The intention of this essay is to explore the theories proposed by Laura Mulvey in her essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema' (published in 1975), based on a critical textual analysis of film posters both from the era that the essay was published in, as well as contemporary examples of Hollywood/Mainstream narrative cinema, to review whether the way females are represented has altered or developed. Film posters provide an interesting foundation for analysis: as promotional material for a mainstream film, they become either a concentrated or simplified representation of the feature, designed to give a prospective target audience an indication of the central themes, genre and plot. As well as certain key conventions such as use of colour, tag lines etc. that connote these aspects to the viewer, the way the film's characters appear on the poster is central to our reading of the text, and are rife with their own signifiers and codes that provide an audience with a basic understanding of their role's value or purpose.
On a deeper level, like any form of advertising, film posters also provide insight into popular culture's dominant ideologies. Laura Mulvey's influential essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema' uses Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan, and their theories of psychoanalysis as the foundation for her hypothesis on Hollywood and Mainstream cinema's perpetuation of a dominant patriarchal ideology.
She identified 'two contradictory aspects of the pleasurable structures of looking in the conventional cinematic situation'(Mulvey, n.d, 61 ): scopophilia and identification. Scopophilia, as based on Freud's findings in 'Three Essays on Sexuality' is the pleasure of looking, and the pleasure of taking other people as objects, whilst identification, based on Lacan's theories of the 'mirror stage' of childhood, is crucial to the development of the ego and the human's narcissistic tendencies. Mulvey stated that in a world underpinned by its sexual imbalance, 'pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female.'(Mulvey, n.d ,62) The two contradictory aspects of looking can be applied to the male gaze in cinema thusly: the male objectifies the female character, and takes pleasure in viewing her as a sexual object (the scopophilic aspect), whilst identifying with the male character, and viewing him narcissistically as an extension of himself (the identification aspect).
At the time of the essay's publication, possibly the most relevant texts to follow Mulvey's active male/passive female structure of mainstream cinema were the James Bond series of films, which in the 1970's were mainly directed by Guy Hamilton. James Bond embodies the ultimate male hero in cinema - his life is one of threatening but exhilarating missions (where his safety is endangered but ultimately guaranteed), fast cars, luxury living, and most importantly to Bond (and to Mulvey), a series of sexual encounters with attractive but dispensable females whose only purpose is to validate his ego and help him to pass the time between his more important scenes in the film. The Bond girls thus fulfil their role 'as erotic object for the characters within the screen story, and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium' (Mulvey, n.d, 62) The film allows the spectator to live out this fantasy role of international man of mystery, and to view the female characters from the same shallow and voyeuristic perspective as Bond does, all from the safety of their seat in the cinema.
Although the promotional material for the Bond films would not be viewed in this manner, and instead would be viewed in passing by the public, the representations of the male and the female characters are clear cut for the audience. Each of the posters includes the iconic image of a tuxedo-clad Bond: His stance is one of power and strength as he faces towards the audience with a look of both determination and arrogance, holding the gun at an angle towards his face, whilst leaving the other arm crossed. Each of these signifiers contributes to the understanding as an audience that James Bond is the active male character, (although due to the film's popularity there would already be a prior understanding of this). His position on the poster is central, which again connotes the fact that he is the central role, whilst also suggesting his domination of the females that surround him.
To compliment this, the females have been placed in 'the classic role of exhibitionist; they are looked at and displayed as sexual objects' (Denzin, 1995, 43) which is made obvious by the way they appear on the poster. They pose semi pornographically around him, dressed in very little, and whilst some look to the audience, it is not with anything other than the purpose to arouse and garner attention. It is made clear to the audience through this representation that their roles in the film are decorative, and the exhibition of their bodies is used to satisfy both Bond's and the audiences voyeuristic needs.
More recently, the posters for the Bond films have been far more subtle, which suggests that some progress has been made, even if the most notable difference is the women that appear, now only one at a time, are in a more decent state of dress. In fact, there is quite a clear development looking at just these three images in relation to one another, without even considering the posters from the 1970's. In the Casino Royale poster, Bond's image is still the one that dominates most clearly, with his body taking up the majority of the poster's space. Unlike the Bond played by Connery and Moore, the Bond in this image, whilst still in a position of activity, looks out into the distance with a sense of anger, as opposed to towards the audience with an inflated sense of self, which perhaps signals a shift in Bond's attitude or character. This look is repeated in Quantum of Solace. The typical Bond girl (blonde, buxom, semi naked) has been replaced in both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace with a more dignified female character, albeit ones who still have notable assets. In Casino Royale the female (played by Eva Green) actively looks towards Bond, and her stance is stronger, however she still takes up only a limited space, and her gaze is directed towards Bond, suggesting his power over her.
