One of my all time favorites.

Great Film overall

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

A Dutch matron (Willeke van Ammelrooy) establishes and, for several generations, oversees a close-knit, matriarchal community where feminism and liberalism thrive.Roger Ebert gave the film four stars, saying the film showed "the everyday realities of rural life, a cheerful feminism, a lot of easygoing sex and a gallery of unforgettable characters." Leonard Maltin called it "a treat from start to finish." This really is a "feminist fantasy". As others have pointed out, this film succeeds because it is pro-women without being anti-men. That is the real message of feminism. Unfortunately, the name "feminism" implies a women-centric view, but that was never the point. The goal was equality, and with this film ,we see what that might look like. At least in the Netherlands.

Watching Antonia's Line 20 years after it was made (and winning Best Oscar Foreign Film then), it still has its quirky 'life-is-full-of-the-unexpected' charm reminiscent of 'new wave' movies of the 90s, though it does feel dated now. It's about lore, life, love/lovelessness, and definitely not about logic. So if you go about looking for typical character motivation, plot sensibility or any form of social, religious or political allegory, then you're looking for these typical "movie subtext" in the wrong garden. It is laughable how so many read 'feminism' into the movie. There is none of it, unless you go about creating one on your own. Both male and female characters can be interpreted as "strong" or "weak" depending on how you choose to view them based on your own bias - the movie as it is, has no bias whatsoever. For example, is resisting marriage a 'strong' or 'weak' trait? Depends on your own experiences, opinions, and views, isn't it. Or, to bay at the full moon because you can't marry your Protestant lover - is that 'weakness', 'foolishness', 'madness' or 'strong love'? Or to drown your own kin (who has committed a heinous rape) when he is already beaten and weak by pushing his head into the water from the back without his ability to defend himself - is that 'righteous', 'weak', 'strong', 'anarchic', 'cowardly', brave' or what?The movie presents what it presents. If you choose to draw any conclusion from it, then know it comes entirely from you, and don't merit your own intentions to that of the movie's intention.Watch it with open eyes and just let it rinse into you, and wash out whatever washes out.

ANTONIA'S LINE continues as fresh today as when it was released and awarded Oscars in 1995. This very fine little Dutch film mocks the old adage of 'You can't go back home again' by introducing Antonia and her daughter returning to a village she had abandoned and setting up changes among the odd assortment of townsfolk that initiate a heritage of both wonderful and tragic events, each of which is a parable about family and community. The women rule here, even to the point of deciding to conceive by barter, by compulsion, and by taking arms against the macho power symbols of rape. All manner of variations of normal (spiritually possessed, moon howlers, disillusioned priests, mentally retarded, social outcasts) come under the influence of Antonia's strongly world-wise persona. The results are like a fairy tale for adults, both in content and in the wonderful visual effects. The cast is extraordinary as is the pacing of the direction. The message of this film endures - it pleads to be viewed regularly.Grady Harp

It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who you truly are.I can't think of any other platitude that better describes this amazing film by writer/director Marleen Gorris. The Motion Picture Academy felt as strongly as I do, as they awarded it an Oscar; a well-deserved Oscar, I might add.It is about the progeny of Antonia (Willeke van Ammelrooy), a woman who returns to her village after WWII and begins life with her daughter Danielle (Els Dottermans). There is never any mention of a father. This is a feminist film in the purest sense. Men are not bashed, but there is a sense that they are not very useful, except for producing more daughters.Danielle seeks a male to impregnate her and bears a child prodigy, Thérèse (Carolien Spoor, Esther Vriesendorp, and Veerle van Overloop), Thérèse becomes a pupil of the town intellectual Crooked Finger (Mil Seghers) and cannot find a man who can satisfy her intellectually and physically, so she settles for the physical and has a daughter of her own.Men in this movie serve as seed bearers, or teachers, or comfort bearers, or, in one case, messengers of evil, as one manages to rape two women.But the film is not just about feminism, it is also about acceptance. Antonia never hesitates to give comfort and shelter to anyone in need, whether it bee someone with an intellectual disability, the raped sister, the woman who loves having babies, or the priest who finds that celebrating life is better than celebrating death.Her own daughter finds love in the arms of Thérèse's tutor, and this is not judged, only accepted as another part of life. Everyone seems to find love in Antonia's circle, and her real progeny is exceeded by those she touches with love and acceptance.It is a beautiful story with a wealth of interesting characters. Gorris is an amazing writer and one can only be thrilled at her talent.