“The Vagina Monologues†is a documentary/stand up comedy performance that gives men and women a chance to better understand the mystery and importance behind the female reproductive organs. Never before has anyone been willing to interview women and get their thoughts on this controversial subject. “The Vagina Monologues†not only gets women to talk about their vaginas, it gets us to understand why they didn’t want to before.
While getting women to finally come out and open up may seem a great thing, the whole performance is laden with moments pertaining to rape, child molestation, infidelity, and in depth conversations pertaining to rough sex and childbirth. While this may turn off many people, this documentary succeeds in accomplishing its most important goal, getting people educated on how women feel about themselves, and that is what makes it so intriguing.
“The Vagina Monologues†is separated into testimonials that are acted out by Eve Ensler, who during the past 20 years has made it her personal task to speak to as many woman about their vaginas. These testimonials are acted out in various ways. In “The Little Cuchy Snorcher That Could,†Ensler talks with a southern accent to portray the person she interviewed, who recollects her first lesbian experience and how much it totally changed her life, making her love her own body and the person she is.
In “He Liked To Look At It,†Ensler sounds like a 20-year-old straight out of a Starbucks in New York City describing a woman who met a man that had no great qualities, but did the greatest thing he could do for her, make her feel beautiful and special . While Ensler’s acting out of each testimonial is entertaining, it isn’t the reason why you would wanna watch this. It’s what’s underlying all of these testimonials that makes this worth watching, to get a better understanding of women and how they feel about their bodies.
Before each testimonial, there is a small introduction segment where Ensler tells her personal reasons for bringing all of these interviews to the public. We see in her dressing room a vagina friendly map, which shows where she’s been all across the country. “They really love vagina in Pittsburgh,†she says before one of her testimonials backstage. We also get to see all the different types of vagina type products that were given to her during her travels. This just reinstates all the hard work Ensler has put into this project, and just how dedicated she is.
If you don’t get anything out of the testimonials, the last one will surely make the show worth watching. There, Ensler describes an experience she had while watching a baby being born and then goes on to compare the vagina to the human heart in “I Was In The Room.†This makes up for all the whimsical screaming in “Reclaiming Cunt†and the horrid details of a rape victim in “My Vagina Was A Village.†“The Vagina Monologues†gets men and women to understand just how important the vagina is to a woman. “It’s capable of feeling pain and pleasure, it can give love to someone who desperately needs it, and it can be broken just like the heart,†Ensler says. Overall, she does a fantastic job of giving viewers a first hand look into the workings of the female mind and shows just how important the vagina is to both women and men.
While a few monologues may be a bit edgy and crude for the average viewer, it is apparent how hard Ensler has worked on this project in order to better educate the masses on female behavior. It’s witty, edgy, compassionate and sometimes quite funny. Best of all, it won’t try and force feed ideas down your throat like many other documentaries, but it will take you on a wild and though provoking ride you won’t soon forget.
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