mother but not her father – is asking her to walk into the sea and proceed to her own demise.
The message of the film is its most important feature. A clear feminist story about the burden of being a woman in patriarchal societies, Scales is a condemnation of the unfair treatment of women as well as a celebration of Hayat’s life and endurance. She is determined to survive, no matter how many times she is made to believe that she should not be alive, even doing unthinkable things in the sake of showing her worth. This is a cold reminder of the exhausting high standards under which women live. We cannot just exist. We need to prove that we are worthy of living by excelling in whatever we do.
While Hayat’s story is one of strength, it is impossible to ignore the fate of the other girls around her. The camera does not shy away from crude and harrowing scenes of the sacrifice of girls, their transformation into sea creatures, and the way that the same people that used to be family are now hunting them. These girls are never safe, even after they sacrificed themselves for others. In this regard, Scales offers valuable lessons through every female character that appears on screen, sometimes reminding us of the weight of traditional values, others of the suppression of femininity in order to survive, and others of the resoluteness and strength of our survival instincts.
While the messages of the film are powerful, the execution is challenging. Its abstract essence demands patience and blind acceptance from the viewer. Consequently, its value resides on its message and the mere fact of its existence (a rebellious fable written and directed by a Saudi woman).
Presented through beautiful photography and accompanied by a vocal chorus that offers some energy to the otherwise austere story, Scales is a feminist story that deserves attention.
