Genre Part 2: Representation of
Women in sci-fi films
Representations:
The media industry generally just represents the world back to us, showing and telling us about the society we live in. this can be represented in many different ways.
One of those ways is using the concept of stereotyping.
Stereotype: a stereotype is a label which involves a process of categorization and evaluation. Stereotyping is usually negative, maybe by the act of one, which is then categorized as a group.
Science fiction films, short for sci-fi films. Films that are categorized in this genre often have futuristic technology, futuristic background, aliens etc. some hit blockbuster movies are sci-fi such as
1. Star wars 4.I robot
2. Terminator 5.Men in black
3. Matrix 6.The core
Sci-fi films often contain anything and everything to do with the future and alien technology. A typical sci-fi film consists of…
• Laboratory setting
• Laser guns / weird creations
• Aliens
• Out of space /time travel
• Often were dimmed down colures i.e. black, white, grey, carkey, brown etc.
Types of Women: Representations:
Blond hotti / bimbo
Sexy and strong
Damsel in distress. Mean Girls (Amanda Seyfried) as Karen smith. She flows along with anyone’s stupidity. She also admits that she’s pathetic.
Tomb Raider (Angelina Jolie) known as Lara Croft. Uses all sorts of weapons and she’s one feisty women. She wears shorts and has unnaturally big boobies.
Spider Man (Kirsten Dunts) as Mary Jane Watson. She doesn’t fend for herself; spider ‘man’ always saves the day.
Representations of Women in Hollywood films:
Representations of Women in sci-fi films:
Types of Women: Representation:
Masculine / not very women like but strong
Sexy and strong
Total hotti yet strong Terminator 2 (Linda Hamilton) as Sarah Conner. She’s well, she’s the man she’s got muscles, dose chin ups, smokes, and knows guns inside and out. She works the gun the gun doesn’t work her. she also knows hoe to look after her son. Not that attractive.
Matrix (Carrie-Ann Moss) as Trinity.
Very simple, doesn’t wear make up and has short hair. She doesn’t wear revealing cloths. Shown very heroic as she takes a bullet for Neyo ‘the chosen one’
Blade Trinity (Jessica Beil) as Abigail Whistler.
Sexy and strong this girl knows how to play it right. Acts like how a normal women would act not bitchy, bimbowy, not like a man, just a women.
Over the past two weeks we have been watching 2 sci-fi films and analyzing representations of women.
In Terminator 2 Sarah Conner is shown to be very, very masculine,(well for a women). In the beginning Sarah was in a mental institute cell doing chin ups, in most films you would see a man in prison working out. In the film she’s also shown to be very clever as she uses only a paper clip to escape.
Whereas in the film Cloverfiled Beth one of the female characters calls her boyfriend, who has got a lot on his plate and cries for help. In the end she waited nearly a whole day for her rescue. She gave up hope and didn’t try helping herself.
Not all the female characters are like Beth in Cloverfield. Marolina another female actress in the film is quite strong, she shows of her heroin side by saving the camera ‘mans’ life by battering the alien creature. During the process of battering she gets stabbed by one of the creatures, she doesn’t seem to show any signs of pain and agony.
Marolina again shows of her heroin side as she insisted the others on going without her because she knew she was going to die and that she might kill others around her. This relates to Sarah Conner in Terminator 2 because she also in the film is willing to give up her life to save her son and the ‘world’ (pretty brave women)
Appearance:
Some characteristics are the same between Beth and Sarah as they both smoke and drink. Differences, Beth is more lady like then Sarah, she doesn’t have a son and she’s not experienced with weapons as Sarah Conner is.
All the women in Cloverfield are dressed feminine whereas in Terminator 2 Sarah is presented wearing combats, plain white vest and hair in a simple ponytail. For accessories the women in Cloverfield wore jewelry, bags and make up, but in Terminator Sarah wears a gun and other types of weapons at all times.
All in all I don’t think the women in either films presented in a negative way, but there are some positive representations of women in both films………………….
Cloverfield: Beth:
• Saved a mans life
• Wasn’t scared of dying
• Sacrificed her life for others
Terminator 2: Sarah:
• Knows how to use weapons
• Clever / smart
• Acts alone / independent
• Good mother
Conclusion:
Representations of women have become better in some ways through the years. In the past women there were never women who were saving the day, still you could argue that there isn’t an equal amount of saving the world films done by women then there are of men. Women were always shown to be very weak fragile creatures and that they always had to be guided by men, luckily this has decreased over the years for the women of the 21st centaury have grown their independence .now on a days there are a few films that show that women don’t need men such as Tomb Raider Angelina Joli, Terminator Linda Hamilton, Cat women Hally Berry, underworld, ultraviolet etc.
