In times of war people look to their loved ones for comfort, if you are a member of the armed forces, you look to your comrades. In 1914 the die was cast as the German standing army invaded France and war was declared. In 1994, this interview-style documentary And We Learned to Dance, directed by Maureen Judge, accurately depicts women's lives during and after World War I; with precision, through the stories of women who served in wartime occupations, as well as nurses. This is made clear by the film's strong use of imagery, first-hand accounts, and music to fit the tone of the section firmly. The film also exceeds expectations, with very few weaknesses, or lack thereof. The most pertinent aspect of the film is the perspective of those who not long ago would have been silenced, or muffled; it is heard and showcased. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The film [And we Learned to Dance] is a 1994 documentary, which documents the experiences of women in wartime occupations and military service positions reserved for women at the time. The jobs they did were varied. Some worked in munitions production, others in food packaging factories; while others would work sewing fabrics or helping with manufacturing jobs. The stories told in the film also assert that it wasn't just lower-middle class women who worked. Even the upper class ones, however often couldn't make it for a few months or so, or so the story was told. Now, just as men would lie about their age to join the military, women would also lie about their age to work in factories or work as nurses; rather we know that the attempt has been made. One woman recalls the story of her going to the labor office and saying she wanted to do her part. The age for taking part in work assignments was seventeen, while she was fifteen, so she was removed. Naturally he returned a few days later, although he was unable to join; because the same man had been there since the day before. The aim of this film is to shed light on the ground army of the First World War, to make their stories emerge from the dark tales of courage and blood that are the stories from the front. However, there are strong and thrilling stories that women also have from the war front. In VA Ds (Volunteer Aid Detachments) women who volunteered were trained and sent to care for the wounded. There was one particularly gruesome account from a woman who was involved in these VA Ds. A man had just been bayoneted and it was his job to essentially keep the wound closed so the nurses and doctors could work. He told the nun (these detachments were often or entirely led by the church) that he simply could not keep it closed, he would rather die. The nun said clearly: "Then die, then you will no longer be of use to me." This shows how seriously these women took their occupation, as seriously as the men who fought in the formal army. The women of the land army, as it is called, are the ones who maintained the home front while the men were at war. This leads to the second point of the film, which was to show how women were equally important during the war. This leads to the next point, how information is shared. Interview style is one of the best ways to convey this type of information. The stories that are told are all direct testimoniesof what life was like for women during and after the war. The stories of how they had contributed to society as men had, but were not allowed to vote, nor to work in certain industries. Even though this [oppression of women] was, and still is public knowledge, but the stories; and hear them from a first-hand source. This form of documentation gives a real emotional touch to these very important and eye-opening stories. This format allows the film to also convey the issues of the times, such as women not being able to vote, men not treating women equally in the workplace, sexual harassment of women in the workplace, and so on. These points are among the most important, because they are the ones still under discussion; and discussed to this day. A great example is the pay gaps that often exist in workplaces around the world. These are great points and only add to the overall spectacle of And we Learned to Dance. Playing to its strengths, And we Learned to Dance has a strong sense of its lane and doesn't stray from it. To clarify And We Learned to Dance clearly knows that it is a short documentary and doesn't try to be anything else. From the start there is a long way to go for Tipperary (by John McCormack), setting the theme as a historical catalog of life, playing with real life videos of women in factories and near war zones is quite a strong use of the images, showing how important women were in the struggle. The film shows expert use of this tactic, using other videos depending on what was being discussed, the use of photos was also quite an important step. All this makes the film exceptional, not only because it concerns the nature of the production; because it is a historical record, but because it has a strong sense of connection and is not afraid to tell things that need to be told, to tell stories that may not have been told. This coupled with great images and personal perspective shots of the interview format, almost makes it seem like they are talking directly to you, makes it feel very personal. Unfortunately, no great work of art is complete without its flaws. The format used was unfortunately very repetitive. You came to know what would happen next, interviews, images with voiceover, opinions on topics, multiple answers with different people; and ends with a musical transition before moving on. It became very banal and dried up very quickly. Sure, the piece was only an hour long, but it tends to lose engagement for any of the younger audiences who might be interested in the topic, and it deserves credit for trying to vary the type of questions to avoid unnecessary repetition, e.g. talk about the "Blue Devils" (a group of blue-collar workers who work in a factory) two or three times over the course of the entire piece. However, these are the only negative sides of the film. There is no need to develop anything beyond the stories, and the film does just that. The film is by no means a masterpiece, but that doesn't mean it isn't well made. These in themselves are very few pain points to speak of, drawing you in with an upbeat tune and making you stay with the information it provides. The last thing to touch on is the message in And We Learned to Dance. First of all, the title itself. We mainly learned to dance. It almost seems strange to learn to dance by seeing people dance, trained or not, at three years old or even younger in some cases. The title is like the movie says, and we learned to work while men were away, or we learned to live without men around. The film almost says that we learned to do what we already knew how to do. It gives off this “we already knew how” feeling of confidence.