The radical notion that women like good movies
I love that we are having a cultural moment where bestselling books with hotly anticipated film adaptations center on tough, three-dimensional female protagonists, who have kickass, high-stakes fantasy adventures in worlds where gender equality is largely unremarkable. But one can’t help noticing a pattern.
Birth of the Living Dead is Rob Kuhns’ documentary of the making of George Romero’s 1968 cult horror genre game-changer Night of the Living Dead. Bitch Flicks writers Max Thornton and Amanda Rodriguez discuss both the documentary (BOTLD) and the original film itself (NOTLD).
Elysium Movie Poster Written by Amanda Rodriguez I was surprised that I not only liked, but was impressed by Elysium. I had my doubts because it’s a Hollywood blockbuster, and their interpretation of the tenets of sci-fi usually leaves much to be desired. Also, I just really, really don’t like Matt Damon and his…face. The … Continue reading “‘Elysium’: A Sci-Fi Immigration Parable”
Womb poster Written by Erin Tatum. Today, I wanted to talk about a little film called Womb. It’s not very well known – Doctor Who fans will recognize it as one of Matt Smith‘s leading roles before his TARDIS fame. The film presents a fascinating introspective on the ethics of cloning while at the same … Continue reading “Female Sexuality is the Real Horror in ‘Womb’”
Children of Men (2006) The “Plague” of Infertility in Alfonso Cuarón’s Children of Men by Carleen Tibbetts Women can’t get pregnant anymore and nobody knows why. This the central lamentation in Alfonso Cuaron’s 2006 dystopian film Children of Men, based on P.D. James’s novel. Set in England in the year 2027, this is the story of … Continue reading “Roundup: Infertility, Miscarriage, and Infant Loss in Film and TV Week”
Movie poster for Children of Men Written by Amanda Rodriguez for our theme week on Infertility, Miscarriage, and Infant Loss. I like Alfonso Cuarón’s bleak, dystopian cinematic interpretation of Children of Men (based on the PD James novel) wherein the world collapses after an infertility pandemic strikes, causing there to be no human births for … Continue reading “The Exploitation of Women in Alfonso Cuarón’s ‘Children of Men’”
Dire times in Children of Men as “The World Has Collapsed” Guest post written by Carleen Tibbetts for our theme week on Infertility, Miscarriage, and Infant Loss. Women can’t get pregnant anymore and nobody knows why. This the central lamentation in Alfonso Cuaron’s 2006 dystopian film Children of Men, based on P.D. James’s novel. Set … Continue reading “The “Plague” of Infertility in Alfonso Cuarón’s ‘Children of Men’”
Written by Amanda Rodriguez *Spoiler Alert* If you’re at all like me, you’re constantly frustrated by the characterizations of the women of The Walking Dead AMC series, their choices, and their actions. The show has received significant criticism for its paternalistic attitude, its throwback gender roles, and its lack of strong, capable female characters. Though … Continue reading “The Women of The Walking Dead: A Comparative Analysis of the Comic vs. TV”
Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games This Review in Conversation on The Hunger Games with Megan Kearns and Amber Leab previously appeared at Bitch Flicks on April 19, 2012. Megan’s Take:In a dystopian future, the nation of Panem stands where North America once existed. The government at the Capitol, which controls the … Continue reading “Gender & Food Week: ‘The Hunger Games’ Review in Conversation: Female Protagonists, Body Image, Disability, Whitewashing, Hunger & Food”
But how can a film with so many actors playing so many different roles go wrong? Cloud Atlas, directed by the Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer, portrays the pursuit of equality in a palatable way for the mainstream – soaked with platitudes. But, due to facially disproportioned prosthetics and a failed attempt at a postmodern structure … Continue reading “‘Cloud Atlas’ Loses Audience”
Falling Skies‘ Margaret Guest post written by Paul and Renee. The wonderful thing about science fiction is that the writers have the opportunity to create a world, which while based on ours, can be markedly different. This means that there should be a place for strong female characters who are not restricted by sexism or … Continue reading “Women in Science Fiction Week: The Problem with Female Representation in Science Fiction on Television”
I have a confession to make. I’m a big softie when it comes to movies. I shed tears at the drop of a hat. But I usually don’t cry during a film trailer. But Beasts of the Southern Wild — both the trailer and the film itself — made me weep. A strange, haunting, breathtaking … Continue reading “‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’: Gender, Race and a Powerful Female Protagonist in the Most Buzzed About Film”
