Editor’s Pick
JUNE 30, 2009 9:59AM
Because girls only go to movies with romance in them...?
Apparently, once again, women are being told that they only go to movies for the mushy stuff. Check out this quote from David Germain's AP box office rundown:
"The sequel broadened the franchise's fan base. Females accounted for just 40 percent of the audience for the first "Transformers" but 46 percent for the sequel, (Paramount vice chairman Rob) Moore said. Much of that was due to the on-screen romance for the characters played by Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox, who were relative unknowns when the first movie came out.
Really? You really think that any more than a handful of women went to see Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen because of the thirty-seconds of romantic bantering between Megan Fox and Shia LeBeouf? Right, just like the only reason women saw 300 was because of the five-minute subplot involving the queen's attempts to rally support for her husband's army. And, don't forget Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace, which drew females only because of a female-friendly subplot involving Anakin having to say goodbye to his mother in order to run off to become a Jedi. And of course, the only reason any girl would ever go to a horror film like Scream is because they enjoy the ten-minute finale where the 'last victim' empowers herself, escapes certain death and slays/stops the murderer. No, it's not that women like getting scared and/or they enjoy blood and gore too, it's purely about female empowerment fantasy if you're a female.
All the examples above were actually punditry offered in the wake of those movies' successful box office runs (all but Scream were offered on opening weekend). God forbid we acknowledge that women often see loud, violent action adventure films and intense, gruesome horror films for the same reason that guys stereotypically see them. Some women like watching stuff get blown up. Some women like laser guns, space ships, and lightsaber sword fighting. Some women like getting scared and/or watching teenagers getting hacked to death. And yes, some women love the idea of hundreds of ripped, half-naked warriors hacking each other to pieces with swords. Some women of course like that for prurient reasons, but others still just enjoy the hack/slash carnage. On that note, just as many guys saw Transformers 2 partiallyto ogle Megan Fox, I'm sure more than a few women, young and old, went to Revenge of the Fallen in part to stare at Shia LeBeouf.
It's long since time to retire the sexist notion that women only go to movies that have 'womens' issues' or have 'feminine-friendly' subplots. Women go to movies for all kinds of reasons, many of them gender-neutral. True, some women go to movies like Transformers 2 or X-Men Origins: Wolverine because their romantic partner wants to go. And yes, some women go to such movies because they find the lead actors attractive. But it should be all-too obvious that many, if not most women who go to such movies go because they like them. They go to action films for the action, scary films for the scares, and science fiction fantasy for the science fiction fantasies. It's a pretty simple idea, but the pundits and executives still haven't figured that out.
Scott Mendelson
For more essays involving gender and the movies, try "Sex and the City and the differences between male and female escapist fantasy", "Yes, Twilight is sexist, but...", and "Chick Flicks that aren't" at Mendelson's Memos.
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mad_typist
Siobhan Curious
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Comments
"The Hangover".
I do love that woman.
Back to the kitchen now, since they think that's where I belong....
Of course, again, as a person with a uterus, I only paid attention to the romance. The above paragraph was probably just something my boyfriend told me to write :D
Both my husbands were happy to go to romantic movies.
Insight into their take on the love story thing ... They all remember Shia L. as nerdy Lewis Stevens from that Disney show Even Stevens so they have no interest in him. They also mostly find Megan Fox to be "whore-ish", so no real interest in her ... so I guess they mostly liked it for the noise and action and explosions. I, however, appreciated Tyrese Gibson who should have had a larger role or played Epps in the nude ... either way would be fine with me.
For myself, it's more about the quality of the movie. I will choose an action movie over a serious emotional movie if it gets better reviews and doesn't pander (too much - because face it, they pretty much all pander to some extent) to stereotypes. Life is too short to watch crap, and a lot of the action movies that are made are crap - just a lot of blowing things up and chasing/being chased, for no particular reason. A movie has got to have a good story line to get my money.
It is intriguing how marketing often raises interesting sociological questions. So, let’s see …
We’ve got an increase from 40 percent to 46 percent, and a portion of that increase, according to your quoted Paramount vice chairman Rob Moore, is due to “…the on-screen romance for the characters played by Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox, who were relative unknowns when the first movie came out.”
I think there are two elements being addressed in Rob Moore’s statemt; one is the romance, and the other is the increased star factor of both Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox.
