The Beguiled

During the American Civil War, a wounded Yankee soldier finds refuge in a girls’ boarding school in the South. His presence stirs up a whirlwind of virginal, and in some instances, deeply repressed, desires. Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, and Elle Fanning lead the female ensemble in seducing this seemingly helpless man, but eventually fall victim to his ploys. In this new adaptation of Thomas Cullinan’s novel (following Don Seigel’s 1971 film), Coppola substitutes the male point of view with her own female gaze. Coppola made history as the second woman to win Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival for The Beguiled.