When: Wednesday 29th Feb (1st week), 7.30pm.

Where: Daubeny building, High Street (opposite Magdalen College).

This week OUSU Women’s Campaign is showing classic “battle of the sexes” comedy Adam’s Rib (1949) in which Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn play Adam and Amanada, a pair of lawyers who clash in the courtroom - complicated by the fact that they’re married to each other! When a wife discovers her husband with another woman, she shoots him and is charged with attempted murder. Adam is hired to prosecute the wife, and Amanda decides she will defend her.

Amanda is an ardent feminist, and argues that if the sexes in the case were reversed the jury would feel differently, because there is a double-standard concerning infidelity. When the trial turns into a media spectacle, Amanda rises to the occasion by, for example, bringing in a circus strong-woman to lift up Adam as an illustration of feminine power. Adam and Amanda fight it out with sparkling wit and razor-sharp dialogue, as they address society’s attitudes towards women, as well as their own views on proper roles for the sexes.

Katherine Hepburn’s strength and intelligence made her an early feminist icon. Watch this film to see it for yourself!

“Sex and the Cinema” is a series of film screenings which explore issues of sex and gender, followed by a discussion (no academic knowledge required!). These screenings are also completely FREE.