Bold and bravura choices as Venice celebrates A Woman Unknown, Possible Love and NAZA

After facing heavy criticism over its lack of female directors, the film festival may have redeemed itself with its winners’ list Woman Unknown wins Venice film festival as NAZA takes special jury prize Did the Venice film festival just redeem itself on the sexism issue? It made a really good choice for the top prize, giving it to a female director, and it’s a good winners’ list all round.

Having been pilloried for failing to include enough women film-makers , the festival awarded the Golden Lion to Woman Unknown , by the Danish-Egyptian director May el-Toukhy, her gripping and stylish drama-thriller about sexual shame, political paranoia and the return of the repressed in Denmark after the second world war.

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