We all know that summer is the worst season for movies. It’s when the heat melts all of our feeble brains into mush and we’re only capable of grunting approval at explosions, special effects, scantily clad women, and the most simplistic plots, while sitting in icily air-conditioned theatres and shoveling $7 bags of popcorn into our face holes. Here’s a sampling of films opening in wide release that we have to look forward to, now that summer has officially begun.
In these posters I see a “maneater,” a teacher who is bad at her job, a “dirty girl,” some arm candy, black maids, almost up a Disney princess’ dress, a scooter passenger, and an invitation to ,ahem, a hole. The Debt offers the only poster with not one, but two women showing agency. One Day might be interesting, as we see Anne Hathaway’s pleasured expression while kissing a man. The Help could possibly be progressive, since it at least shows the black women in the more active, central position. Maybe.
In these posters I also see a bunch of white dudes who win battles: Harry Potter, Conan, Captain America, and that guy from Transformers. I see male-driven comedies (Horrible Bosses, 30 Minutes or Less, Change Up). I see one “idiot,” although it seems “our” in the title might refer to women. I see machines. And those damn dirty apes are back.
As we’ve pointed out in other Poster Analysis pieces (often in the comments), the way a film is marketed can have very little to do with the actual content of the film. But by choosing to market films in a way that presents women as passive or as objects for male admiration, or that excludes them completely, production companies tend to reveal internal biases and expectations, and who their target audience actually is.
What do you think of this year’s crop of summer movie posters? (I am actually happy to see the Transformers babe fully clothed.) Did I leave out any movies on your radar? Finally, what movies do you plan to see in the theatre this summer?
I wonder how many of these movies will have recession narratives, which I’ve been thinking about since our conversation re Bridesmaids.
I find these teacher movies intriguing and disturbing. Usually teacher movies are so saccharin and ridiculous and I despise them…so I wonder what is happening here and whether it’s some sort of new trend to devalue education/teaching instead of lifting up the undervalued/underpaid careers? What does this mean at a time when education funding is being cut more and more every day? Or maybe both films do reinscribe the tried and true savior/teacher schtick. Hmm. I saw the Julia Roberts preview when I went to see Bridesmaids. I suspect she saves Tom Hanks’s masculinity and he saves her lost love of teaching. Gag. I mean, Hanks and Roberts? Wha? Anyway.
I love the new header. Is it new? I don’t click over from Google Reader often enough, obviously.
These posters make me angry.
For me the one that upsets me most is Horrible Bosses. It’s just insane that a film would place the only woman in six people as a boss who sexually harasses her staff.
In the workplace it’s certainly not women who are the most advantaged and powerful! That middle class white men are presented as victims (and in a universal “we’ve all been there” kind of way) repulses me.
I also hate that Friends With Benefits reduces it’s actors to body parts; men are penises and women vaginas. Yeah you can see their faces but the focus is on the penetration that will occur; yuck! It’s even framed as the question:
Justin: “Can I penetrate you?” Mila: (girly giggle)”OK”
She’s in front but I can only imagine that’s to show more boob or that the other way round may’ve suggested her taking him from behind which I suspect may not be the point of the film.
I just had to look at what The Change Up is about and it’s even worse than I’d imagined. I long to see a body swap film explore what we’d actually do if we had another person’s body; not everyone would do it just so they could cheat.
Anyway, thanks for these. They’ve ignited some righteous feminist anger that I must now use for good…
Maryann Johanson wrote an interesting review of Bad Teacher, where she claims it’s really a parody of romantic comedies. I’m still very skeptical, though.
I’m just gonna see the ‘Harry Potter’ on purpose and maybe ‘The Help’ if I hear good things. Nuts to the rest.