Rate It X

Directed by Lucy Winer and Paula De Koenigsberg

1986 | 93 minutes | Color | 16mm/DVD | Order No. 99291

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SYNOPSIS

What do men really think of women? This provocative, highly acclaimed documentary provides an unflinching look at sexism in America. A series of disturbing though sometimes amusing portraits uncover obvious culprits such as advertising firms and porn shops as well as often overlooked pockets of sexist imagery which promote gender stereotyping and reinforce negative conceptions of women and sexuality. With great humor and compassion, the film reveals men's deeply imbedded attitudes, showing how sexism becomes rationalized through commerce, religion and social values. Hotly controversial upon its release, RATE IT X is a challenging, invaluable film that illuminates crucial issues of censorship, advertising, pornography and violence against women. Produced by Lynn Campbell, Claudette Charbonneau, Paula De Koenigsberg and Lucy Winer.

PRESS

"Takes the blinders from our eyes. Not only entertains, it changes us."

Gloria Steinem

"Superb. An important contribution to current discussions of feminism, sexuality and media culture."

Judith Mayne

"Funny and outrageous, produced with humor, insight and irony."

Variety

"Presents a comic yet insightful portrait of the sexism that still permeates American popular culture."

Bruce Jenkins Walker Art Center

SCREENING HIGHLIGHTS AND AWARDS

Berlin Film Festival
American Film Festival, Red Ribbon
US Film Festival

ABOUT FILMMAKER(S)

Paula De Koenigsberg

Lucy Winer

Lucy Winer, director, writer and producer, has focused on issues of social concern throughout her career. Her credits include the critically-acclaimed feature about sexism in America, RATE IT X; the first of its kind, Emmy nominated documentary about lesbian and gay seniors, SILENT PIONEERS; and the ground-breaking, four-part public television series, POSITIVE: LIFE WITH HIV. Recently she directed the PSA campaign for the UN Refugee Agency's Aid Darfur campaign, featuring Meryl Streep and Tony Bennett as celebrity spokespeople. Winer's work has been called “warm, witty and genuinely touching” by the L.A. Times; “immensely affecting” by the Village Voice; “hilarious” by the Hollywood Reporter; “intriguing, often hair-raising” by the New York Times; “produced with humor, insight and irony” by Variety. With Karen Eaton, Winer produced the award winning, ITVS documentary, GOLDEN THREADS, about ninety-three-year-old lesbian activist and organizer, Christine Burton, which aired on POV. She is currently in post production on KINGS PARK, a documentary feature which takes an inside look at public mental health care in America through the story of a single abandoned institution, Kings Park State Hospital. (3/10)

Subject Areas

Golden Threads

Profiling the life of 93 year old lesbian activist Christine Burton, founder of a global networking service for mid-life and elder lesbians this documentary by Lucy Winer and Karen Eaton, exuberantly overturns our most deeply rooted stereotypes and fears of aging. By adding the wry and introspective narrative of the director undergoing a mid-life crisis, the film generates a groundbreaking, intergenerational dialogue about sexuality, life choices, and aging. At a time when the media commonly sentimentalizes, dismisses or altogether ignores the old, GOLDEN THREADS offers an urgently needed antidote. GOLDEN THREADS was produced for the Independent Television Service (ITVS) with funds provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

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Greetings from Washington DC

GREETINGS FROM WASHINGTON, D.C. (dir. Rob Epstein, Frances Reid, Great Schiller, and Lucy Winer) documents the first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, which took place on October 14, 1979. LGBTQ+ history was made when tens of thousands of people converged on America’s capital, and this empowering documentary captures the joyous, intersectional spirit of an event that heralded the beginning of a new chapter in the national fight for queer rights and visibility. This film also made history with its world premiere in 1981 when it became the Frameline Film Festival’s first ever Castro Theatre screening. Digitally restored by the UCLA Film & Television Archive in conjunction with the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project. Laboratory services provided by Metropolis Post, Audio Mechanics. Available for exhibition. Please contact [email protected] for more information.

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What Happened to Her

WHAT HAPPENED TO HER is a forensic exploration of our cultural obsession with images of the dead woman on screen. Interspersing found footage from films and police procedural television shows and one actor’s experience of playing the part of a corpse, the film offers a meditative critique on the trope of the dead female body. The visual narrative of the genre, one reinforced through its intense and pervasive repetition, is revealed as a highly structured pageant. The experience of physical invasion and exploitation voiced by the actor pierce the fabric of the screened fantasy. The result is recurring and magnetic film cliché laid bare. Essential viewing for Pop Culture, Women’s and Cinema Studies classes.

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And Still I Rise

Inspired by a poem by Maya Angelou, this powerful film explores images of Black women in the media, focusing on the myths surrounding Black women's sexuality. Like COLOR ADJUSTMENT, in which Marlon Riggs looked at images of Black people on television, AND STILL I RISE uses images from popular culture to reveal the way the media misrepresents Black women's sexuality. A combination of fear and fascination produces a stereotypical representation which in turn impacts on the real lives of Black women. AND STILL I RISE intercuts historical and media images with hard-hitting contemporary views of women of African heritage as they struggle to create a new and empowered perspective. Both a celebration and a critique, AND STILL I RISE is essential viewing for those interested in African American studies, women's studies, media studies and popular culture. From the director of THE BODY BEAUTIFUL and COFFEE COLORED CHILDREN.

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OUR CATALOG

Rate It X

SYNOPSIS

PRESS

SCREENING HIGHLIGHTS AND AWARDS

ABOUT FILMMAKER(S)

Subject Areas

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Golden Threads

Greetings from Washington DC

What Happened to Her

And Still I Rise