A Black Mirror to Militarism

The Black Mirror episode titled Men Against Fire exemplifies Hasian’s theory of film as a medium to pose the East as the “other” to Western culture and interests. This theory is marked by the use of American exceptionalism as currency, portraying the other as often dark, uncultured, and dangerous.

Men Against Fire is titled after “Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command” by Brigadier General S.L.A. Marshall. Marshall’s book delves into the phenomenon of soldiers in battle failing to use their firearms (cited as a mere 20% of soldiers fired their rifles during the World Wars). The episode picks up from Marshall’s idea and presents a futuristic society in which soldiers are given a brain implant, called “Mass” that affects their perception of the world in order to make them fight and train more effectively. The episode arc follows the main character Stripe as his implant malfunctions and he discovers that the “Roaches” (hideous and aggressive humanoid monsters) that he and his comrades have been hunting and killing are actually just subjugated humans who steal for self-preservation and fight for self defense. The Mass implant changed their appearance in order to make them appear as dangerous monsters. In reality, the Roaches were a race of people who lost a war and have been persecuted by the government ever since, subjected to more and more surveillance until eventually being exterminated all together.

The text of this episode can clearly be read as an allegory of how media (in this case film) function to distort our view of the other, especially in order to serve outside government and military interests.  The Mass of the episode functions similarly to the movie Zero Dark Thirty in pushing an agenda. Hasian noted that while “others argue that their cinematic representation does not entail any partisan position,” the movie in fact at least perpetuated the CIA’s framing of the story. Similarly, the seemingly neutral Mass uses media techniques to “frame” reality in the way most beneficial militarily. The false portrayal of the Roaches speaks directly to the representation the other (the East) generally gets in modern film; A contrived representation of darkness, inhumanity, and aggression. We can extend this to our real systems in the sense that biased narratives help indirectly support government extending its reach and power and often harming the East because citizens associate the East as bad and the government as needing to protect from them.

The Wachowski Sisters and Sense8: Maybe Good Lesbian Media Can Only Be Created by Lesbians

The first thing I thought when I read Kelly Kessler’s essay on Bound and how she gave the Wachowski sisters credit for creating a film that’s “titillating to homosexual men without threatening the heterosexual order” (Kessler, 14) was well, the Wachowski sisters are now both out as trans lesbians… so is their depiction of lesbianism really intended for heterosexual men at all?

I have chosen, in this case, to look at their popular Netflix television show, Sense8. (Cancelled too soon!!!!)  Namely, we are going to be looking at the relationship between Nomi Marks (a trans woman, PLAYED BY A TRANS WOMAN) and her girlfriend/fiancee/wife? (I haven’t seen the finale!) Amanita Caplan. I wanna look at their relationship and how the Wachowski’s representation of lesbianism has become more overtly just for queer women, since they are now publicly out as lesbians themselves, and I want to look at how their relationship subverts several stereotypes when it comes to race and gender.

What I really wanna do is take a look at the iconic first sex scene we see between Nomi and Amanita. The first scene that even shows the two of them at all. Amanita is on top of Nomi and they are both completely naked (the show makes no point of hiding anything). Then there is a finishing, and an iconic dropping of a rainbow strap on onto the ground. This scene is intense in its sexuality, and I believe so intentionally. So often with portrayals of trans women, there is an obsession with cis audiences to see what they look like naked, and the Wachowski sisters immediately take away that curiosity. Amanita is also on top in this situation, subverting the idea that the partner who has/who has had a phalice (Nomi, in this case) is the dominant one in the situation. This also adds another layer of nuance, as  Amanita is often black and black women are often seen in roles of sexual submission.

In this way, Sense8’s representation of lesbianism is fairly similar to Bound’s, using techniques that Kessler describes as, “a more explicit approach to sex which includes more graphic lesbian sex coupled with less graphic moments of eroticism” (Kessler, 15).

