Analysis Of 'Some Like It Hot'

708 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Women portrayal in some like it hot

“It’s a whole different sex!” Jerry (Jack Lemmon) exclaims in ‘Some Like It Hot’ (1959), while admiring Sugar’s (Marilyn Monroe) body. It is with statements like this that Billy Wilder’s movie challenges traditional views of binary genders. While probably unintentional, this movie uses cross-dressing , among other things, to parody the performativity of gender. This method of subversion was not conceptualized until the 90’s by Judith Butler in her books ‘Gender Trouble’ and ‘Bodies that Matter’ (171-189; 223-242), showing how ahead of its time the film was. ‘Some Like It Hot’ subverts heteronormativity by deconstructing binary genders, separating gender from sexuality and satirizing heterosexuality.
In his article ‘Sex, gender and heteronormativity’, Terrel Carver points out that the ease with which Jerry and Joe
In ‘Bodies That Matter’, Butler states that “homophobia often operates through the attribution of a damaged, failed gender…to homosexuals…and…is often also a terror over losing proper gender” (238). However, in this movie, Joe acts distinctively feminine as “Josephine”, thereby losing his “proper gender”, while clearly retaining his heterosexual desires for Sugar. Therefore by losing his gender, he has not lost his sexuality. The film completely subverts the idea of a sexuality caused by gender and considering how central this causation is to heteronormative idealism, the film hereby subverts heteronormative institutionalism. While Osgood’s desire for “Daphne” is only apparently heterosexual, the power dynamic in their relationship is constantly changing. This is particularly clear in their dancing scenes, in which the role of leader is switched several times. The fact that Osgood is not deterred by this removal from heteronormative roles, shows that he accepts the queerness of the relationship , thereby also subverting institutionalized

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Strangers On A Train

    1470 Words  | 3 Pages

    Strangers on a Train is one of Hitchcock’s most well-known films. It is typically analyzed in terms of the ways that the two main male characters interact. According to many film critics, homosexual attraction between Bruno and Guy is one of the premises of the film. This may be the case, however, many of these film critics fail to consider the minor characters of the film: the women. Specifically, they fail to analyze the influence of these women on the development of the male characters and to interpret the message Hitchcock is trying to portray about women, especially those with qualities typically not associated with women.

    Read More

  • Use Of The Voice In Irene And Madame D 'Aiguiness's The Captive'

    753 Words  | 2 Pages

    According to Sherrie A. Inness, “The Captive was hauled by critics as the first play on the American stage to deal openly with what one reviewer called a “repulsive abnormality.” Ten years prior, God of Vengeance was scorned for offending rabbis, Jewish men and women’s religion and abusing the significance of the Torah. Critics and reviews failed to deliver their remarks on the intimate lesbian love, but in The Captive, the lesbian undertones are concealed and carried out in a strategic fashion, yet these moments were censored and triggered. Due to these moments where the acts of lesbianism were not apparent, it was deemed with obscurity, causing the play to fall short overall. Similar to God of Vengeance, The Captive was confronted with “obscenity charges in the United States, and after a run of less than five months, the play was raided and closed down by police” (Inness 304). With this framework in mind, my case study is not diminished by the greater public opinion, rather Edouard Bourdet’s strategic approach to lesbianism and the way in which is portrayed in society juxtaposed the emergence of lesbianism in the United States in the early part of the twentieth

    Read More

  • The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: Stereotypes and Priscilla

    930 Words  | 2 Pages

    Released in 1994, 14 years into the AIDS epidemic, the film had a phenomenal response around the world and in Australia. Travelling from Sydney, the three main characters, played by Hugo Weaving, Guy Peirce and Terrance Stamp, travel to Alice Springs for a cabaret show hosted by Mitzi’s wife. The audience is positioned to sympathise with the main characters during their hardships, and good times. The movie confronts different types of masculinity in an extreme environment. The film presents the stereotypical behavior of gay men that is evident in our society.

    Read More

  • A Few Good Men Film Analysis

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    The story boils down to two men, forced to dress like women in order to run away from the mafia. The fact that they dress like women makes it inevitable for the film to be brought up in the discussion of gender roles in film (Benshoff et. al, 2011). The film itself highlights the issue of gender roles in several ways. For instance, the iconic Marilyn Monroe plays the role of Sugar. Sugar’s character (unlike archetypical female characters in the then and now) rejects the protector portrayal of masculinity. She wants a man who can depend on her, instead of her depending on him. In a seduction scene, she is the aggressor (so to speak), completely blurring the gender stereotype of femininity. The cross-dressing romantic comedy destabilizes gender distinctions by virtue of man pretending to be a woman. The comic element provides a stable medium to alter the gender roles. The effectiveness of which is highlighted by Jerry’s apparent transformation into bliss, from the moment, he turned into a woman. Some Like it Hot does not just try to bend the concept of gender; it makes a great effort at obliterating the entire concept. It dismisses the stringent stereotypes, societies formulate to try to control or inculcate a desired social

