The radical notion that women like good movies
Skyler White (Anna Gunn) sheds a light on our society’s misogyny. It isn’t rare to see an actor or actress to take to the op/ed pages to pen support or disdain for political issues and candidates or to come forward with personal stories to enlighten and advocate. The actor or actress, however, typically speaks as … Continue reading “Anna Gunn Breaks the Fourth Wall in a ‘New York Times’ Op/Ed”
The result is that while many viewers are no doubt cishet white men, few will truly identify with what Kilgrave illustrates not just about rapists and abusers, but about negative ideas about masculinity itself.
‘Breaking Bad’ is one of those well-written, well-acted shows that somehow inspires people to scream at each other in CAPSLOCK. The debate about Walter White and his wife and their drug-trade boils down to your answers to three deceptively simple questions that act as a rorschach test on masculinity in American culture.
What exactly, then, makes a character “unlikable”? How can we define this complex term? Broadly, a character is unlikable when they behave in an amoral or unethical way (which, of course, depends upon our individual morals and ethics), particularly when their motivations are unclear. However, when it comes to female characters, this term seems to diversify and pluralize.
Naturally, we are all on these anti-heroes’ sides, despite their bad deeds. And Tony Soprano, Don Draper, and Walter White all have an antagonist: their wives. They call their husbands out on their lies, moral failings, and oppose them. Thus, they are seen as the nagging wife that everyone hates.
So what about ‘Better Call Saul’? Will Gilligan and Gould offer us more female characters (to either love or hate)? So far I see only one major female role being advertised, that of Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), a tough lawyer foil for Saul. At this stage, it just feels thin, and we all know that Gilligan and Gould can absolutely produce some interesting female characters to add to their Alberquerque setting; the question is, will they?
Even you’re not in school, September feels like a time for beginnings. It’s when you met the people who would become your close friends, bought new school shoes, and settled into a new year. With that in mind, I decided to look at a selection of coming of age films loosely based around school and learning. As an extra bonus, all five films come from female writer-directors.
Because Jesse doesn’t fall into the same masculine megalomania that Walt does, he prevails. He suffers–god, does he suffer–but he is not sacrificed. He peels out of that Nazi compound in that old El Camino, tearing through the metal gates and sobbing and laughing his way away from his life as a prisoner of toxic masculinity–first Walt’s, then Jack and Todd’s.
Gender Flipping in Hollywood by Holly L. Derr at Ms. Magazine Blog First Annual Studio Responsibility Index Finds Lack of Substantial LGBT Characters in Mainstream Films by Max Gouttebroze at GLAAD 25 Movies by Female Directors Every Aspiring Filmmaker Should See by Michelle Dean via Flavorwire Will Black Actresses Ever Catch Up To Their Peers? by Aisha Harris at Slate … Continue reading “Bitch Flicks’ Weekly Picks”
Gender Flipping in Hollywood by Holly L. Derr at Ms. Magazine Blog First Annual Studio Responsibility Index Finds Lack of Substantial LGBT Characters in Mainstream Films by Max Gouttebroze at GLAAD 25 Movies by Female Directors Every Aspiring Filmmaker Should See by Michelle Dean via Flavorwire Will Black Actresses Ever Catch Up To Their Peers? by Aisha Harris at Slate … Continue reading “Bitch Flicks Weekly Picks”
Written by Rachel Redfern The rise of the anti-hero has most TV and media reviewers heralding the past ten years as revolutionary, a “golden age of television.” And I think it’s true, great television seems to be popping out of the seams of my TV and an ever-expanding “To Watch” list on my desk. In … Continue reading “The Golden Age of Television: Boys Only”
Outstanding Comedy Series 30 Rock (NBC): “Goodbye Forever, 30 Rock“ by Max Thornton The Big Bang Theory (CBS): “The Evolution of The Big Bang Theory“ by Rachel Redfern Girls (HBO): “Girls and Sex and the City Both Handle Abortion With Humor” by Megan Kearns Louie (FX): “Listening and the Art of Good Storytelling in Louis … Continue reading “2013 Emmy Nominations: Get Your Feminist Commentary Here!”
