'The Danish Girl', 2015

Continuing the trend of movies made after books (made after true stories) - I’ll be reviewing ‘The Danish Girl’ (2015), based on the novel by David Ebershoff (which is based *loosely* on the true life of Lili Elbe). Einar Wegener and his wife, Gerda, are Danish artists living in Copenhagen in the 1920s. After one of Gerda’s clients is late to her portrait sitting, she asks her husband to pose in women’s clothing so she can get started on her painting. This event sets off a chain of events for Einar, who begins to reconsider his gender identity and begins a transformation into Lili. At the recommendation of a mutual friend, Lili meets a surgeon who proposes gender reassignment surgery, something that has (supposedly) never been done before.

Some things I liked: Seeing a movie about a trans person be so widely accepted (and highly praised) could be viewed as an important accomplishment for visibility of the trans/GNC community. However, this is one of several films/shows that casts cisgendered actors as trans characters (when these roles would be better served by trans actors).

Some things I didn’t like: The film (directed by Tim Hooper) contains many historical inaccuracies (as does the book), which were changed to ‘protect’ the relationship between Gerda and Lili. The irony is that in real life, their relationship remained amicable the whole time. Another issue I had with both the movie and the book relied on the overused trope of gender essentialism (the idea that trans people can never fully realize their ‘true selves’ until they undergo gender reassignment surgery. While this surgery is obviously and understandably important to some people, it may not be as necessary for others - and it perpetuates the gender binary, and a reliance on medical technology to ‘fix’ people’s bodies). But perhaps the most interesting inaccuracy is that Lili Elbe was not the first person to undergo sex reassignment surgery (having been preceded by Dorchen Richter).

Five words: an unfortunate misrepresentation of history

My queer take: I know I’m railing on the film, but the truth is that I did enjoy it. I just think that future filmmakers should consider things more carefully when making films about trans characters (for starters - casting trans actors). It makes sense that this movie is mostly about Lili’s transformation and her sex reassignment surgery, since she was supposedly the first person to undergo this procedure. But I’d love to see more movies about trans or GNC people that focus on the many other aspects of their lives and experiences.

Fun fact: Lili Elbe was actually not the first known person to undergo sex reassignment surgery - that was Dora Richter, in 1922. As an adult, Dora lived and worked with other trans people at the Institute for Sexual Research, a private sexology research center in Berlin.