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More Than I Want to Remember

Name: More Than I Want to Remember
Director: Amy Bench
Released: 2022
Duration: 14 min

Representation Score

8.7/10

Excellent

2022

Director

Amy Bench

Runtime

14 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

Amy Bench uses animation to explore personal trauma and bodily autonomy. By focusing on internal psychological states, the film disrupts traditional documentary approaches to depict visceral lived experiences. The film excels in depicting gendered empowerment and the nuanced portrayal of invisible disabilities like PTSD. It moves beyond traditional victim narratives to highlight a woman's assertion of her narrative power. While the film does not explicitly address LGBTQ+ or multi-ethnic political frameworks, its commitment to a deeply personal, multi-layered study of survival offers significant progressive value.

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Category Breakdown

Does More Than I Want to Remember have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film does not focus specifically on LGBTQ+ identities or non-cisgender expressions. However, it emphasizes bodily autonomy and rejects traditional expectations of female purity, which aligns with queer theoretical perspectives.

How does More Than I Want to Remember portray gender?

Excellent

The story centers entirely on female empowerment. It challenges traditional hierarchies by focusing on the survivor's emotional journey rather than the perpetrator, presenting a critique of patriarchal views on women.

How racially and ethnically diverse is More Than I Want to Remember?

Fair

The film focuses on a personal, contemporary American experience. It avoids a white-centric perspective by highlighting the reality that reflects multiple aspects of identity of the main character's identity.

How does More Than I Want to Remember represent religion and culture?

Good

The film critiques the limitations of traditional Western institutions, such as legal or religious frameworks, in providing healing. It prioritizes individual psychological truth over standardized social recovery methods.

Does More Than I Want to Remember include disability representation?

Good

The animation effectively externalizes the neurobiological impacts of PTSD. It avoids 'inspiration porn' by giving the subject control over how her mental health struggles are portrayed.

Present on Screen

Uses animation to externalize internal psychological states and mental health struggles.
Emphasizes female empowerment and the reclamation of identity after sexual violence.
Avoids 'inspiration porn' by treating neurobiological impacts of trauma with dignity and nuance.

Limited or Absent

Lacks explicit representation of LGBTQ+ identities or non-cisgender gender expressions.
Does not feature actively leading non-white majority casting or explicit multi-ethnic political frameworks.

Official Synopsis

One night at her home in southeastern Congo, 14-year-old Mugeni awakes to the sounds of bombs. As her family scatters to the surrounding forests to save themselves, Mugeni finds herself completely alone.

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