Empire Australasia - 04.2020

thanks to endemic sexism. A lot of them stayed

at assistant level forever because there was no

path up for them. A lot were never promoted.

A lot ended up quitting that particular company.

Many of them left the film industry entirely

because they just didn’t see how they could find

a way through. It was really sad and, honestly,

pretty hard to hear.”

In the film’s central scene, Jane makes an

appointment with the company’s oleaginous

head of HR (Matthew Macfadyen, channelling

hisSuccessionsleaze to great effect) to express

her concerns, only for him to browbeat and

gaslight her before delivering a devastating

putdown as she heads out of the door. “When

I was developing the film I kept asking my

friends: is this just any day at the company

or is it the day in which she goes to HR?

Because they’re two different movies,” says

Green. “In the end I decided it was the day

she went to HR because I really wanted her

to take a step, to speak up for what she was

witnessing. Going to HR was a very important

part of that, because when you’re looking at the

kind of machinery and systems that surround

predators, the HR department is right there

protecting them.”

Garner, an expressive actor who made her

name with eye-catching performances inThe

AmericansandOzark, was thrilled to be offered

the role. “I’m never sent scripts like this, that

deal with these sorts of important subjects,” she

explains. “From the moment I met Kitty I knew

that we were on the same page.”

She was fascinated by the sparse screenplay.

“It felt almost like a silent fi lm in a lot of ways. It

was pretty hard making it, because there’s so

much focus on your eyes and face. Also I was

constantly trying to separate from both the other

actors and also from the audience watching.

Jane feels so isolated throughout the experience

and I really wanted that to come through.”

Jane might be largely ignored but Garner’s

performance is compelling, her face registering

every abrupt word and careless slight.

G

REEN DOES NOT want the shadow cast

by Weinstein and his crimes to overwhelm

her wider message, which she describes as

“taking the opportunity to ask, well, how

didthis go so wrong and for so long, and what

can we do to make it better?” Things are

progressing though, she believes. “I do hope

that the conversation is shifting, It feels as

ore people are comfortable about

bout things. But there are still

made and we need to unpick some

ltural and systemic problems that

en we focus on people like

ecomes a case of, ‘Oh, we’ve fi xed

so we can stop talking about it.’”

es a convenient monster and

nore our own complicity? “Exactly.

eductive to say that it’s a Harvey

blem when it’s so much bigger than

conversations we can have about

into positions of power in any

industry, the better it will be.”

As to all those emotional responses to the

film, Green says they give her hope that things

are fi nally starting to change. “I do feel like

younger generations really don’t want to put

up with this sort of thing anymore. There’s an

amazing movement right now among assistants

in Hollywood who are organising for better

wages and hours. People are seizing their chances

and standing up for themselves.”

She is encouraged by the pace with which

that change is occurring. “One of the oddest

things about The Assistant is that in some ways

it’s already a period piece, because it’s technically

set before the rise of the #MeToo movement,

where there wasn’t even the language to talk

about this kind of conduct.”

There’s a pause, then she adds: “I wonder...

if it was set today, and Jane had those concerns

• would she have an avenue for her discomfort?
  Would it be easier for her to speak out?”
  On this particular evening, an hour after
  watching a notorious predator face long-delayed
  justice, the answer, if there is to be any hope,
  must surely be yes.

THE ASSISTANT IS IN CINEMAS FROM 23 JULY

Jane out in

the cold.

labour, the idea that women were stuck getting

coffee while the booys went to meetings and got to

do things that seemmed more career-enhancing.

I wanted to hear exxperiences that any woman

could relate to, sothat it was transferable toany

workplace.”

At times, the repetitive nature of those

experiences madeher feel sick. “So many

people had similarr stories and it was terrifying,

that notion that soo many women were forced

into these positionns where they felt really

uncomfortable.” WWorse was the sense that many

of these women haad their careers cut short

thanks to endemicsexism.“Alotof themstayed

For Garner, the scene underlines how feeling

shame can destroy you. “I thinkthe reason the

HR scene is so effective and heartbreakingis

because shame is one ofthe worst feelings that

youcan have, and what [Macfadyen’s character]

does is make her feel ashamed ofcoming to him,”

she says.“He suggests that she’s ungrateful and

replaceable and that makes her feel worse and

worse. Then just as she’s leaving he makes her

wonder ifshe onlycame here because she was

jealous ofthe other girl. Ifthat’s the real reason

why she’s reportedwhat’s goingon. He makes

her doubt everything.”

Garner,anexpressiveactor whomade her

though a lot mo

speakingout ab

changes to be m

ofthe wider cul

getignored wh

Weinstein. It b

that problem, s

Hebecome

allows us to ign

I thinkit’s so re

Weinstein prob

that.The more

gettingwomen

industr y,thebe

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