REBEL DYKES (2021)
Directed by Harri Shanahan and Siân A. Williams
REBEL DYKES is a rabble-rousing documentary set in 1980s post-punk London, UK. The unheard story of a community of dykes who met doing art, music, politics and sex, and how they went on to change their world.
REBEL DYKES arrives in all its ass-kicking, leather-wearing glory. The film follows a tight-knit group of friends who met at Greenham Common peace camp and went on to become artists, performers, musicians and activists in London. A heady mash-up of animation, archive footage and interviews tells the story of a radical scene: squatters, BDSM nightclubs, anti-Thatcher rallies, protests demanding action around AIDS and the fierce ties of chosen families. This is an extraordinarily privileged glimpse into a bygone world by those who not only lived out their politics with heartfelt conviction but lived to tell the tale. (Jay Bernard, BFI Flare, 2021)
Birds’ Eye View’s View
Rebel Dykes is an important chapter in British social-cultural history
Everyone should watch this smart, wonderfully well put together film that captures the angst, energy and creativity of a subculture battling on multiple fronts against both oppressive Thatcherism and proscriptive feminism – particularly given the current explosion in identity politics and its attendant problems, for which the film can provide some historical broader context.
It strongly conveys how sex became a political act during this period addressing these issues with good blend of seriousness and humour, debunking the tiered old myth of the sexless and humourless lesbian-feminist: dildos minus the balls debate, twenty ways to hold hands passionately (the traditional lesbian sex guide), messy wrestling with all manner of different substances etc. The post-punk soundtrack is a winner too!
