Wonder Women

You'll not find Lynda Carter amongst the cast of feisty females in this National Film Board of Canada compilation of seven animated shorts, but you will meet “Louise,” a 96-year-old woman who maintains a busy life killing flies, riding her power mower, playing solitaire, and crossing one item after another off her “to do” list (which keeps her vital and active). You'll also see “Mabel's Saga,” in which the title character juggles work, family, and an aging mother, while hilariously fighting off hot flashes; and howl as winsome shepherd “Fair Phyllis” alternates between the down and dirty work of tending to her flock and trying to be ladylike for a suitor. In addition, the disc features the Oscar-nominated “My Grandmother Ironed the King's Shirts” (VL-5/00), an imaginatively embroidered tale of a Norwegian woman who ironed the King's shirts until he fled during WWII, after which she found renewed purpose in surreptitiously maiming the laundry of her new clientele: the Nazi occupiers; the funky “Pirouette,” about an old woman's loving yet practical relationship with her animals; “Second Debut,” in which a new retiree named Sophie now finds time to label her rock collection, practice tai chi, and—most rewardingly—teach literacy; and “Stitches in Time,” in which two elderly women rock and knit together and daydream of times past. A fine collection, informed by the NFB's trademark wacky yet warm sense of humor, Wonder Women is highly recommended. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)