Situating senior women in film through positive reflections and sensuous touch: subverting Nichols’ <i>The Graduate</i> in Vernoux’s <i>Bright Days Ahead</i>

As a French feminist subversion and contemporary reimagining of Mike Nichols’ classic American film, The Graduate, Marion Vernoux’s Bright Days Ahead (Les beaux jours) rebukes Hollywood for its general exclusion leading women aged 40 or over Oedipal portrayals them. film subverts Graduate by portraying the latter film’s adulterous affair between younger man an older woman through woman’s eyes. Using Jacques Lacan’s mirror stage development Laura Mulvey’s explanation how to overturn male gaze traditional this paper argues that Vernoux conceives new language desire women, female gaze, in lover’s positive reflections on woman, Caroline (Fanny Ardant) close-up images sensuous touch her lover. Scenes lover were filmed extreme as they mutually caressed one another. overall messages are some men will always be philanderers, but do not have accept them, including actresses can sexual throughout their lives.