There are definitely some instances in this scene that might and definitely will cater to male heterosexual audiences. (The women are both thin and femme, there is the explicit showing of their bare tests, and there is explicitly no bottom half shown of Nomi, letting the heterosexual male audience pretend that, just for a minute, the woman getting fucked is cis) At the same time, however, I cannot help feel that with this new context that the Wachowski sisters are working in, as trans lesbians themselves, the depiction of this scene is intentionally provocative without a care about whether or not it’s going to alienate male heterosexual audiences.

What makes this couple for queer audiences however, I think is solidified not just in their sexual encounters, but in the other sorts of intimacies that Kessler discusses. Another stick out scene of the first episode involving Nomi and Amanita is when Amanita has just defended Nomi in a transphobic encounter and Nomi, tearing up afterwards, has her face cupped and kissed by Amanita multiple times before being brought into a tight hug. This scene, I truly believe, is meant for no one else but queer audiences. It’s such a sweet and tender moment of affection and intimacy between two women who love each other so fiercely, over a situation that heterosexual/cis audiences would never have to experience.

So while the Wachowski sisters may not have been out when they were creating Bound, I believe that they were still trying to portray what it is they portrayed in Sense8, an intimacy between two women that is meant primarily (and in some cases solely) to be recognizable by queer women. Sense8 just gets to be their queer swan song, where they freely are allowed to express their own experiences of being trans and queer on screen without any worry about having to please the cis and straight crowd.

Aren’t they just too stinkin cute? Image descrip: Amanita, a black woman with purple and pink colored dreads, is looking lovingly over at her girlfriend Nomi, a tall blonde woman wearing a plaid shirt, while they do dishes together.

Lets Transform Transformers!! (Media Example)

As a kid one of my favorite things to do each weekend was to huddle up with my siblings, and watch Transformers cartoon series. The show reached out to our childish imagination, with its robots transforming into cool, and colorful cars, jets, and sometimes even crazier things like a Star Wars battle ships. The cartoon series was born in Japan, and the first run took place from 1980 to 1993. The premise of the show was very simple, yet exciting; two different groups of robots transform into cool things and battle it out – the funny thing is that no side ever really won, so the show continued, and as we got older our focus shifted more towards different cartoon series as transformers started airing less in US, and finally stopped (this is before internet was available to many households, so online viewing was not possible).  In this essay I will be looking at Male Gaze, and Oppositional Gaze, and the evidence of how it is present in Hollywood, and the 2007 Block Buster – Transformers.

Now fast forward to 2000. Cartoon network decided that that they would pick up the series and remake it, giving it a new story, and a fresh start. By this time, I was in my late teens, a junior in high school, but I would still make time to enjoy the series. The first thing I noticed is that the series had lost its simple yet effective charm of good guys vs bad guys, each episode would focus on a human element that was missing from the Japanese original and added some sort of drama. I did not like the cartoon network version very much, so I stopped watching the series, and watched more of family guy/ south park. Sometime passed and while watching a movie in a theater with friends, we saw preview of what came to be the most illogical, stereotypical movie of 2007. This was off coarse Transformers the movie directed by Michael Bay.

While the idea was great and fun, the execution, and the direction the movie took was extremely poor, it almost seemed like it was written by a 13-year-old, and it was almost amazing to see that the movie was OK’d by the cast. Now to be fair it is not the worst movie I have seen, that honor would go to “The Room” but it was still extremely bad. To start with the movie has lots of explosions, so if you are a fan of fireworks or feel like you missed the 4^th of July fireworks in your city just watch the first transformers movie, and your urge for watching fireworks will be satisfied for the next few years. Now let’s talk about more serious things in the movie – the Characters, especially the female cast of the movie. In my humble opinion I can’t seem to find out what motived them to sign up for this movie, after they read the script.

