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No Mercy

Play trailer No Mercy 2025 1h 44m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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"The truth is, women make the harsher films", cult director Kira Muratova once told young filmmaker Isa Willinger at the start of her career. Since then, Isa has wondered whether this could really be true, given that women tend to be associated with "empathetic" or "sensitive". In No Mercy, Isa Willinger sets out to meet some of the great women and non-binary directors of our time, as well as the past. Filmmakers who indeed often tell stories of harsh realities, of humiliation and revenge. What do they have to say about violent characters, the depiction of rape, about trauma, power issues and ultimately the so-called female gaze? No Mercy takes the audience on a journey into the exhilarating non-conformist filmmaking of women. Yet, film is also a mirror for real social issues. So Isa's question goes deeper: Where do we stand when it comes to gender and power -- both on-screen and off?

Critics Reviews

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Olivia Popp Cineuropa No Mercy becomes most interesting when Willinger uses the doc to reclaim time for the voices of these filmmakers, and to allow them to talk about their films and their personal stories on their turf, at their leisure. Nov 18, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews

Cast & Crew

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Isa Willinger

Director

Ana Lily Amirpour

Self

Catherine Breillat

Self

Jackie Buet

Self

Margit Czenki

Self

Virginie Despentes

Self
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No Mercy

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Movie Info

Synopsis "The truth is, women make the harsher films", cult director Kira Muratova once told young filmmaker Isa Willinger at the start of her career. Since then, Isa has wondered whether this could really be true, given that women tend to be associated with "empathetic" or "sensitive". In No Mercy, Isa Willinger sets out to meet some of the great women and non-binary directors of our time, as well as the past. Filmmakers who indeed often tell stories of harsh realities, of humiliation and revenge. What do they have to say about violent characters, the depiction of rape, about trauma, power issues and ultimately the so-called female gaze? No Mercy takes the audience on a journey into the exhilarating non-conformist filmmaking of women. Yet, film is also a mirror for real social issues. So Isa's question goes deeper: Where do we stand when it comes to gender and power -- both on-screen and off?
Director
Isa Willinger
Producer
Ira Tondowski, Alex Tondowski
Screenwriter
Isa Willinger
Production Co
Tondowski Films, Flair Films
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Runtime
1h 44m