Overall, in my opinion I don’t think the women in either films were presented in a negative way, but for my personal opinion I think Sarah Conner in Terminator should have just been a man as she has all the characteristics of a man, she smokes, drinks, very masculine, works out in her cell and the attitude. She isn’t a good rep when it comes to giving a good example of a woman that acts like a women but still is strong.
In the vast majority of the media women now on days are shown to be more like sex objects rather then people. Not only does this happen in the filming industry but the music industry as well. Women’s outfits that are worn on films or music videos have become more and more revealing over the years, in some cases they appear wearing nothing.
Monday, 29 December 2008
Tuesday, 21 October 2008
Sunday, 19 October 2008
Baba Khan
Saturday, 4 October 2008
Film: i Robot
Genre: Action,Mystrey,SciFi,Thriller
Actors:Bridget Moynahan,robot sunny
Denotations: High tech equipment,robot machinery,scientist,computers,futuristic designs of technology,blue tint theme.
Conntation: The film i Robot is based in the futer, Alex Proyeas (directer) shows us this by using lots of futeristic high technology i.e robots it's a simple obvius idea but very effectiv.The robot as shown is straped on to the chair making it look as if though it's a prisnor it also looks like it gets used for experiments,this is shown by the woman standing next to the robot as she is holdnig a siringe. The audience would guess that it's more likly to be an experiment and not a fix up because the robot's strapped onto the chair and not freely relaxed.In this picter of the scene you can see that it has a very blue tint to it,this is really common in futeristic films or films that have a part where they include any high tech eqipment,majority of the films tend to do this as the colour blue is very siyba like,calm,it also works really well with silver and black which you'll find is used very often aswell.The cubic paterns(striped or checked like paterns) also can give you the impresion of being imprisoned this plays a very little roll as it is only a patern but it's the little effects added that helps make a big differences to create the impresion 'imprisinment' that the director possibly was trying to achive,this can also be classified as a sabniminal message.
Conventions:You'd probably have guessed that the actres in this scene is a doctor or a scientist because of her outfit the costume designer desided to put on;simple traditional comman white lab cout,this look is also achived useing a prop as shown; lady holding a sirinje. For a film based in the futer you will expect to see alot of machinery alien technology and lots of dark bold colours i.e black,white and grey etc. i Robot is a typical example of that because it includes most of the typicle sci-fi must haves (listed above).
Film: Indiana Jones
Genre: Action Adventure
Actors: Harrison Ford , Shia La Beouf
Denotation: Skeleton (dead body),cob webs,dark cave like setting,bag possibly full of tools for thier job that thier doing(arkiology),clothing what you expect to see in an adventure film.
Connotations: The set dresser or director has used the skelaton (dead body) to show the audiance that this place is creepy,scary makeing you have the chills. This is also created by the cobb webs dreesed around the setting showing that this is an old place and full creepy crolies.The costmes used for this scene looks like they've been worn out, giving the audience the impresion that their mission that their caring out is difficult,long and possibly dangrous. The choice of clothing also shows us that their off to an adventure,this can be seen particularly well in Indiana Jones other wise known as Harrison Fords outfit. The director shows us that the setting is a dark place by 1) dimming lights whilst recording or editing 2) actors holding light sources.The bag is also very effectiv; shows that this job requires eqipment,making it very realistic and not cheesy i.e defiting badies and not useing any tools for objects found on the way then suddenly a screw driver appers from nowhere.
Conventions: You expect to see a hero in this adventure whereas in this case there are two heros. In an adventure you will find that there is alot of obsticals often leading to sacrefice which are made to be a tragic most of the times.The characters costume colours are very deemed down to creat the imprsion that it is a serious mission and not a comedy adventure. In an adventure you'll expect to see the characres very dirty because of the tasks involved i.e runnig,hiding,falling, rolling in all sorts of places.
Thursday, 2 October 2008
Denotation: Behind the two characters there is a sunset (yellow and orange). Both characters are wearing green indicating posible deep secrets /close bond/linked as one.
Connotation: The setting of the sun is always a winner, it's very popular in romantic scenes such as this(Fiona and Shrek coming close to contact). Using the sunset scene creates a warm cosy evenning look,again adding a touch of romance.Fiona wears a green dress indicating that shes more like shrek but obviesly if you have watched the film you'll find that she is an ogre.
Convention: Shrek is a typical ogre, dirty, smelly, ugly,big and scary, but in Fiona's case you wouldn't suspect any hidden secrets about her (shes an ogre). The audience would be very steriotypical about that, saying that "How comes shes not ugly shes not smelly or dirty, she cant be an ogre".
Film: Shrek
Genre: comedy animation
Actors: Fiona and Shrek
Thursday, 18 September 2008
BANGLADESH
Bangladesh is 1 PENGIFIED country n a half.
I luv it luv it luv it luv it luv it luv it luv it
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