Alongside Sam we have two important (but not important, you will see why) female characters in the movie. The first is Mikaela (Megan Fox), and second is Sam’s mom (Julie white, a traffic actor who is not given much to work with). While Megan Fox has potential for good acting, the big issue in this movie is that the director reduces her role to be eye candy for other characters in the movie, and the audience. Transformers uses Mikaela as an object of Male Gaze (Laura Mulvey – Visual Pleasure, and Narrative Cinema). If we examine Mikaela’s introduction scene, we notice that the we don’t really go into depth to build her character up e.g. what is she going to school for? What are her future plans after high school? What does she want to do in her life? Why is she not given any intellectual character development? None of those questions are ever brought up, but instead our focus becomes how well she knows cars, and how well she knows sexual relationships. In her introduction scene the camera pans over her sweating body, starting from stomach, panning over her legs, and finally her breast, and face – I kid you not, but this scene is uncomfortably long, maybe a 2-3 minutes. This theme continues in the movie, because Sam’s whole family comments on Mikaela and her looks, but even the robots in the movie are commenting, which seems a bit odd since they don’t have any concept of attraction or gender attraction, but yes, the movie goes there, because for some reason it thinks it needs to (Robotic Gaze? I am not sure, as we also see a little robot trying to hump Mikaela’s leg for no apparent reason). We notice that after Sam graduate’s college, he is going to a 4-year university while his girl-friend has no goals afterwards, none that she mentions, or the movie ever brings up. Mikaela is just there to be saved by Sam, first by her weird boy-friend, second by the hordes of transformers that are invading the earth.  When in trouble Mikaela screams from scene to scene and is not able to take decisions on her own unless Sam or the autoboots (good transformers) are there to make the choice for her. Sam’s mon the only other important female character and is also given zero depth to her character, her main purpose in the movie is to make jokes, that aren’t very funny, she is very one dimensional, and shown how a cool mom figure should behave, but nothing she does is cool – e.g. commenting on Sam’s girlfriend, laughing at her dogs having sex, getting high and making wise cracking jokes. The things are funny, but again they make the character look very stupid, because besides these things she is helpful to the movie in any other way. Male gaze is extremely evident in this movie, misogynistic themes are present all over the place.

Another thing that a critical viewer will notice is the lack of black female characters. The movie has no black female characters at (Bell Hooks – Oppositional Gaze) – since there is a lack of female representation oppositional gaze can still be applied to women in this film. The issue is that how can female audiences of color connect themselves to this movie? Well they can’t – at all, due to the lack of representation – they are not represented and missing. Most people of color in this movie serve as comic relief characters, but that’s a topic large enough to be discussed by itself. We see that (Mulvey) that the male protagonist is manipulating the plot while the female alongside is just along for the ride and accommodate his needs.

Overall the lack of strong female characters, and their representation in this transformers movie has led to be more critical of the series, and as new transformers movies have been released in the past few years, which I have also seen due to requests from friends, and family members the issues from the first movie are exacerbated, and criticized by the audience, and reviewers. Even though the Transformers movie premise is a fun and exciting one, I think the director should take a different approach. If the movie wants to focus on drama, it should give its male, and female characters stronger, more intellectual character development. The main protagonist could be a strong, independent female/ female of color. (like the one from the fallout game series, or like the one from the newest tomb raider game). I also think that the film deserves a new director, as Michael Bay has made the issues worse in the later iterations of the movie. Nothing against Mr. Bay, but sometimes it is helpful to apply new ideas instead of rehashing old ones. Come on Hollywood “Just Do it” – and yes I am not quoting Nike, its Shia LaBeouf.

 

Material used:

Laura Mulvey – Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (Male Gaze)

Bell Hooks – The Oppositional Gaze, Black Female Spectators

Dear Diary, the focus on appearance and too-be-looked-at-ness in my ascent to royalty

Dear Diary, the focus on appearance and too-be-looked-at-ness in my ascent to royalty

Princess Diaries 2 is iconic for its finishing scene with Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldo, prinCESS of Genovia, also called Mia, solidifying her power and equal rights as a woman by rejecting the antiquated law that states she needs to marry a man in order to rule. However, getting to that moment was not without its trials found in its counterpart, the original Princess Diaries, which focused on Mia’s appearance, to-be-looked-at-ness, and the threat of castration

The princess lessons given to Mia from Queen Clarisse were on the surface to encourage and develop manners and etiquette, however, much of the traditions and techniques taught are rooted in toxic gender roles and expectations. For example, the crossing of the ankles (a princess must not cross her knees) makes sure the woman takes up minimal space, a visual manifestation of the preferred minimal role women take in politics. It acts as a maneuver to shield the genitals. This can be tied to Mulvey’s psychoanalytic assertion that not having a penis is construed as a danger to males, “a woman’s lack of a penis implies a threat of castration” (Mulvey, 2002), therefore the tradition of crossing the ankles diminishes that threat.

