A glimmering white figure moves through a sea of darkness, enveloped by saturated greens on the sides. The figure is Wanda, the eponymous protagonist of Barbara Loden’s sole feature film as a director. Captured in an extreme long shot, she is walking in a field filled with coal, surrounded by trees on the edge of the frame. This carefree stroll in an abandoned coalfield, in a way, sums up Wanda’s whole journey through the film: always on the move, never arriving.

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