We previewed The Princess and the Frog back in June, noting the potential perpetuation of racial stereotypes and lamenting yet another princess movie where the princess still portrays the humanly-impossible physique of all who came before her. I actually watched this. The movie flirts with improvement, at least in its attempt to make the heroine independent and career-focused. And for the most part, she maintains an active role throughout, which isn't a characteristic I associate with the former Disney princesses. But this time, one of her active roles becomes attempting to reform the prince. No thank you, Disney.
However, Matthew Belinkie at Overthinking It posts an interesting defense of The Princess and the Frog, arguing that even though it maintains traditional Disney Princess elements, it still manages to do things a little differently, in a good way. Definitely check out his article, and his Magical Disney Princess Chart below!
Oh Suicide Girls. Feminist? Anti-feminist? Since they burst on the scene in 2001, these women have certainly stirred up debate throughout the feminist community. From Megan Jean Harlow's article, "Suicide Girls: Tattooing as Radical Feminist Agency," to Wired's 2005 article, "SuicideGirls Gone AWOL," which reported that 30 models quit because "its embrace of the tattoo and nipple-ring set hides a world of exploitation and male domination" ... well, what's a feminist to do? If you're interested, check out the new documentary Suicide Girls: Guide to Living, which releases on DVD today. You can also watch the trailer here.
Of Veiled Voices, a documentary about feminism in Islam, Margot Badran writes, "The film, the first of its kind...is not to be missed by any who wish to enter the world of contemporary Islam with its lively gender dynamics being refashioned under our very eyes." And, contributing editor Mata H. over at BlogHer writes about the film as follows:
You can watch a trailer and read an interview with the producer/director Brigid Maher here.
However, Matthew Belinkie at Overthinking It posts an interesting defense of The Princess and the Frog, arguing that even though it maintains traditional Disney Princess elements, it still manages to do things a little differently, in a good way. Definitely check out his article, and his Magical Disney Princess Chart below!
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Oh Suicide Girls. Feminist? Anti-feminist? Since they burst on the scene in 2001, these women have certainly stirred up debate throughout the feminist community. From Megan Jean Harlow's article, "Suicide Girls: Tattooing as Radical Feminist Agency," to Wired's 2005 article, "SuicideGirls Gone AWOL," which reported that 30 models quit because "its embrace of the tattoo and nipple-ring set hides a world of exploitation and male domination" ... well, what's a feminist to do? If you're interested, check out the new documentary Suicide Girls: Guide to Living, which releases on DVD today. You can also watch the trailer here.
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Of Veiled Voices, a documentary about feminism in Islam, Margot Badran writes, "The film, the first of its kind...is not to be missed by any who wish to enter the world of contemporary Islam with its lively gender dynamics being refashioned under our very eyes." And, contributing editor Mata H. over at BlogHer writes about the film as follows:
This grassroots movement of women establishing themselves as teachers of Islam may seem like a non-event to the Westerner used to female clergy, female teachers, religious and secular classes and worship where the two sexes sit next to each other. But in most parts of the Arab world, the realities of the West are as foreign to them as their realities are to us. And as Huda's daughter says, all Americans are not George Bush, and all Arabs are not Osama bin Laden.
You can watch a trailer and read an interview with the producer/director Brigid Maher here.
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For those of you who didn't get to see Lesley Stahl's full 60 Minutes interview with Kathryn Bigelow, it's being released on DVD today. I'm sure many have seen clips of the interview, and Jezebel also covers it in good detail.
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I don't know much about the following films, but each of them focuses on women, and the stories appear to be interesting. If you see them (or have already), let us know what you think!
Broken Embraces
from amazon.com (this looks a little sketchy from the description): A luminous Penélope Cruz stars as an actress who sacrifices everything for true love in Broken Embraces, Academy Award -winning filmmaker (2003, Best Writing, Original Screenplay, Talk to Her) Pedro Almodóvar's acclaimed tale of sex, secrets and cinema. When her father becomes gravely ill, beautiful Lena (Cruz) consents to a relationship with her boss Ernesto (José Luis Gómez), a very wealthy, much-older man who pays for her father's hospitalization and provides her a lavish lifestyle. But Lena's dream is to act and soon she falls for the director of her first film - a project bankrolled by her husband to keep her near. Upon his discovery of the affair, Ernesto stops at nothing to ruin Lena's happiness.
Paris
from amazon.com: From Cédric Klapisch the award-winning writer/director of L AUBERGE ESPANGOLE comes a deliciously intimate new valentine to The City Of Lights featuring an all-star cast that includes Oscar®-winner Juliette Binoche (THE ENGLISH PATIENT), Romain Duris (THE BEAT THAT MY HEART SKIPPED), Mélanie Laurent (INGLORIOUS BASTERDS) and François Cluzet (TELL NO ONE). It s the story of a young Moulin Rouge dancer (Duris) awaiting a heart transplant, his single-mother/social worker sister (Binoche), and their rediscovery of the life, laughter and love that hides within every balcony, apartment window, street corner and market stall. These are the stories of the middle class and bourgeois, immigrants and students, fashion models and homeless, and all the lovers and strangers whose paths could only cross and whose worlds are about to change forever in PARIS.
Bandslam
from amazon.com: Not just another by-the-numbers teen-angst movie, Bandslam is a joyful expression of pop exuberance, with an unexpectedly thrilling (and retro) soundtrack and numerous moments of visual excitement. Actor-turned-director Todd Graff brings stylish imagination and heart to this story of a much-taunted and beleaguered kid named Will (Gaelan Connell), whose miserable life at a Cincinnati high school comes to an end when he and his single mom (Lisa Kudrow) move to New Jersey. At his new school, Will befriends two very different girls: the laconic Sa5m (High School Musical's Vanessa Hudgens; the "5" is silent), and the take-no-prisoners, former cheerleader Charlotte (Aly Michalka of the pop group Aly & AJ), who is trying to get her rock band off the ground. The latter sees in Will--a student of pop music history--a potential manager who can help her group take top prize at an inter-school competition called Bandslam.
America's Sweetheart: Gale Storm
from amazon.com: Winner of a national 1940s talent search on CBS radio's Gateway to Hollywood (a precursor to today's American Idol), Texas teen Josephine Cottle (now Gale Storm) literally took Hollywood by storm, becoming a legendary star of radio, film, television, records and stage. The wholesome, auburn-haired beauty won a contract with RKO Studio where she completed her schooling while filming. In 1941 alone, she starred in eight movies. Her debut television series in 1952, My Little Margie, a summer replacement for I Love Lucy, was a huge hit on live radio and TV. Following was the equally successful series, The Gale Storm Show, Oh! Susanna. A record breaking headliner at Las Vegas' famed Thunderbird Hotel, her first record, I hear You Knockin', sold over a million copies going 'gold' (platinum by today's standards). Other hits followed and she starred in many popular musical stage productions. The '50s icon continued to work into her later years, passing away in 2009. Also featuring Roy Rogers, Zasu Pitts, H.B. Warner, Frankie Darro, Mantan Moreland, Charles Farrell and more!
1 comment:
I wouldn't recommend Broken Embraces as it is the least feminist friendly of Almodovar's films. Penelope Cruz plays a cheating wife, a prostitute and an actress. While her performance is enjoyably watchable the cliches and cruelties her character(s) endures made me terribly uncomfortable.
If you can get through that it's a strikingly made film with good performances but the fetishisation/ destruction of women was a little too much for me.
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