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Lichtenstein harnesses vagina dentata with "Teeth" And while it's unlikely that female college students will be performing annual staged readings of "Teeth" with prosthetic jaws on sale at the ticket booth, Lichtenstein's fantastical and darkly comedic dramatization of the vagina dentata myth has a strong feminist slant. The film's heroine, Dawn (played by Jess Weixler, who won a special Jury prize at Sundance for her performance), has ignored her netherworld for most of her life until a violent sexual encounter with a boy brings into sharp focus the distinct advantages of her anatomy. "I learned about the vagina dentata myth years ago in college," Lichtenstein remembered. "But as the years went by, I became aware that there were a lot of movies, most notoriously 'Aliens' - a movie about a monstrous female with all these teeth taking place in moist tunnels - that reference the myth in a subliminal way. It seemed to me that you were just perpetuating a misogynistic myth if you didn't admit what it was, if you were clearly trying to use a pervasive male fear subliminally. So I thought it would be more interesting to confront it directly." In subverting the conventions of the vagina dentata myth, Lichtenstein knew he wanted the so-called monster to be a hero. "And she would be using this power for good," he said. In the beginning of the film, Dawn uses religion and a pro-abstinence group to distract herself from everything related to her reproductive organs. "I wanted this girl, now 17 or so, to be so unaware of her body," Lichtenstein said. "There are these abstinence groups that are popular now, and it makes sense to me that a girl who wanted to delay sexual knowledge, because she knew there was something up down there, would be drawn to a group like this to encourage her ignorance." That is until, "the teeth make an appearance." And then, what has traditionally been a mark of psychic shame becomes a tool of empowerment. The film has some gore, but the comedic value of it all is born, in part, by the actors' commitment to the reality of the scene. "I was clear from the beginning in auditions that we would never wink at anything funny," Lichtenstein said. "I knew the tone was unusual, but I cast people who were able to play it straight. After that, the job was to keep all of us on that same track that we acknowledged in the beginning. And Jess had a great ear for it." Because the film mirrors the gravity with which cultures have taken the vagina dentata myth, the hahas that result can be as much and as justly applied to the cultures the film mirrors. Lion's Gate picked up the film at Sundance, but is allowed Lichtenstein to screen the film at the festival as a fundraiser for the NFF's sister organization, the Nantucket Screenwriters Colony. (The film is not an official selection on the ballot.) The colony takes place in the fall; a small number of writers are given quiet, comfortable work environments (and good food) and allowed to work, interact with one another and with industry mentors. "It has great people. Great food. I think we get a diverse group of mentors on the weekends to read and talk about your script," Lichtenstein said. "It's also an amazing time of year for the island; even people who know Nantucket don't necessarily know it in autumn. …Just the beauty of being able to walk every day on the moors, and then there's the fun of exploring your body when you get back to make sure you have no ticks on you." It's a perfect match then, this film as a fundraiser for a colony where all one has to do is take a walk to
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