The Divine Order

/ / Published in 2018, Feature Films, Putnam Theatre

2017 | Switzerland | 96 minutes
Director: Petra Biondina Volpe
Screenwriter: Petra Biondina Volpe
Producers: Lukas Hobi, Reto Schärli
Cinematographer: Judith Kaufmann
Editor: Hansjörg Weißbrich
Principal Cast: Rachel Braunschweig, Sibylle Brunner, Marta Zoffoli Bettina Stucky, and Marie Leuenberger

The Divine Order is set in Switzerland in 1971, where despite the worldwide social upheavals of the previous decade, women were still denied the right to vote. When unassuming and dutiful housewife Nora (Marie Leuenberger, winner of a Best Actress award at Tribeca) is forbidden by her husband to take a part-time job, Nora’s frustration leads to her becoming the poster child of her town’s suffragette movement. Nora’s newfound celebrity brings humiliation, threats, and potentially an end to her marriage. But, refusing to back down, she convinces the women in her village to go on strike, and in the process makes a few startling discoveries about her own liberation. Uplifting and crowd-pleasing, this charming, captivating film is a time-capsule that could not be more timely.