Last night's televised Oscars awards ceremonies held a few surprises. One, I didn't think the indie film The Hurt Locker would end up winning as many awards as it did, and second, I definitely had my doubts that Kathryn Bigelow, the first woman to win in the director category, would finally get her due!! What an exciting night for women in film, or is it? I'm currently doing volunteer work for an upcoming conference on women in/and the media entertainment industry and let me tell ya, the stats are pretty dismal. Interestingly, the work begun by many second wave feminists - seeking gender equality through media reform - is still desperately needed. I admit, I have not always been attentive to the inequality that exists behind the scenes, as much of my own writing has tended to revolve around textual analyses of media texts utilizing feminist critique.I think part of the problem was the ways in which the movement 'essentialized' the debate - that is to say, the idea that if more women worked behind the lens this would result in more 'realistic' and 'feminist' stories about, and images of women. Certainly, these kinds of stories are important and contribute much to media culture but what about women's enjoyment of other kinds of stories?
Bigelow is a perfect example of a female director who has carved out a rather unconventional space for herself, refusing to be 'ghettoized' directing 'women's films' (i.e., rom-coms) and instead, has tried her hand at various genres from horror, sci-fi, and action. Yet, feminists cannot exactly claim her as one their own despite her unusual position within the film industry. Despite this, we can enjoy her accomplishments, take pleasure in the genre-testing films she makes, as well as her construction of some amazing female characters. Go Kathryn!! Can't wait to see what she does next. Some of my fave Bigelow films:
Blue Steel - Jamie Lee Curtis plays a kick ass cop
Near Dark - one of the best vampire films ever made
Strange Days - an empowering sci-film featuring Angela Bassett
