Defiant Soul

Author(s): Corey
Location: USA

“Defiant Soul"

Directed By: Steven Spielberg
Written By: Eric Roth & Steve Zaillian
Produced By: Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, and Colin Wilson
Music By: John Williams
Cinematography By: Janusz Kaminski
Costumes By: Anna B. Sheppard
Art/Set Direction: Leslie McDonald
Edited By: Michael Kahn

Principal Cast:

Annette Bening: Jeannette Rankin
Judi Dench: Carrie Chapman Catt
Kerry Washington: Coretta Scott King
Julianne Moore: Judy Collins
Ian McKellen: Woodrow Wilson

Tagline: "You take people as far as they will go, not as far as you would like them to go"

Synopsis: On November 7, 1916 she was elected to the House of Representatives as a Republican from Montana, becoming the first female member of Congress. Just four days into her term the House voted on the resolution to enter World War I. Jeannette Rankin would cast one of 50 votes against the resolution, earning her immediate vilification from the press. Suffrage groups would cancel her speaking engagements, and in 1918, she runs an unsuccessful campaign for the Republican nomination to represent Montana in the United States Senate.

Forced out of national politics, Rankin goes to works as a lobbyist in Washington, D.C. for various causes. In 1918 and again in 1919, she introduces legislation to provide state and federal funds for health clinics, midwife education, and visiting nurse programs in an effort to reduce the nation's infant mortality.

After helping to create the American Civil Liberties Union and Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Rankin is again elected to Congress, this time on an anti-war platform. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, she once again votes against entering a World War, the only member of Congress to do so, saying "As a woman, I can't go to war and I refuse to send anyone else. I vote 'NO'".

Rankin did not bother to run for re-election because she became so unpopular from her decision. During the remainder of her life, she traveled to India seven times and was a devotee of Gandhian principles of non-violence and self-determination. In 1968, Rankin, a strong supporter of Martin Luther King Jr., led more than 5,000 women who called themselves "The Jeannette Rankin Brigade" to the United States Capitol to demonstrate their opposition to U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Coretta Scott King and Judy Collins were among the luminaries who attended.

Rankin died in Carmel, California at the age of 92 from natural causes, bequeathing her property in Watkinsville, Georgia to help "mature, unemployed women workers."

What the press would say:

“Spielberg enters the arena in which he excels. His stories of hope and determination in the face of adversity, like Amistad and Schindler’s List, have become masterpieces, and Defiant Soul enters into that rare territory as well.”


“Bening excels in the role of a lifetime. Under Spielberg’s direction she crafts one of the most poignant portrayals of her career.”

“Spielberg, along with his crew of familiar faces, creates easily the best picture this year.”

“A powerful film.”

“An urgent, effective film about politics and the American spirit. Another Spielberg masterpiece.”

“Whoever said Spielberg can’t direct women needs to take a look at this wonder.”

Oscar Nominations:

Best Picture: Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, and Colin Wilson
Best Director: Steven Spielberg
Best Actress: Annette Bening
Best Supporting Actor: Ian McKellen
Best Supporting Actress: Judi Dench
Best Adapted Screenplay: Eric Roth & Steve Zaillian
Best Cinematography: Janusz Kaminski
Best Score: John Williams
Best Art/Set Direction: Leslie McDonald