In Quantum of Solace, the poster represents both the male and the female on an almost equal footing, which connotes that the Bond girl has more of a purpose and active role in the film, as opposed to simply being an object of desire.
Skyfall, the most recent Bond film, dispenses with the inclusion of the female altogether, which is a significant development. The image of Bond now appears to return to one of strength and confidence, not dissimilar to the arrogant illustrations of Roger Moore and Sean Connery, although perhaps with a little more subtlety. This is connoted through his robust, solid stance, the stern gaze he fixes towards the spectator, and his composed presentation. The absence of a passive feminine presence perhaps signifies that the narrative relies on Bond, without the need for a superficial female distraction. It could signify the Bond's franchises readiness to be taken more seriously, and of Hollywood's awareness of a shifting attitude in how females are represented in mainstream films.
This may be evident in the wider breath of films that include more active and prominent roles for females in contemporary cinema, such as some of the highest grossing films of the 21st Century, including Mamma Mia, the Twilight Saga and The Sex and the City Franchise, as noted by Jennifer Todd and Martha Lauzen in a video discussing the subject of Women in Film titled Missrepresentation: Women and Film - Supply and Demand (MissRepresentation 2, 2012) . In each of these films the main protagonists are female, and in the case of Mamma Mia and Sex and the City, the other central roles are also female.
Whilst the posters created for them may challenge Mulvey's theory that males are the dominating presence in mainstream cinema narratives, it is debatable whether or not they are still being represented as objects that connote 'to-be-looked-at-ness'(Mulvey, page number, year). Whilst their physical attributes may differ from those presented on the Bond posters of the 60's and 70's, they can all still be recognised as conventionally attractive, particularly Amanda Seyfried and Kristen Stewart, who are young, slim and pretty. The characters presented here also all fit quite clearly into the typically restricted representations of women in Hollywood cinema as either 'virgin, mother or whore.' (BFI Screen Online, n.d).
The best example of this is Mamma Mia. Amanda Seyfried can be said to fit the 'virgin' role: best connoted to the audience with her youthful and innocent appearance, her long white dress and her reserved stance to the audience. Meanwhile, Meryl Streep slots perfectly into the 'mother' role, which is connoted to us mainly by the audience's prior knowledge of her age and previous roles, but also by her more masculine attire that suggests to the audience that we are not to be concerned with her looks, and her presence at the centre of the poster which provides her with a sense of importance and parental authority.
These restrictive but supposedly active roles show that whilst there may be a larger quantity of mainstream female driven films being produced, they are still rooted in a somewhat old fashioned and patriarchal understanding of what it can mean to be a female.
A significant example of this, that reinforces Mulvey's theories and displays Hollywood's reluctance to provide the audience with an alternative representation of a woman, and to place a strong and active female character at the centre of mainstream cinema is their adaptation of bestselling novel 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'. It was first released as a Swedish film directed by Niels Arden Oplev in 2009, before being remade by American director David Fincher in 2011.
The promotional material created for the American release featured several glaring differences to its Swedish counterpart.
Bibliography
Cardwell, S. (2003-2012). Female Protagonists. Available: http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/824016/index.html. Last accessed 20th January 2013.
N, Denzin. (1995). The Voyeur's Desire. In: N, Denzin The Cinematic Society - The Voyeur's Gaze. Londin: SAGE Publications Ltd. . 42-63
Mulvey, L., n.d, Visual and Other Pleasures [ebook] Available at: [Accessed 28th January 2013]. - this will be amended before the final deadline, all of the physical book versions had been taken from the library so I have done my best to source it online, however, the source has limited information and is part of a compilation book, the name of which has not been stated
At the time of the essay's publication, possibly the most relevant texts to follow Mulvey's active male/passive female structure of mainstream cinema were the James Bond series of films, which in the 1970's were mainly directed by Guy Hamilton. James Bond embodies the ultimate male hero in cinema - his life is one of threatening but exhilarating missions (where his safety is endangered but ultimately guaranteed), fast cars, luxury living, and most importantly to Bond (and to Mulvey), a series of sexual encounters with attractive but dispensable females whose only purpose is to validate his ego and help him to pass the time between his more important scenes in the film. The Bond girls thus fulfil their role 'as erotic object for the characters within the screen story, and as erotic object for the spectator within the auditorium' (Mulvey, n.d, 62) The film allows the spectator to live out this fantasy role of international man of mystery, and to view the female characters from the same shallow and voyeuristic perspective as Bond does, all from the safety of their seat in the cinema.