Another lesson, learning to communicate with the fans, curtails the amount of time a woman can talk. This practice stems from when women were to be “seen, not heard,” and women had to be creative with their resources to adequately communicate.

Furthermore, the fixation with the physical appearance of women and the associated ability to rule is prominently problematic in this film. During the first meeting at the embassy, the queen immediately has Mia spin around to be assessed and visually dissected. This gives the audience permission to look and judge the appearance of Mia the first of a series of to-be-looked-at moments in the film. The queen noting with disapproval, remarks on Mia’s complexion, hairstyle, neck; complete with a backhanded compliment, “lovely eyes hidden beneath bushy eyebrows.” The focus on appearance is exacerbated by the makeover scene, where her original appearance literally induced a scream from Paulo and is comforted with “don’t worry, in Pablo’s hands, you will be beautiful.” Her curly hair and bushy eyebrows, portrayed as jokes, are “fixed” resulting in straight hair, groomed eyebrows, and makeup.

Enhancing or even changing features is not a bad thing or unfeminist; it allows a person to more fully look how they feel and provide confidence and authenticity. However, these changes were not initiated by Mia, but were demanded upon her so she fit more into the image of a ruler. “Better, much better,” is the Queen’s seal of approval. While not necessarily erotic, pandering to society’s view as to what constitutes as beautiful in order to be an adequate display for the royal family increases Mia’s “to-be-looked-at-ness,” as coined by Mulvey (Mulvey, 38.) When looking at herself in the mirror, Mia is not joyful or eager about her new look, but rather looks into the mirror apprehensively and a bit lost.

 

The paparazzi presents its own challenges. One of the first questions Mia gets from the press after her momentous ascent into royalty is what her solution for pimples are, again focus primarily on her appearance. Moreover, the paparazzi’s goal for the beach party is to catch Mia in a vulnerable position, both kissing a boy, Josh, and while changing out of her swimsuit.

We do get a victory when Mia reacts to the mistreatment she received from her crush, Josh, a boy who has ignored her up until her royal status was revealed. Previous to her role as princess, she either stared longing at him from afar or sheepishly looked away when their paths’ crossed. However, after his manipulation at the beach party, she invokes the Oppositional Gaze by staring at him with intense disdain and drills him in the genitals with a softball in gym class. After standing up to his manipulation and careless treatment to her, Mia begins to find her inner confidence to lead and rule, emulating Hooks assertion “the ability to manipulate one’s gaze in the face of structures of domination that would contain it, opens up the possibility of agency” (Hooks, 248).     

 

Hooks, bell. (2002). “The Oppositional Gaze: Black Female Spectators,” in Black Looks: Race and Representation.

Mulvey, Laura (1975) ” Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Screen.

Call Me By Your Name…& Tell Me What You Really Think of this Film!

 

Call Me By Your Name is an excellent example of the failings of New Queer Cinema as outlined by Leung. Ostensibly dealing with the gay relationship between a 17 year old (Elio) and a 24 year old (Oliver) , the film is far from a realistic representation of gay youth and relationships, without even addressing the age gap. The book, on which the film was based, was written by a straight man. Therefore, it seems impossible even from the start that the book and film could capture an authentic gay experience. The film itself is clearly more concerned with aesthetic and visual appeal of the story than characterization, and prefers long, lush silences to real character building. Leung highlights the commodification of New Queer Cinema, which is a concept clearly present in CMBYN: “The apparent increase in tolerance for and visibility of queer communities merely reflects a ‘virtual equality’ that masks the absence of genuine and fundamental systemic changes. It is precisely under this climate of ‘virtual equality’ that New Queer Cinema’s once outlawed and marginalized representations of sexuality become transformed into palatable, even marketable, commodities” (Leung 2).

