The issue both the writers are talking about is whether or not the film Mad Max: Fury Road is a feminist action film. Author Christine Yuan believes the film challenges the stereotypes of "typical" female roles. Author Laurie Inoue believes the film features a few positive feminist roles but is "by no means enough to earn the label "feminist". Yuan's article mentions the character Furiosa as a generally more impressive character than Max. Yuan talks highly of Furiosa and her independent demeanor. She even says, "Furiosa is strong, independent, and driven." Yuan mentions the fact that "Furiosa spends a good part of the movie bailing Max out of near-death situations". The movie has a very large female cast in general. Yuan talks highly
For this assignment, I will be analyzing the 2004, blockbuster film White Chicks with specific reference to dimensions of social stratification such as gender, class, and race. White Chicks follows the story of two African American FBI agent brothers, Kevin and Marcus Copeland who accidently foil an assiduously executed undercover operation intended to capture a group of notorious Dominican drug smugglers. As a final opportunity to redeem their tarnished reputations, the two agents take on an assignment far below their customary standards when they agree to escort billionaire heiresses Brittany and Tiffany Wilson to the Hamptons in order
The tension found inside and between Rose Almond and other characters in V for Vendetta develops her character development and is significant not only to the long-debated differences between a graphic novel and a comic but also to the portrayal of women in this graphic novel. This is significant because V for Vendetta portrays women as submissive, incapable of providing for themselves without a man, and driven by their own emotions which shows that the content in graphic novels (i.e. tension and character development) that makes them different from comic books is not given the same attention or thought for women as it is for
The Screwball comedy is a film genre that found its way onto the screens in the early 1930s and lasted till the early 1940s. They were a consequence of the newly adapted censorship law in 1934 that restricted addressing adult content on screen. They therefore incorporated more comedic and creative ways of symbolizing topics such as sex and homosexuality. Screwball comedies were mainly based on plots that had conflict between social classes as their many premise and always had a happy ending which was almost always marriage. This consistent maintenance of the status quo of marriage is a major aspect of feminism depicted in screwball comedies (Heather 26). While advocating for marriage, screwball comedies highlighted the shift in the
George Miller’s action packed film Mad Max: Fury Road, shines a new light on the role of women in contemporary culture. Mad Max takes place in what is called the “The Citadel”, a post apocalyptic wasteland, where an infamous tyrant by the name of Immortan Joe rules all women and war boys as servants. As the fourth installment in the Mad Max trilogy and an honorable rating of 8.1/10 (Imbd.com), what really makes the film one of a kind is that the movie, usually lead by the vengeful male protagonist, Max Rockatansky, is actually centered on a female cast this time around. By centering the film around a female cast, it alone challenges the views of feminism in popular culture because it portrays women in successful leadership roles, otherwise given to men in a notable action film and popular media. Miller provides the film with the reoccurring role of Max Rockatansky but this time focuses on a new strong and willing female cast, led by a determined Imperator Furiosa who is played by the talented Charlize Theron. In the film, Furiosa and the fives wives are obligated to serve Immortan Joe as slaves and breeders, so the five wives put their lives on the line and with the assistance of the Vulvani, challenge male authority in hope of winning back their freedom. By closely examining feminist ideologies and the actions of the female heroines in the film, the audience can determine the feminist tendencies and message Fury Road is sending popular
The issue at the heart of the David Fincher film, Fight Club, is not that of man’s rebellion against a society of “men raised by women”. This is a film that outwardly exhibits itself as promoting the resurrection of the ‘ultra-male’, surreptitiously holding women accountable for the decay of manhood. However, the underlying truth of the film is not of resisting the force of destruction that is ‘woman’, or of resisting the corruption of manhood at her hand, but of penetrating the apathy needed to survive in an environment ruled by commercial desire, not need. In reality, Fight Club is a careful examination, through parody, of what it means to be a man; carefully examining the role of women in a society busy rushing towards sexual
Throughout motion picture history, women have experienced more transition in their roles, as a result of changing societal norms, than any other class. At first, both society and the movie industry preached that women should be dependent on men and remain in the home, in order to guarantee stability in the community and the family. As time passed and attitudes changed, women were beginning to be depicted as strong willed, independent minded characters, who were eager to break away from convention. The genre of the crime film represents such a change in the roles handed to women. Two films that can be contrasted, in order to support this view, are: The Public Enemy by William Wellman (1931) and Bonnie
In today’s world, men and women are perceived equally by the society. In the past, authority and control define men while women are given the characteristic of helplessness. Men are able to get hold of high positions while women usually are subservient to them. In movies, we would usually see women portray roles that are degrading due to the stereotypical notions they associate with this gender group. Moulin Rouge, a movie set during the 1900s narrates the story of a courtesan woman, Satine, as she undergoes hardships to earn money, experiences love but unfortunately, due to her irrational choices, faces tragic consequences at the end. Satine is a symbol of how women are being treated by the society during the era before post-feminism,
The 2001 comedy film Legally Blonde tells the story of Elle Woods, an upbeat and optimistic sorority girl who, over the course of the movie, transitions from a simple college student with few professional aspirations into a successful law student. Elle initially presents herself as a stereotypical sorority girl: vain, superficial, and self-obsessed. As such, she consistently faces discrimination from her friends, family, and colleagues alike. The film wants the audience to view Elle as a woman who rises up above the stereotype through hard work and intelligence, and who proves herself as a capable individual in a discriminatory society. Because of this, some view Elle as a feminist icon, a person who empowers women to achieve equality to
The empowerment and the continual push for equal status for women has become widely popular and successful in recent history. Women have stepped out of traditional roles of the housewife, the mother and the submissive doormat to more assertive natures. Many controversial issues surround women’s crusade of freedoms including the widely debated right to choose what she does with her body, referring to an abortion. In 1927 Ernest Hemingway wrote a short story titled, “Hills Like White Elephants” that expressed a feminist movement focusing on this issue. Through the character’s development and ability to come to her own decision despite her boyfriend’s constant pressure suggests a shift towards a powerful feminist theme in a society dominated by men. The story, “Hills Like White Elephants,” reflects how men and women are compared with power and dominance regarding their stereotypical behavior in relation to gender norms; however, this story portrays how a woman steps out of the expectations and takes a stance for what she wants.
