Feminism In Cinema

Feminism has a misleading reputation in cinema, just as it has a misleading reputation in other circles.  The very label "feminist film" often has a divisive impact even when there is nothing explicitly feminist about the film itself.  That feminism is about gender equality and therefore justice for both genders means that many films associated with the word feminism may have little to do with it after all, as the word seems to often get thrown around as a marketing or scare tactic depending on the attitude someone wants to convey about the movie.  Two films of the past three years highlight how the term can be associated with a story it ultimately has nothing to do with and with a story that does not have any of the negative themes associated by ignorant people with true feminism.

The 2019 version of Black Christmas, an artistically and thematically atrocious movie that treats feminism as if it entails the neglect of sexism against men and the default suspicion of all or most men, is perhaps the best recent example of a movie mislabeled a "feminist film."  Absolutely nothing about the way Black Christmas handles its key themes is egalitarian--or, in other words, nothing about it is truly feminist.  It is clear that the executive creators were content to treat sexism as if men do not suffer from it (or at least very much).  There are films with thoroughly egalitarian themes, however.

As far as recent films go, Wonder Woman epitomizes the manner in which genuine feminism needs to be intertwined into movies: it never belittles one gender to elevate the other.  Instead, it features male protagonists, male antagonists, female protagonists, and a female antagonist.  Women are portrayed as having the capacity for heroism and malice (using Dr. Poison as a secondary villain makes this point), just as men are, but never once is anyone said to behave in a certain way or have heroic or immoral tendencies simply because of their gender.

Ares using Dr. Poison, a woman, as an example of a human so corrupt that she deserves death was only one of many ways that Wonder Woman conveyed genuinely egalitarian themes.  In having a woman serve as this example, director Patty Jenkins avoided the pitfall of a popular straw man of actual feminism.  She ensured that no viewer could legitimately say that she presents men as wicked and women as innocent victims.  Rather, she realistically portrays how men and women can gravitate towards altruism or injustice even in ways that social conditioning discourages.

There is a great need for entertainment that encourages men to likewise reject misandrist norms and that highlights the many forms of discrimination against men that have marked human history.  This is a necessary part of consistent feminism, as egalitarianism is about eliminating and deconstructing all sexist stereotypes, expectations, and double standards in the name of gender equality.  The liberation of women from the fallacious constructs of misogynistic ideas provides a better cultural opportunity for men to be liberated from misandrist ideas, of which there are plenty [1].

It should come as no surprise that a true feminist film has the potential to connect with audiences in ways that movies aimed at men or women (because of cultural reasons, not because any genre is logically associated with either gender) cannot.  Films like Wonder Woman can empower both men and women because this is a byproduct of genuine feminism, as the destruction of gender stereotypes liberates all men and women who have been oppressed--psychologically or physically--because of social constructs that have nothing to do with reason or the Bible.  A sound protagonist can inspire and entertain both genders, after all, for the point of feminism is not to lift up one gender arbitrarily.


[1].  https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2020/01/how-feminism-uproots-misandry.html