    Read More

  • Final Paper

    1825 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Judith Halberstam’s piece “Female Masculinity,” she offers the audience a few potential definitions of the term ‘masculinity’ and how the term applies to “feminine masculinity.” She states that “although we seem to have a difficult time defining masculinity, as a society, we have little trouble recognizing it” (935). Halberstam suggests that female masculinity is often blatantly ignored in culture and studies due to the indifferent feeling often associated with the topic. Halberstam uses her essay to explain a variety of aspects associated with female femininity like tomboys, queer methodologies, and the bathroom problem. Halberstam’s description of the term ‘Tomboys’ is reminiscent of the character Emily Fields from the Pretty Little Liars book series by Sara Shepard. Progressing through middle school with a group of ‘girly’ friends, Emily is easily labeled with the term ‘tomboy’ due to her sporty exterior. Her overly conservative Christian family and classmates see no ‘threat’ or meaning behind Emily’s tomboy appearance because they believe it is just a stage in her life. As soon as Emily enter tenth grade and starts hanging out with a homosexual female, her family and classmates grow concerned about Emily’s masculine looks and behaviors. In the book titled Prettty Little Liars, one of the liars, Emily’s evident masculine ways raises concern to her thesis-go back and fix it .

    Read More

  • Saboteur: The Dehumanization Of Homosexuality In Film

    1787 Words  | 4 Pages

    Homosexuality on screen has been a taboo subject since the creation of film in the late nineteenth century and has remained that way until the violent protests of the 1970’s sexual revolution. Consequently, the disregardment concerning the portrayal of gay community members could be linked to the overuse and dehumanization of queer stereotypes used as comedic relief throughout film history. The overall delayment in the representation of homosexuals paused the long march for equal rights even outside of the cinematic world. In result of conservative rejection toward such liberal topics, filmmakers had to conceal “queer cinema” as production codes enforced strict laws but as time progressed so did the involvement of the LGBTQ community in the

    Read More

  • The Australian Legend Essay

    1410 Words  | 3 Pages

    The landscapes of each film not only provides a clear contrast against the characters themselves, but also what the Australian identity, character and masculinity is considered to be from societies point of view. Mentioned previously, the Australian identity is strongly built upon and linked with nature. Looking back on settler culture, ones ability to master surrounding environments suggests a strong representation of masculinity. Priscilla’s understanding of homosexuality challenges these ideas of masculinity, but does so whilst maintaining the differences between homosexuals and modern society. Both Ballroom and Priscilla share a conflict that is used to reiterate the ideas of Australian masculinity. Specific to Priscilla is the fact that homosexual men in drag costumes have the ability to accomplish the same as any other heterosexual or masculine men. These films put out a statement, that a homosexuality can possess the same levels of masculinity, whilst continuing to respectfully celebrate their difference in modern

    Read More

  • Film Bodies: Genre, Gender and Excess

    2633 Words  | 6 Pages

    Williams, Linda. "Film Bodies: Genre, Gender and Excess." Braudy and Cohen (1991 / 2004): 727-41. Print.

    Read More

  • The Erotic Triangle In Showgirls

    762 Words  | 2 Pages

    Despite initial criticism at the time of release, Paul Verhoeven’s erotic drama, Showgirls (1995), has become a camp classic that challenges notions of identity and sexuality. The film traces Nomi Malone’s challenging journey from a stripper to a showgirl where she experiences the brutal and sexist economy of Las Vegas. Verhoeven (1995) uses the relationship between Nomi, Cristal and Zack to explore Sedgwick’s (1985, pp.23) concept of the erotic triangle. This is where the bond between two men seeking the attention of a women are usually more potent than “the bond that links either of the rivals to the beloved” (Sedgwick, 1985 pp.21). However, this traditional representation of erotic triangle can be altered by the friendship between women.

    Read More

  • Essay On Klute By Laura Mullvey

    1316 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Mulvey states that, “Traditionally, the woman displayed has functioned on two levels: as erotic object for the characters within the screen story, and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium, with a shifting tension between the looks on either side of the screen.” (Mulvey 40). A woman’s role in the narrative is bound to her sexuality or the way she

    Read More

  • Gender Identity And Alternative Sexualities In Twelfth Night, By William Shakespeare

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    This paper will look at the different conceptions highlighted by Bulman in his article through the use of different methods used by the actors in the play. Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare captures the different conceptions of gender identity and different sexualities within the Elizabethan period.

    Read More

  • The Role of Women in Screwball Comedy Films

    4993 Words  | 10 Pages

    Led by Laura Mulvey, feminist film critics have discussed the difficulty presented to female spectators by the controlling male gaze and narrative generally found in mainstream film, creating for female spectators a position that forces them into limited choices: "bisexual" identification with active male characters; identification with the passive, often victimized, female characters; or on occasion, identification with a "masculinized" active female character, who is generally punished for her unhealthy behavior. Before discussing recent improvements, it is important to note that a group of Classic Hollywood films regularly offered female spectators positive, female characters who were active in controlling narrative, gazing and desiring: the screwball comedy.

    Read More

  • The Mother Daughter Relationship in Oranges Are not the Only Fruit

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    Morrison, Jago. "‘Who Cares About Gender at a Time Like This?’ Love, Sex and the Problem of

    Read More

  • How Sexuality is Socially Constructed

    2048 Words  | 5 Pages

    Wilton, Tamsin. "Which One's the Man? The Heterosexualisation of Lesbain Sex." Gender, Sex, and Sexuality. New York: Oxford University, 2009. 157-70. Print.

    Read More

  • The Power of Human Fantasy

    997 Words  | 2 Pages

    On the other hand Brantenberg’s novel exploits the real worlds views of sexuality and applies them in th...

    Read More

More about Analysis Of 'Some Like It Hot'

Open Document