Hollywood can’t break the male gaze

I recently had the pleasure of watching Die for (1995), which stars Nicole Kidman as an ambitious, hyper-feminized woman who will stop at nothing to be successful. This clearly served as inspiration for Me, Tonya (2017) and Promising young woman (2020) who have all cleverly subverted the male gaze by satirizing the “girlboss” narrative. While this latest film is up for five well-deserved Oscars this year and me, Tonya got a few acting nominations, To Die For only won Best Actress for a Musical or Comedy at the Golden Globes. While major film and television awards ceremonies, the Oscars, Emmys, and Golden Globes, have improved dramatically to recognize true male stories without regard to women, there is still an impressive amount of work. unrecognized on the female experience.

Male gaze is a term that was first used in the context of cinema by feminist thinker Laura Mulvey to describe the portrayal of women in media seen through a heterosexual male lens. Cinema has often relegated female characters to mere backing plays or prominent male love interests. The women in the James Bond franchise are a clear example of the male gaze at work. However, even the most independent, ambitious and authoritative female figures can still be portrayed by the male gaze. These generally fall under the category of girls.

A girlboss is a supposedly feminist character with equal or even greater power than his male counterparts who is always characterized by the masculine gaze. Female superheroes, for example, are often defined by this Scarlett Johansson look as Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes to mind. Black Widows’ impressive fighting skills, witty one-liners, and independence convince viewers that she is a powerful female character. In reality, the character was little more than an overexualized girlboss sidekick. These characters are often costumed in revealing clothing, framed to showcase their ideal bodies, and serve little more than acolytes for a larger plot. As fun as the female characters can be, it’s important to recognize when they fill the role of girlboss. and existing under the male gaze.

Members of various entertainment awards voting bodies seem unaware of this phenomenon, they are quick to reward female media and ignore more complex female stories. The complete omission of Michaela Coels I can destroy you(2020), a miniseries that follows a young woman who deals with her rape, this year’s Golden Globe nominations stand out like a sore thumb. The Gambit Queens(2020), another story about a woman struggling with trauma, won the award for best TV movie. Unlike the female lead role in I May Destroy You, The Queens Gambit’s Beth Harmon exists without complexity and gives way to the male gaze. In doing so, The Queens Gambit made a girlboss of its main character, while I May Destroy You explored the nuanced experience of female trauma, free from the male gaze.

Another woman’s grieving story, Chip bag (201619), commissioned the comedy category of the 2019 Emmys for its second season. Season 1, however, was completely shunned by major awards ceremonies. In the series, writer and star Phoebe Waller-Bridge explores the grief of the titular characters through an innovative use of breaking the fourth wall. Her award-winning second season significantly introduced a male character, a priest in front of her, to serve as a savior of sorts, saving Fleabag from her trauma and turning the strong woman into a damsel in distress. That said, his second season was exceptional and absolutely deserves his praise. The Priest (Andrew Scott) added a new layer to the series, even though it could be reduced to a mere savior. It is more than disappointing, however, that the complex and edgy first season of “Fleabags” has been ignored by the big awards ceremonies.

Comedy is an important way for female writers to make their case. The aforementioned works use humor to critique the male gaze and, by extension, the concept of girlboss. Some also use it as a coping mechanism. The college comedy series Pen15 (2019) highlights the awkward beauty of formative female friendships and uses humor to emphasize its embarrassing realities and the relatability of its characters. Both her comedy and general dialogue show how meaningful these relationships can be while exploring the characters’ experiences with race and femininity. Another authentic tale of the female experience, Pen15 was nominated for a 2019 Writing Emmy, but did not receive any other major awards.

Instead of rewarding these more complex representations of the female experience, voters choose to offer films that succumb to the male gaze (Once upon a time in hollywood (2019), for example) or films that oversimplify the female perspective. Indeed, even women’s stories written by women do not necessarily offer complex interpretations of the female experience. For example, this year’s sweetheart awards are “Nomadland(2020), which focuses on a woman’s journey through the western United States as she goes through financial hardship. Although its main character is a female, “Nomadland” almost entirely removes the concept of gender from its defeminized narrative. The film is not about the experiences of women but about those of a universal humanity. Large awards ceremonies have no problem recognizing works with principal women, but not works on the unique female experience.

The awards ceremonies refuse to recognize these media because it would call into question their authority. For too long, excellence in the film industry has been defined by a male narrative that the industry has awarded works that explore men’s experiences. Recognizing the value of authentic stories about women would challenge what excellence really means for the industry.