 

The film’s callous portrayal of a 17 year old and 24 year old not only plays into stereotypes of the predatory gay man, but also presents a titillating gay story through the age gap and general “uniqueness” of the queer storyline. Rather than developing strong gay characters with a realistic relationship, this film seeks to draw people in with the main gay relationship but then does it absolutely no justice. The movie focuses far more on the story itself than on either of the 2 main characters. The viewer gets no insight into what would seem to be the most critical aspect of the movie: Elio and Oliver’s relationship with their own homosexuality. Without any examination of their relationship towards and level of acceptance of their own sexuality, the film lacks any kind of moving, realistic portrayal of queerness.

 

The gay relationship present in the film is an exact representation of the commodifying that Leung writes about; the storyline is packaged in beautiful scenery, a lack of character building between the two gay characters, and a tragic ending all show this presentation of homosexuality as a unique film trope, making the 2 main characters and their sexuality actually more of a forethought than the main aspect of the film.

^^That’s how I felt watching the movie…!

T.E. Lawrence; War Hero or White Savior Culture Vulture? The White Savior Complex in Lawrence of Arabia

Awarded 7 Oscars, including Best Picture, the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture, (IMDB) and boasting a 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Lawrence of Arabia is regarded as one of the greatest and most important films in cinematic history. Released in 1962, Lawrence of Arabia has since endured ever-changing social and political landscapes, which inevitably impact the ways in which the film is interpreted. More recently, the film has been dubbed an “Anti-imperialist, Orientalist Epic,” (Caton) recognizing it’s temporally progressive critique on colonialism while also indulging in Orientalist ways of knowing. The protagonist, a WWI era British officer T.E. Lawrence is chosen to oversee the Arabs’ revolt against the Ottoman Empire, as he is well educated in the region and the Arabic language. The zealous T.E Lawrence soon becomes consumed by Arab culture, abandoning parts of his English identity while retaining his sense of western, white superiority over his Arab peers.

The white savior complex in film is the narrative of a white person rescuing people of color (POC) from their experienced oppression. This narrative is commonly coupled with the stereotyping and flattening of POC characters, suggesting that the white character gives breadth and totality to the POC characters. These themes are alluded to in the articles written by Gignac and McMahon about The Revenant, as they comment on the POC presence in the film being defined by “tired tropes,” (McMahon) and how the “indigeneity seems ultimately subservient to the white protagonist.” (Gignac) The similar use of stereotypes and tropes is explicit in Lawrence of Arabia’s portrayal of Arabs. The film reduces their characters by situating them in a subordinate, auxiliary role within Lawrence’s life and the movie. It is understood that without Lawrence’s aryan leadership, the Arabs wouldn’t stand a chance against the Turks. Lawrence becomes responsible for the critical thinking and leadership necessary to lead an army, as the Arabs could not handle this themselves.

Like a buffet, Lawrence chooses the things he wants from Arab culture, while still retaining his sense of superiority and preeminence over the “cruel and barbarous” Arabs. There is internal dissonance in the fact that Lawrence so desperately wants to belong to a culture he feels is below him in many ways. In the end, Lawrence realizes the fault in his role-playing, feels shameful in his empty acculturation, adding a dimension that is not always seen in the white savior narrative. Although he comes to some sort of revelation, the white savior narrative is still prevalent and important in understanding the impact of this international epic.

