Danish director May el-Toukhy is competing for the Golden Lion at Venice with her third feature film, ‘Woman Unknown,’ which explores the experiences of women in the aftermath of World War II. The film examines a period of Scandinavian history that el-Toukhy argues has been largely overlooked in cinema, focusing on female perspectives rather than the male-dominated narratives that typically dominate war storytelling.
The narrative follows Marie, a young woman employed as a nanny and housemaid who is set to marry her wealthy, older employer in a Danish city liberated from Nazi occupation. The central conflict stems from Marie’s wartime past: she had an intimate relationship with a German soldier, and as post-war anarchy settles over the country, her hidden history threatens to unravel her carefully constructed new life and social standing. The film addresses themes of class, complicity, and survival against a backdrop of societal upheaval and shifting patriotic fervor.
El-Toukhy developed the concept after initially researching the Reformation-era witch hunts but eventually pivoting to focus on World War II after encountering historical photographs from the 1940s depicting women who had been assaulted and publicly shamed for fraternizing with occupying forces. Rather than depicting state-sanctioned punishment, the film emphasizes mob mentality and collective action by fellow citizens against these women. El-Toukhy notes that while Danish schools teach about wartime politics and resistance movements, little attention is given to the fates of women caught in these circumstances.
Produced as a co-production between Denmark, Sweden, and Latvia, the film represents a significant personal investment for el-Toukhy, who notes she has worked extensively to realize the project using all available resources. She expressed confidence in the film’s ability to generate meaningful discussion about an underexplored historical period and the female experience during wartime.
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