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Portrayal of women in movies
Feminism in film industry
Feminism in the movies industry
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During the 1990s, feminism was flourishing like ever before through a plethora of films and through the music industry, with special efforts being made to reinforce empowerment and independence in women. Film was able to play the most influential role in doing so though, as many film directors were beginning to bring to light many of the issues women were still facing in society at the time. The repeated images and stereotypes of women depicted in films had gone on for way too long and started to see a drastic change in ‘90s Hollywood films. Many of the feminist films released during the ‘90s are deemed so influential because they still remain relevant to our present-day society and feminism. Such films were able to critique society through
Southern chick flicks on the heels of conservation reactions against gains made in women 's liberation during the 1960s and the 1970s
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.
These movies allowed female characters to embody all the contradictions that could make them a woman. They were portrayed as the “femme fatale” and also “mother,” the “seductress” and at the same time the “saint,” (Newsom, 2011). Female characters were multi-faceted during this time and had much more complexity and interesting qualities than in the movies we watch today. Today, only 16% of protagonists in movies are female, and the portrayal of these women is one of sexualization and dependence rather than complexity (Newsom, 2011).
Women’s roles in movies have changed dramatically throughout the years. As a result of the changing societal norms, women have experienced more transition in their roles than any other class. During the period of classical Hollywood cinema, both society and the film industry preached that women should be dependent on men and remain in home in order to guarantee stability in the community and the family. Women did not have predominated roles in movies such as being the heroin. The 1940’s film Gilda wasn’t an exception. In Gilda, the female character mainly had two different stereotypes. The female character was first stereotyped as a sex object and the second stereotyped as a scorned woman who has to be punished.
The release of The Great Gatsby (Paramount 1974), an adaptation of a popular novel published during First-wave Feminism refracts Second-wave Feminism through the objectification of Daisy Buchannan in the film and of Mia Farrow by the media. This paper explores the inability of female audience members to connect with Daisy Buchannan as well as the media’s characterization of Mia Farrow. While Paramount used New Hollywood marketing techniques to built momentum for the film, the film eventually failed, as audience members were not able to relate to the female protagonist and the resolution of the film. The film’s nostalgic treatment of woman, as represented by Daisy’s failed attempt to overcome patriarchy, was antiquated and did not reflect the mood of the 1970’s. Clayton’s disconnect with 1970’s society in his intent to re-make The Great Gatsby not only displays the nostalgic view of the decade, but also epitomizes the conflict between feminist and anti-femi...
The American black comedy The Wolf of Wall Street directed by Martin Scorsese was released December 25, 2013 and stars the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill and Margot Robbie. While on face value The Wolf of Wall Street looks like a film about excessive cocaine binges, long evenings filled with men with cigarettes, large portions of alcoholic consumption, having many sexual escapades with various women and even dwarf tossing from time to time, the film is deeply rooted in perception gender within the genre of The Wolf of Wall Street. The word ‘genre’ is rooted into a similar category as
Film scholar and gender theorist Linda Williams begins her article “Film Bodies: Genre, Gender and Excess,” with an anecdote about a dispute between herself and her son, regarding what is considered “gross,” (727) in films. It is this anecdote that invites her readers to understand the motivations and implications of films that fall under the category of “body” genre, namely, horror films, melodramas, (henceforth referred to as “weepies”) and pornography. Williams explains that, in regards to excess, the constant attempts at “determining where to draw the line,” (727) has inspired her and other theorists alike to question the inspirations, motivations, and implications of these “body genre” films. After her own research and consideration, Williams explains that she believes there is “value in thinking about the form, function, and system of seemingly gratuitous excesses in these three genres,” (728) and she will attempt to prove that these films are excessive on purpose, in order to inspire a collective physical effect on the audience that cannot be experienced when watching other genres.
The attitude towards women has changed dramatically since 1990, the year that this film came out; you will however, find a few men who still have the attitude that women were put on this earth for their enjoyment. In the early nineties, women were hyper-sexualized and viewed as pawns in a game. MTV showed music videos with scantily clad women, which were seen as extremely scandalous at the time. The nineties was also an era of growth, liberalization and sexual discoveries that carried over from the eighties.... ...
and many more. These films have shaped the behaviors and characters of both the feminine and masculine species in the society.