The othering of POC, especially those from the Eastern and Middle Eastern parts of the world is a systemic process of knowledge and power that has been embedded in global society for decades. Although it is more critical of imperialism and colonialism than other media of its time, it still contains orientalist coding through the portrayal of Arab and other middle eastern people’s as uncivilized and backward through their depicted inadequate strategic thinking and problem-solving. Because of its high stature and characterization as one of the first International Films (in regards to international production, filming, actors, etc), it should be scrutinized for is impact on international implications of knowledge and power. Greg Smith discusses the deliberate intention behind film production and states, “all cultural products carry cultural meaning.” (Smith, 132) Lawrence of Arabia was purposefully created and edited this way and therefore gives license to its critics. It is important to revisit Lawrence of Arabia and similar movies with each decade to further understand its role in the early and modern postcolonial world

 

Works Cited

Caton, Steven. “Lawrence of Arabia.” Oxford Index, 1999, doi:10.1525/california/9780520210820.001.0001.

Gignac, Julien. “The Revenant’s White-Saviour Complex.” The Globe and Mail, The Globe and Mail, 16 May 2018, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/the-revenants-white-saviour-complex/article28320619/.

“Lawrence of Arabia.” IMDb, IMDb.com, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056172/plotsummary?ref_=tt_stry_pl.

McMahon, Ryan. “Indigenous People’s Stories Need More than Just Leonardo DiCaprio’s Speech.” Vice, Vice, 11 Jan. 2016, http://www.vice.com/en_us/article/kwx53z/indigenous-peoples-stories-need-more-than-just-leonardo-dicaprios-speech.

Smith, Greg M. “‘It’s Just a Movie’: A Teaching Essay for Introductory Media Classes.” Cinema Journal, vol. 41, no. 1, 2001, pp. 127–134., doi:10.1353/cj.2001.0025.

Ariana says “thank u, next” to penis

Following the ending of her iconic and highly publicized engagement with Pete Davidson, Ariana Grande released “thank u, next,” the first single from her forthcoming album. The lyrics address her past relationships, and what she’s learned from them. The second verse explains that she’s chosen to focus on her relationship with herself. “Plus, I met someone else. We havin’ better discussions. I know they say I move on too fast. But this one gon’ last. ‘Cause her name is Ari. And I’m so good with that” (Grande). She also explains the things she’s learned from herself, like love, patience, and how to handle pain. This portion of the song can be applied to Mulvey’s concept of the symbolic, and women’s lack of phallus.

“…The female figure poses a deeper problem. She also connotes something that the look continually circles around but disavows: her lack of a penis, implying that a threat of castration and hence unpleasure. Ultimately, the meaning of woman is sexual difference, the absence of the penis is visually ascertainable, the material evidence on which is based the castration complex essential for the organization of entrance to the symbolic order and the law of the father. Thus the woman as icon, displayed for the gaze and enjoyment of men, the active controllers of the look, always threatens to evoke anxiety it originally signified” (Mulvey, 35). Ariana choosing to partake in a relationship with herself, a woman, goes against societal norms, and comes back to the fear of women’s lack of a phallus.

Grande, Ariana. “Thank u, next.” Thank U, Next. Republic. 2018. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEhZAHZQyf4

Mulvey, Laura. (1975). “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Screen 16(3), 35.

The Male Gaze in Transformers (2007)

In Laura Mulvey’s Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, she explains the theory of the male gaze in cinema. This theory revolves around the idea that women “connote a to-be-looked-at-ness” while men (specifically heterosexual men) are the bearers of that look (Mulvey, 33). Most popular movies are filmed in ways that present women in a way such that it would satisfy the masculine scopophilia.

A prominent example of the male gaze in film can be seen in the 2007 film Transformers. Although the male gaze is present throughout most of the movie, I am going to be talking about one specific scene.

You can watch it here.

The scene starts off with a shot of the backside of Mikaela (played by Megan fox) walking. She is wearing a short skirt and a fitted cut off shift, and has long hair that bounces as she walks. This image was clearly made to satisfy the desires of the male audience members. Moments later, we see Sam (played by Shia LaBeouf) intensely gazing upon Mikaela’s body.

