Jean-Luc Godard's Vivre Sa Vie (1962) and Julia Ducournau's Raw (2016) are both landmark films that, despite their temporal and stylistic differences, offer profound explorations of female identity struggling against societal constraints. Godard’s New Wave masterpiece, a series of vignettes charting Nana’s descent into prostitution, uses a fragmented, Brechtian style to dissect alienation and the commodification of the self. Ducournau’s visceral horror film, following Justine’s awakening desires and cannibalistic urges at veterinary school, employs a more naturalistic yet equally unsettling approach to examine primal instincts and the transition to womanhood. While Vivre Sa Vie critiques the existential and economic forces that trap its protagonist, Raw confronts the biological and psychological turmoil of emerging sexuality and transgression. Both films, however, compellingly illustrate how external pressures and internal drives shape a woman’s experience of self and her place in the world.
Nana’s journey in Vivre Sa Vie is characterized by a profound disconnect between her outward actions and inner state. Godard intentionally disrupts narrative flow, breaking the fourth wall and employing title cards to interrupt emotional identification. For instance, Nana’s visit to a photo booth, where she meticulously poses for images that will later be sold as postcards, becomes a stark metaphor for her self-objectification. The film’s episodic structure, showing her working, meeting men, and engaging in philosophical discussions, highlights the repetitive, almost mechanical nature of her life. The famous scene where Nana watches a film about Joan of Arc, crying at the historical figure’s suffering while remaining detached from her own, underscores her detachment from genuine emotion, a condition Godard links to the dehumanizing effects of consumerism and her chosen profession. Nana is not simply a victim of circumstance but an individual grappling with agency, or the lack thereof, in a world that reduces her to a series of transactions.
Conversely, Justine’s struggle in Raw is internal and visceral, rooted in burgeoning desire and biological imperative. Her initial revulsion to meat and subsequent development of cannibalistic cravings at school represent a radical, almost monstrous, emergence of her true self. Ducournau uses a heightened realism, often focusing on the sensory details of Justine’s experience – the taste of blood, the texture of skin, the physical sensations of hunger. The infamous scene where Justine experiences a severe allergic reaction, breaking out in horrific hives, mirrors her internal turmoil and the societal discomfort with her awakening sexuality and desires. Unlike Nana, whose alienation is intellectual and social, Justine’s is primal and physical. Her interactions with her family, who seem to have a dark, unspoken history, suggest that her "aberrant" desires might be inherited, complicating the idea of individual agency versus inherited nature. The film’s focus on the physical transformation of Justine, from timid student to something more predatory, makes her struggle a raw, unflinching look at the body's demands.
The cinematic techniques employed by Godard and Ducournau serve distinct purposes in conveying their themes. Godard's deliberate artifice in Vivre Sa Vie forces the audience to think critically about Nana’s situation, rather than simply empathize. The jump cuts, direct address, and Brechtian alienation effect create a distance that encourages intellectual engagement with the film’s social commentary. Nana's fragmented existence is mirrored by the film's fragmented form. Ducournau, on the other hand, uses a more immersive, often claustrophobic style in Raw. Her use of close-ups, unsettling sound design, and visceral imagery draws the audience into Justine’s subjective experience, making her disturbing awakening feel immediate and potent. The film’s horror elements are not gratuitous but are tools to explore the terrifying aspects of self-discovery and the transgression of social norms. While Godard uses form to create intellectual distance, Ducournau uses it to foster a disturbing, almost physical connection with her protagonist's internal conflict.
Ultimately, both Vivre Sa Vie and Raw highlight the profound difficulties women face in defining and asserting their identities. Nana’s struggle is one of intellectual and economic survival, a fight for agency within a capitalist system that commodifies her very being. Her tragedy lies in her eventual resignation, her spirit seemingly crushed by the relentless pursuit of a viable existence. Justine’s ordeal, while horrifying, is also a story of embracing a forbidden part of herself. Her journey, though marked by transgression, suggests a form of self-acceptance, however disturbing, in the face of an overwhelming biological and psychological awakening. Godard’s film is a lament for a lost self in a dehumanizing society, while Ducournau’s is a visceral, unsettling exploration of a self that must confront and integrate its darkest impulses to truly exist.