Also, the film revealed women empowerment and how superior they can be compared to men. While demonstrating sexual objectification, empowerment, there was also sexual exploitation of the women, shown through the film. Throughout this essay, gender based issues that were associated with the film character will be demonstrated while connecting to the real world and popular culture.
Women have been seen as weak and submissive throughout history in society and that is reflected in many films and movies. These are the feminine qualities that have often been associated with being a woman, which results in the role of women being overlooked and seen as weak or sexualized. They are either in the scene to look pretty or as the one in need of a savior. It is rare for them to fall out of their feminine categories of being motherly or sexual. However, there are more recent films that challenge the singular role women seem to always have. Examples of these are the films, The Matrix (Lana and Lily Wachowski, 1999) and Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller, 2015). The films bring rise to a more progressive view of women that are reflecting
Women in early cinema illustrated the culture they lived in during the time-period where men expressed their dominance over women. Film helped bring to the forefront these power dynamics through the use of cinematography and mise en scene. Louis Gianette explains in Understanding Movies “In general, the greater the distance between the camera and the subject, the more emotionally neutral we remain (Page 90).” This is significant because it’s through the varying distances of shots that illustrate the emotion women express within the film. In the film Broken Blossoms directed by D.W. Griffith, Lucy the female heroin is constantly shown battling her inner demons as society pushes her into the traditional domestic role of women at the time. In contrast the film Stagecoach by John Ford brings the female character out of the traditional domestic atmosphere and sets them on an adventure through the countryside. The evolution of the female heroin from domestic to adventurers
Throughout the 21st century we have been immersed in a world in which is almost wholly dominated by the media. It is appropriate to say that many ideologies have been indeed challenged by the media, including the ideology of feminism, which I aim to focus on in this essay. Firstly, it is necessary to think about what the founding concepts of feminism actually are and how the ideologies of post feminism and antifeminism are using the contemporary media to question feminism. Texts such as Bridget Jones’ Diary and Desperate Housewives are fitting examples of how post feminism has penetrated through the media challenging feminism. Similarly elements of anti-feminism are evident when looking at films such as the new adaptation of Cinderella .
Women have made progress in the film industry in terms of the type of role they play in action films, although they are still portrayed as sex objects. The beginning of “a new type of female character” (Hirschman, 1993, pg. 41-47) in the world of action films began in 1976 with Sigourney Weaver, who played the leading role in the blockbuster film ‘Aliens’ as Lt. Ellen Ripley. She was the captain of her own spaceship, plus she was the one who gave out all the orders. Until then, men had always been the ones giving the orders; to see a woman in that type of role was outlandish. This was an astonishing change for the American industry of film. Sometime later, in 1984, Linda Hamilton starred in ‘The Terminator’, a film where she was not the leading character, but a strong female character as Sarah Connor. She had a combination of masculine and feminine qualities as “an androgynous superwoman, resourceful, competent and courageous, while at the same time caring, sensitive and intuitive” (Hirschman, 1993, pg. 41-47). These changes made in action films for female’s roles stirred up a lot of excitement in the “Western society” (Starlet, 2007). The demand for strong female characters in action films grew to a new high when Angelina Jolie starred in ‘Tomb Raider’ in 2001 and then in the sequel, ‘Tomb Raider II: The Cradle of Life’ in 2003 as Lara Croft. Her strong female character was not only masculine, but was also portrayed as a sex object. Most often, strong women in these types of films tend to fight without even gaining a mark. At the end of each fight, her hair and makeup would always be perfect. The female characters in these action films, whether their role was as the lead character or a supporting character, had similar aspects. I...
The representation of violence exacted upon women in cinema is inextricable from being projected upon all women. To provide a scene that objectifies the female is to reduce the feminine form to its non-dual state, e.g., a sexual object providing a vessel for male gratification (hubris and sexual) rather then being defined by its duality of sentient and physical forms. Those who construct scenes of violence against women are bound to a moral responsibility to subjectify the woman’s perspective, thus reestablishing the female as a victim rather then an object and rendering the act of violence intelligible (deplorable, open to interpretation).