As she walks away with a heavy sway in hips, Sam approaches her and invites her into his car. While in the car, Sam spends almost no time looking away from Mikaela. His eyes are flickering between her lips coated in a shiny gloss and her chest. I am unsure as to how he managed to not crash his car, given the amount of time his eyes were actually on the road. After his car conveniently breaks down, Mikaela gets out to take a look. The camera narrowly focuses on her body and pans upwards, another clear indication that this scene was meant to satisfy the male audience members. We as audience members are being shown what Sam is seeing when he looks at Mikaela.

There is the slightest hint of character development when Mikaela reveals that she knows so much about cars because of her dad. However, this character development likely only serves to distract from the fact that she is only present to satisfy the masculine scopophilic desires of Sam and the audience.

 

Mulvey, Laura. “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Issues in Feminist Film Criticism, 1990, pp. 33.

Godly is a Woman in Bed

The song God is a Woman by Ariana Grande, released in July of 2018, is a confusing disappointment to all who expected an empowering, inspiring message for women. As illustrated in the lyrics of the chorus, the single is referring not to the strength and life force of a woman, but her sexual prowess. As the chorus goes, “You, you love it how I move you. You love it how I touch you, my one. When all is said and done. You’ll believe God is a woman”(Genius). These words indicate that it is through sexual performance that women are believed godly. She straddles the world in a seductive manner and when she grows a baby belly it is coupled with the lyrics “and boy if you confess, you might get blessed.”

Another confusing moment in the music video was the screaming beavers. In an interview on the Zach Sang Show, Ariana Grande explained that the beavers were representing pussy and “it was supposed to represent the frustration of being a misunderstood woman…, to be seen also as not just a vessel for sex”(Ariana Grande Talks God Is A Woman 3:37-4:10). Her explanation of what this scene meant reveals that her true intent was to address the issue of women being objectified by the male gaze. However, her lyrics and other aspects of the music video collide with this rationale. Mulvey’s concept of looking pleasure is reflected in Grande’s video, more specifically, the scopophilic variety characterized by objectification of a person’s sexuality through watching. Though there is no man in the video, the audience is comprised of spectators, who see her “isolated, glamorous, on display, sexualized”(Mulvey 35).

Grande’s song does not do its title justice and is a failed attempt at increasing awareness around serious challenges women face in a misogynistic world. Whether Grande’s motive was to voice that woman are the independent vitality of the world or express the significance of sexual liberation for women empowerment is a blur. Without seeing the music video, this song sounds like a love song to a man rather than an appeal to women united.

 

“Ariana Grande – ​God Is a Woman.” Genius, Genius Media Group Inc., 13 July 2018, genius.com/Ariana-grande-god-is-a-woman-lyrics.

Laura Mulvey; Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Screen, Volume 16, Issue 3, 1 October 1975, Pages 6–18, https://doi.org/10.1093/screen/16.3.6

Show, Zach Sang, director. Ariana Grande Talks God Is A Woman. YouTube, YouTube, 19 Aug. 2018, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOTPgR9zYUI&feature=youtu.be.

 

Media Example: Sexuality and Agency

Media Example: Sexuality and Agency: “ Barbarella” with Jane Fonda vs Gillian Anderson in “ The Fall” by Nancy Neidt

The portrayal of woman as sexual beings has often focused on their sexuality as a function of the male gaze, a form of fantasy that leads to erotic spectacle. “ In a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive female. The determining male gaze projects its fantasy onto the female figure, which is styled accordingly. In their traditional exhibitionist role woman are simultaneously looked and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness. Women displayed as sexual objects is the leitmotif of erotic spectacle…” Mulvay, 1990, p. 33.) Jane Fonda in the 1970’s science fiction movie “ Barbarella” is a classic example of the erotic spectacle, starting with her first scene stripping as she enters a space ship. The space ship is taking her to a planet where there are machines that provide pleasure, and sex is done physically, the old fashion way.

However, Barbarella comes from a planet in which sex is no longer a physical act, but is evoked with pills. During her adventures on the planet, she meets a male who wishes to try the pills, but she prefers this new found physicality.

 

However, DiIdano, the space man prevails, and they have sex using the pills, with some interesting results.

