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Unease and gender awareness elicited by feminist perspectives
If notions of voyeurism appear to have shifted from the castration complex to the more
dehumanizing concept of commodity possession, feminist perspectives also present a further
step in the process of representing realistically a woman's need and desire for love. Given
that the screenplay is credited both to Bertolucci and to Susan Binot, it would be interesting
to know to what extent Binot's female perception might have been responsible for this
portrait of a 'new woman' which emerges in the representation of Lucy. First, by depicting
the pressure that begins to build around Lucy, the other characters focusing on her as the
gossip spreads that she is a virgin, the film represents the impossibility - even for a society as
sophisticated and evolved as our own - of accepting and respecting non-conformist
behaviour, and implies how this attitude conceals a measure of antipathy towards people who
show independence of mind. In the film, Lucy eventually overcomes the problem by
pretending to lose her virginity with a young Englishman whom she happens to meet at
Niccolo's party. The power of conformism is confirmed by an exchange between Alex and
Diane. Referring to Lucy's presumed sexual encounter, he asks 'Did she choose a good one?'
to which Diane replies, 'She just chose the first one' Through this contrivance and its
repercussions, the film indicates how private situations can become intolerable and absurd
when subjected to social pressure.
But the script's originality centres on its portrayal of Lucy as a teenage protagonist
who has digested the experiences of two previous generations: that of Diane as a mother
figure, and that of Miranda, notionally an 'elder sister' in age terms. Lucy appears to have
come to a resolution that goes beyond the classic dichotomy between the bride's submission
to the patriarchal order, and the independent, career-oriented, postmodern woman. The film
suggests that the nurturing, motherly role embodied by women is no longer applicable, as
Diane admits that she is tired of taking care of people. On the other hand, the role fulfilled by
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