Lights, Camera…Chauvinism!
Sheerly Avni from Alternet has compiled a thought-provoking list of 10 films that “get women right.” But is such a project really necessary? I mean, after a summer that gave us such virtuoso characterizations as Jessica “Daisy Dukes” Simpson in “The Dukes of Hazard” and Paris “generic horror flick bimbo” Hilton in “House of Wax,” it’s clear that Hollywood has made remarkable inroads in offering plum roles to all the big female stars.
It should not be surprising that Avni’s most recent pick (“Fight Club,” from 2000) takes on feminist issues only tangentially, if at all (while Marla is that rare female character who seems to enjoy fucking as much as the boys, she‘s certainly no match for all the male victim-hood so painstakingly documented around her), and that all her selections have a decidedly male creative spin (none of them were directed by women, while “Jackie Brown,” “Batman Returns,” and others feature fetishized female action and violence).
But the notion that that conglomerate of old white men (better known as Hollywood executives) remains hopelessly enmeshed in outdated ideas regarding what contemporary audiences desire is hardly breaking news. You have to look overseas (and outside the studio system) to find any truly refreshing depictions of women on the big screen (Zhang Yimou’s “Hero,” Jane Campion’s “Holy Smoke,” and Lynne Ramsay’s “Morvern Callar” come to mind), and as long as popcorn munching moviegoers keep looking for their T & A fix at the multiplex, nothing is likely to change anytime soon.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go pre-order my DVD copy of “Sin City.” I hear that chick from “Gilmore Girls” gets to play a hooker!
Nate Titman– Clamor Intern
August 16th, 2005 at 9:54 am
Funny post, kind of bitter. I think Avni’s article is a step in the right direction. It is better to do something than nothing IMHO.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:47 pm
Interesting post, with some generalizations, though that could be chalked up to point-of-view: I saw very little that was fetishized about the portrayal of world-weary “Jackie Brown,” IMO, its probably one of the more fully-realized roles for black women in the past 10-15 years. Likewise, I can think of quite a few movies produced overseas and outside the Hollywood system that have featured more than their share of misogyny. (France’s “Irreversible” and pretty much all of Neil La Bute’s movies come to mind.)
August 17th, 2005 at 11:50 pm
I am an admirer of both Tarantino and “Jackie Brown,” but perhaps it’s worth noting that the casting decision of Pam Grier was based on the director’s zeal for 70s blaxploitation flicks. Aside from the occasional “Foxy Brown,” these films did not always provide the most fertile grounds for female empowerment (though I’d agree that Jackie herself is as strong as Avni indicates).
To me, it seems the purpose of La Bute’s work (especially “In the Company of Men”) is to expose misogyny, rather than promote it. Not all portrayals of women outside Hollywood are going to buck the trend, but the odds are considerably greater that strong female characters and (especially) directors will emerge when movies are not produced by committee. –Nate