I know a few women and they are all less drawn to “action films” than are all the men I know. My wife loves a good scary film just as much as the next person, but if there is a romance involved, it makes that film more attractive to her. I, however, do not attach nearly the same of level of significance to romance in a scary movie, nor do any of the men I know.
Men and women do, to some extent, view things through different filters, and so it seems reasonable to me that the romance and the increased star power of the two young actors might account for some of the small portion of increase attributed to those factors. But that doesn’t say that women only like movies with romance. I know women who hold political and historical interests, as well as liking a good scare, or a good thriller. As I think over the list of those women, though, every one of them is more attracted to romance than the men I know. Is that an insult to them?
That completely off-topic rant aside, in my experience, women like action films about as much as men of the same age. Perhaps they are slightly more demanding in terms of plot.
I'm not real sure what this says about me, but my friends don't call me Quirky for nuthin.
I can't stand social conditioning in any form!!!
2. Megan Fox Is hot, and some chicks like to look at other hot chicks.
3. I love scifi and ET and light sabers, etc. I also like to watch things blow up.
4. I am a woman.
With temps here in North Bay in the upper 90's I went to two movies this weekend (no AC @ home): Transformers and Taking of Pelham. And I tell ya what, Tony Scott, when the camera and the action was out of doors, delivered a couple of Awesome action scenes involving cop cars. Made people Jump out of their seats. Made me grab my face, like you do when you say, Oh My God, he's not --!
Interesting movie, Taking of Pelham 123. It's like two movies in one, the crazy, jumpframe hyped up outdoors part; and the snipey, mind gamey, quick dialogue indoors part. But sure had fun with the loud outdoors part. (Didn't think Travolta's character was Quite developed enough. Denzel did a good job with the martyred nerd role, almost nebbishy.)
Sheldon: If you're reading: The Proposal sucked. The Hangover--one of the best comedies I've ever seen...smart, funny, intelligent, great music and cinematography, even the crudeness is not gratuitous. Smart woman you've got there!
My mom loves action/adventure, kung fu, and "guy" comedies. I was raised on Bruce Willis, Harrison Ford, and Chuck Norris movies. I love superhero movies, especially if they're good. I just wish that there were more good action movies with smart female characters. Star Trek has a great girl, but that's just one girl. I was pissed off that the Watchmen killed off the lesbian in the beginning sequence. I was really disappointed by Haley Berry's Catwoman. She rocks. Catwoman rocks. But the movie sucked.
Hey, Hollywood, make some good action movies with girls in them!!!
Rated.
My wife used to regularly run screaming from the room whenever I watched MTV's Jackass- which I found unroariously funny, and she found it gratingly stupid.
(and Transformers 2 absolutely sucked, worst movie I've seen years for more reasons than I can count)
And really - robots with testicles? Robots humping legs? Ugh. It wasn't even cult bad.
Well....I guess that it wasn't bad, it was just juvenile. I prefer the X-men flicks, Spiderman, Dark Knight. They all have their ups and downs ( X-men 1, brilliant, Wolverine-not so much).
I loved the first Transformers, but yeah...the second one sucked monkey balls.
I would much rather watch robots fighting, stuff blowing up, etc. Give me a good action flick any day over the so-called "romantic comedies." I might not be close to the norm, though...I watch professional wrestling with my boys, and get just as into it as they do (the buff guys in tight briefs make it easy to watch.
Great post. Rated.
But I couldn't ogle her. Aside from her weird voice--am I the only one who thinks she upped her squeaky-and-breathiness quotient in this film to near Jackie O levels?--she's *too damn skinny*. She's there on a motorcycle for no reason other than to show us her ass--she *doesn't have one*. She's running around in a tight, low-cut top so we can enjoy the jiggle factor; she *doesn't have enough cleavage to jiggle*.
She's pretty enough, I suppose, but she's right in line with Kate Beckinsale and Charlize Theron and too many other skinny Hollywood actresses. Give me a Christina Hendricks or Asia Argento or (please!) Monica Bellucci any day.
I didn't see 300 because I heard from my comic book/graphic novel friends (I am, yes, a geek) that it didn't match the graphic novel well enough.
These money guys need to move a bit more into the 21st century. Their AGE is showing.