Women in films: these endless stereotypes
After the global success of ‘Barbie’ on television, the world took a new look at the role of women in cinema. Yes, we talk a lot about equality and representation in all spheres of life, but in practice, the percentage of women involved in the film industry is still not the same as the percentage of men. So, according to Dr. Martha M. Lauzen, in 2023, women who played ‘speaking’ roles accounted for only 35%. Yes, from 2015 to 2021, the number of women in the highest-grossing films has increased. In fact, if you see the figures from Statista, it turns out that during this period we received only 6% growth.
‘Barbie’ might have passed by as a children’s movie, but society is fed up with stereotyping and division between the sexes. That’s why we see this effect; that’s why Emma Stone won the best role at the 2024 Oscars in a steampunk film where her character is atypical.
Now, let’s look at how movies portray women and what’s wrong with these types.
5 different women
Career woman
Movies do their job when we see a textbook plot:
a middle-aged, classy woman occupies a leadership position, torments her subordinates with nagging, and in the evenings cries in an empty apartment because her husband either left or was never there at all.
We feel regret and understand her, as some of us have also had such an experience. This is exactly how Miranda Priestly appears in ‘The Devil Wears Prada’, and it is this fate that Anne Hathaway’s character is running from when she decides to give up her career for the sake of reuniting with a toxic boyfriend (who, let’s be honest, simply couldn’t look at her success without envy).
But is careerism so bad for a girl? I talked about this in one of the articles; you can read it here.
Classic Manic Pixie Dream Girl
She is amazing, eccentric, and funny — the very girl of his dreams. Meeting her turns life upside down. And everything would be fine, but this is where her timing in the film slams shut. She is the epitome of unconventionality: she may have an unusual taste in music, dress strangely, and run barefoot in the rain, but we never really know what’s inside her or see her grow as a character.
It would seem that the she is representation of us, as we all have a bit of madness. But her task is to help the main character find himself. And here are some examples: ‘500 Days of Summer,’ ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ and (surprisingly) ‘Her’.
Femme fatale
Female sexuality in cinema is a fatal beauty that will inevitably drag the hero into trouble (or she copes with these troubles herself but, in the end, loses her dominant position).
They are devoid of psychologism and individual character traits; they exist on the screen only next to a man who is supposed to fall in love and then extricate himself from a life-threatening situation.
For example, Bond Girl. Although, with the rethinking of the image of the femme fatale in modern cinema, things are much better. Modern vamp women are not just cunning and sexy; they are very smart, active, and ready to fight back against any man. For example, Helen Adler in the BBC’s ‘Sherlock’ or Cersei Lannister in ‘Game of Thrones’.
Wonder Woman
From femme fatal to strong and independent, screenwriters often endow their heroines with great strength (physical or magical), but forget that she cannot be courageous 24/7, or that her activity is limited to past events, and in the present she is more likely to be a secondary figure. After all, at the most crucial moment, a male protagonist appears and still copes with everything on his own. Behind the scenes, this phenomenon was called ‘Trinity Syndrome’ — in honor of the heroine Carey-Anne Moss in ‘The Matrix’. Often, a strong woman is needed to transform the awkward and shy protagonist, who changes instantly to impress her. And in general, there is nothing wrong with this, but it will be great to have more background history on her formation.
Damsel in distress
This female character is as old as time. Absolutely helpless who do nothing but wait for a handsome prince to save her appeared in fairy tales, then migrated to chivalric novels and to cinema. In contemporary times, we see her in combination with other characters: the helpless vamp woman, the helpless Manic Pixie Dream Girl, and even (no matter how paradoxical it may be) the sometimes helpless Wonder woman. I think you can remember examples yourself.
What should change?
The problem is not that we stereotype women in society. The problem is that society cannot yet accept these different portraits of women. We can’t just be dream girls or strong and independent. Sometimes we just need care; sometimes we need to go out to the club and hang out; sometimes we need a strict schedule that motivates us to achieve results; and sometimes we just need a day of doing nothing.
The sphere of cinema is our eyes. This is a reflection of reality, so it is important to change the industry to meet new demands. And yes, everything is happening terribly slowly, but I am sure that by talking about this, we are investing in development.