Scrolling through Netflix trying to pick a movie, viewers can generally get the idea of the movie based on the title shown. The first thought that popped into my head after reading the title ‘Fargo’, was how far would an individual strive to achieve and/or accomplish a goal or mission and how far would that individual run if caught in a unforeseen circumstance. The 1996 film ‘Fargo’ by the Coen Brothers, explores a handful of themes such as, life, death and evil. The idea of the movie is that the main character Jerry Lundegaard is a car sales man and is not very good at his job. He is shown no respect from his wife and child and his boss, which is also his father-in-law. The film takes place in a small town in Minnesota. This essay will explore the Feminist and Marxist theory, seen through this film ‘Fargo’ and its characters. The Feminist theory and Marxist theory are mainly seen through the characters Marge, the police officer and Jerry the main character, which the entire movie revolves around.
American Beauty, a film that was written by Allan Ball and directed by Sam Mendes in 1999 is a unique piece that demonstrates many sociological themes throughout the development of the plot. The characters strive to portray themselves as the All American Family. They live in a nice house, drive nice cars and seem perfectly normal to the general public, but the audience is allowed to view the deep set issues that plague the main characters; Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey), Carolyn Burnham (Annette Bening), Jane Burnham (Thora Birch), and Jane's best friend Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari). As the plot develops there are many obvious parallels relating the lives of the characters to Merton's Strain
In Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns, Mariam and Laila were brought together due to circumstances they could not control. Although they were both oppressed wives of a cruel and violent husband, Rasheed, they were eventually able to regain power over their own lives. The two women supported and learned from each other, finding strength in their relationship. Their relationship was an alliance of sorts and was essential to their ability to regain power over their lives. Once Mariam and Laila befriended each other, they each started to gain courage and hope and began to take more control over their lives in separate, small acts of courage and rebellion that eventually led to significant events which cemented their newly regained power. The developing of power did not come without obstacles, but Mariam and Laila were able to persevere and continue to stand up for themselves against both Rasheed and their societal constraints. Finding strength and motivation from each other and from other loved ones essential to their efforts, Mariam and Laila were able to take power over their own lives by standing up to and retaliating against oppressors in a series of events which led to the pivotal moment when Mariam kills Rasheed, finally setting both women free and giving them both complete power over
Since the 1940’s, movies have predominately portrayed women as sex symbols. Beginning in the 1940’s and continuing though the 1980’s, women did not have major roles in movies. When they did have a leading role the women was either pretreated as unintelligent and beautiful, or as conniving and beautiful: But she was always beautiful. Before the 1990’s, men alone, wrote and directed all the movies, and the movies were written for men. In comparison, movies of the 90’s are not only written and directed by women, but leading roles are also held by older and unattractive women. In this paper I will show the variations and growth of women’s roles in movies from the 1940’s though the 1990’s.
on society and culture. But since the beginning, there has been trend of male dominance in entertainment. This has contributed to gender inequality by not giving young girls strong role models in movies. It has also created ideal gender images that young children and adults feel obligated to follow. In more recent years, with the rise of feminism and gender equality, many have begun to push for changes in movies and Hollywood. Gender inequality in film can be reduced by creating more roles for women, avoiding gender stereotypes such as the damsel in distress, and avoiding oversexualizing women.
In society, women are often perceived as the weaker sex, both physically and mentally. In modern times women have leveled the playing field between men and women, and feminism is a highly discussed topic, but for years, women faced discrimination and prejudice both in life and in the workplace, due to their sex. This way of thinking flooded into the world of film. In their works, the authors of each of the various sources address the limitations and liberations of women both on and off the screen in nineteenth century Film and Cinema. Not every source is completely filled with information related to the research topic, but they do cover and analyze many of the same points from different perspectives. Prominent points addressed in each