October
19
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Articles at The Essential – How Denis Villeneuve domesticates Emily Blunt.
Nope – not a fan of Sicario. Everywhere I go I see praise being heaped on Emily Blunt for her “bad ass” heroine Kate Macy, but for me, the role was a slap down after her great characterisation in Edge of Tomorrow. After all, she is criticised for not wearing lacy underwear in the field (I know right? WTF was THAT line about!) This got me thinking about the role of the female action hero and her relationship to feminism. Using a personal favourite film of mine, GI Jane, I explore just a little of what is possibly happening in these films and elaborate on why the female action hero is such a hot cinematic political football.
The Essential: GI Jane and the reality of Female Action Heroes.
You can read the full article here.
Currently Sicario is wowing critics and audiences, with special praise being heaped on Emily Blunt for her understated yet powerful lead performance as Kate Macy. It’s a rare graciousness. Female action heroines, while tolerated as important, are more often than not critically maligned – if not for their performance then the film they labor in.
Sure, there are exceptions – Sigourney Weaver, Hilary Swank and Linda Hamilton being among the most powerful – but it is worth noting that critical success for a female “action hero” is highly conditional, depending on a certain kind of socially approved feminine behavior. Ridley Scott, hyper-aware of this problem, has tried to interrupt it with several of his films, the most famous being the first Alien. Sigourney Weaver plays a role that could just as easily have gone to a man, and furthers the irony by portraying the first horror pregnancy in Alien born of a male subject.
Lisa Thatcher, you have me watching movies I would never in a million years consider seeing. Just saw G.I. Jane for the first time. I found it to be a truly male film with a make believe female hero. It all revolved around male approval with the villain being another woman.
I have no intention of seeing Sicario – I don’t want to be pissed off.
Give me Furiosa any day!!!
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HI Laura! I feel like I should apologize! I’m sorry to put you through G.I. Jane. I have a weird unrelenting soft spot for those female action films. I think it’s part of a kind of development toward feminism some women go through when they discover that women aren’t “less than” men. I had to go through it, being raised to believe females were physically inferior subjects (my father still tries to get me to see the error of my new found ways) and for some indefensible reason I am inspired by these films still.
But I agree with you re Furiosa!
Sorry again for stealing 1.5 hours of your life! (guilty grin)
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LOL But if it weren’t for you, I would never have watched Mad Max Fury Road!
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Well – I’ll take that high praise!
And… if it weren’t for your comment – I may have accidentally subjected other intelligent women to the same G.I. Jane fate!
Criticism is nothing without the dialogue!
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