Directed by Alex Holmes, “Maiden” tells the extraordinary story of Tracy Edwards, once young and frustrated at everyone, challenges not only herself but the world by proving that nothing on this planet is exclusive to one gender and believed what can be achieved by a man can be done by women as well. Therefore, she enters one of the most ambitious projects, spending her own money to do what she loved – sailing. In the beginning, her idea was ridiculed as an absolutely impossible task to achieve but when her boat Maiden finishes the race first, she breaks all the stereotypes once made up by one group, who after her success would never dare to question women’s ability twice.
In 1989, it was the time when an all-female sailboat crew idea was not only unacceptable but something that no one would ever mention. That’s when Tracy Edwards told her mom that she wants to be the first one to join an open-ocean yacht racing. Creating the best team possible, she began facing challenges as not even a single sponsor would show up to fund their race. Obviously, nobody would even allow such a crazy possibility to cross their mind that women can handle the ocean without the presence of a man. However, Tracy, at her age of 26, is determined like never before. She finds a yacht named Maiden and with her all-female crew begins the race with an outcome nobody saw coming.
“Maiden” is an absolutely outstanding documentary. Alex Holmes as the director structured the story in such a way, trust me on that, you won’t be able to breathe in the entire film. As we begin meeting the female crew, whether it is through their interviews or anyone who remotely participated in the historical race, like in any suspenseful thriller, will control your mood throughout. Piece by piece, Edwards’ journey goes up and down and you won’t know what to expect next. From start to end, it never slows down or feels boring. Because it’s not only relevant, this story has an interesting takeaway every viewer must hold dearly.
In the end, “Maiden” is an exact piece we should watch today, tomorrow, and always. It has the power of a super force that will force anyone to believe in the impossible. With the society where we live right now, no matter where we are, it takes an opportunity from one and gives to more privileged people. But stories like “Maiden” proves that no matter how many barriers are out there to stop you from growing, whether it’s the lack of funding or proper guidance, there’s no such thing which you can’t do or you’re too weak or incapable of because it’s not true.
Having that said, all that we need is desire, willingness, and dedication to achieve what the world likes to say – you wish. There’s nothing bad about dreaming, and it’s alright to work on the same dream to make it come true because with no actions there’s no result. Just go for it and see how the things will play out for you like a beautifully written script with a heartwarming happy ending that will happen in real life itself.