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The Awakening

Name: The Awakening
Director: Victor Fleming
Released: 1928
Duration: 90 min

Representation Score

1.4/10

Minimal

1928

Passed

Director

Victor Fleming

Runtime

90 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

The Awakening is a traditional period drama that explores personal transformation through a narrow lens. While the female lead transitions from a passive social victim to an active nurse, the film remains confined to the conventional demographic and cultural boundaries of 1920s cinema. The narrative relies on established social and religious institutions to drive the protagonist's redemption, which limits the film's ability to offer a more complex critique of the era's social structures. Ultimately, the film lacks multi-layered depth and functions as a standard melodrama of its time, focusing on women's ability to drive the story but failing to represent diverse racial or sexual identities.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Awakening have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film does not include any LGBTQ+ identities. The story revolves around traditional romantic and social structures of the era.

How does The Awakening portray gender?

Fair

The protagonist evolves from a compromised social position to a purposeful role in a field hospital, suggesting a move towards self-determination.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Awakening?

Minimal

The story focuses on a European setting with a cast reflecting standard period demographics. There are no non-white characters in prominent roles.

How does The Awakening represent religion and culture?

Limited

The narrative uses traditional religious structures as a means for personal redemption, following established social and spiritual hierarchies.

Does The Awakening include disability representation?

Minimal

The film does not depict any physical, sensory, or neurodivergent disabilities.

Present on Screen

The protagonist's journey from a passive social victim to an active nurse highlights a degree of self-determination.
The narrative explores themes of personal reformation and self-determination through service.

Limited or Absent

The film lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities or same-sex narratives.
There is a notable absence of racial diversity or non-white characters in prominent roles.
The story adheres strictly to traditional religious and institutional frameworks without critique.

Official Synopsis

A French country lass Marie Ducrot, name is "mud" after she is compromised by a German soldier . Turning to religion, Banky becomes one of the "sisters in white" in the field hospitals of World War 1. THE AWAKENING was nominated by the Academy for its Art Direction in the first transitional year of the talkies. A vast number of films from this year are lost and this is no exception. No print or negative materials are known to exist at this time. William Cameron Menzies received his third nomination for this film, having received two the prior year and winning for both.

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