Dildano takes a bit longer in his sexual climax, while Barbarella forgets where they are, and smooths out her hair. She notices he continues and finishes the process to bring mutuality.

However, in her quest for the space man who created a weapon that has the possibility of altering history, she is captured and forced to endure another form of sex, via a machine called the Organsimatron, or the Excessive. “ The mass of mainstream film….portray(s) a hermetically sealed world which unwinds magically, indifferent to the presence of the audience, producing for them a sense of separation and playing on their voyeuristic fantasy’” Mulvay, 1990,( p.31). In these scenes, Barbarella is the epitome of the classic male fantasy, until…..

Barbarella creates a Hard stop in the story line, finding the Orgasmatron pleasant, and eventually breaks the machine without intending to, due to her infinite capacity for orgasm; much to the chagrin of her torturer.

Orgasmatron Crashing

“ The presence of women is an indispensable element of spectacle in normal narrative film, yet her visual presence tends to work against the development of the story line, to freeze the flow of action in moments of erotic contemplation. This alien presence then has to be integrated into cohesion with the narrative.” Mulvay, 1990, p. 33)

Barbarella and revived angel
However, is not only an object, but also bigins showing agency. Barbarella meets an angel who can no longer fly. She is able to bring the story back to the original narrative, her search for the creater of the weapon that can alter the future. She restores the Angel’s flying power by having sex with him, and the mission is continued as they search for and eventually find the creator of the weapon, who ends up being the man who attempted to torture her with the Orgasmatron.  Barbarella’s journey in some senses paralells the journey of feminism, with the sexual revolution, and the beginnings of agency and a sense of identity among women.
As a counterpart, Gillian Anderson, in the tv series “ The Fall” is a modern day intelligent detective tracking down a serial killer. Throughout the majority of the three seasons, she is portrayed as an authorative professional. But she also is a woman with agency when it comes to her sexuality, chosing the men she wishes to have sex with, and basically keeping these encounters in the background, as she does her more important work of finding a serial killer.

Stella and serial killer Paul

Anderson as Stella is professional educated woman who commands the respect of her peers. “ Here, curiosity and the wish to look intermingle with a fascination with likeness and recognition” ( Mulvay, 1990, p.31) She is someone a modern woman can possibly relate to, although she does present as a “cold logical woman” as described by the critics, with a hidden passionate sexual nature. As part of this nature, she chooses younger men whom she controls, while sharing her passion.

While both Barbarella and Stella’s behavior are in some ways indicative of their times, they also differ in degree of agency . Barbarella with her innocence and multiple partners follows the looser moral climate of the 70’s, and is still more a reflection of the male gaze than an independent woman with agency.

Stella certainly has agency, and is relatable as a multidimensional person, rather than as a reflection of the male gaze. But Stella’s sexual activities play a part in the storyline as well, perhaps softening her “cold logic”, but also rebelling against moral judgements, considering herself her own judge and jury. “Identity is constituted ‘not outside but within representation, and invites us to see film, not as a second-order mirror held up to reflect what already exists, but as that form of representation which is able to constitute us as new kinds of subject, and thereby enable us to discover who we are”.” Stuart Hall cited in Hooks, 2002, p264.” Stella is constantly reflecting upon herself during her jouney, as portrayed by her serious gaze into the mirror, and constant journaling. Stella has made strides forward, but still remains as a sexual object despite her choosing when and where she interacts with men.

Hooks, bell. (2002). “ The Oppositional Gaze: Black Female Spectators,” om Black Looks: Race and Representation, 115-131.
Mulvay, Laura. (1975). “ Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” Screen 16(3), 6-18.

Photo clips from:
Youtube. “Barbarella in the Excessive Machine.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX2hTObHfxM
Youtube. “Barbarella di Roger Vadim-The Trailer.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWhwpnK92Yc&t=46s
Youtube. “The Fall”-Trailer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyFrBC1rAcg
Netflix: “The Fall” Season 1, Episode 2-Darkness Visible.