Although the promotional material for the Bond films would not be viewed in this manner, and instead would be viewed in passing by the public, the representations of the male and the female characters are clear cut for the audience. Each of the posters includes the iconic image of a tuxedo-clad Bond: His stance is one of power and strength as he faces towards the audience with a look of both determination and arrogance, holding the gun at an angle towards his face, whilst leaving the other arm crossed. Each of these signifiers contributes to the understanding as an audience that James Bond is the active male character, (although due to the film's popularity there would already be a prior understanding of this). His position on the poster is central, which again connotes the fact that he is the central role, whilst also suggesting his domination of the females that surround him.
To compliment this, the females have been placed in 'the classic role of exhibitionist; they are looked at and displayed as sexual objects' (Denzin, 1995, 43) which is made obvious by the way they appear on the poster. They pose semi pornographically around him, dressed in very little, and whilst some look to the audience, it is not with anything other than the purpose to arouse and garner attention. It is made clear to the audience through this representation that their roles in the film are decorative, and the exhibition of their bodies is used to satisfy both Bond's and the audiences voyeuristic needs.
More recently, the posters for the Bond films have been far more subtle, which suggests that some progress has been made, even if the most notable difference is the women that appear, now only one at a time, are in a more decent state of dress. In fact, there is quite a clear development looking at just these three images in relation to one another, without even considering the posters from the 1970's. In the Casino Royale poster, Bond's image is still the one that dominates most clearly, with his body taking up the majority of the poster's space. Unlike the Bond played by Connery and Moore, the Bond in this image, whilst still in a position of activity, looks out into the distance with a sense of anger, as opposed to towards the audience with an inflated sense of self, which perhaps signals a shift in Bond's attitude or character. This look is repeated in Quantum of Solace. The typical Bond girl (blonde, buxom, semi naked) has been replaced in both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace with a more dignified female character, albeit ones who still have notable assets. In Casino Royale the female (played by Eva Green) actively looks towards Bond, and her stance is stronger, however she still takes up only a limited space, and her gaze is directed towards Bond, suggesting his power over her.
In Quantum of Solace, the poster represents both the male and the female on an almost equal footing, which connotes that the Bond girl has more of a purpose and active role in the film, as opposed to simply being an object of desire.
Skyfall, the most recent Bond film, dispenses with the inclusion of the female altogether, which is a significant development. The image of Bond now appears to return to one of strength and confidence, not dissimilar to the arrogant illustrations of Roger Moore and Sean Connery, although perhaps with a little more subtlety. This is connoted through his robust, solid stance, the stern gaze he fixes towards the spectator, and his composed presentation. The absence of a passive feminine presence perhaps signifies that the narrative relies on Bond, without the need for a superficial female distraction. It could signify the Bond's franchises readiness to be taken more seriously, and of Hollywood's awareness of a shifting attitude in how females are represented in mainstream films.
This may be evident in the wider breath of films that include more active and prominent roles for females in contemporary cinema, such as some of the highest grossing films of the 21st Century, including Mamma Mia, the Twilight Saga and The Sex and the City Franchise, as noted by Jennifer Todd and Martha Lauzen in a video discussing the subject of Women in Film titled Missrepresentation: Women and Film - Supply and Demand (MissRepresentation 2, 2012) . In each of these films the main protagonists are female, and in the case of Mamma Mia and Sex and the City, the other central roles are also female.
Whilst the posters created for them may challenge Mulvey's theory that males are the dominating presence in mainstream cinema narratives, it is debatable whether or not they are still being represented as objects that connote 'to-be-looked-at-ness'(Mulvey, page number, year). Whilst their physical attributes may differ from those presented on the Bond posters of the 60's and 70's, they can all still be recognised as conventionally attractive, particularly Amanda Seyfried and Kristen Stewart, who are young, slim and pretty. The characters presented here also all fit quite clearly into the typically restricted representations of women in Hollywood cinema as either 'virgin, mother or whore.' (BFI Screen Online, n.d).
The best example of this is Mamma Mia. Amanda Seyfried can be said to fit the 'virgin' role: best connoted to the audience with her youthful and innocent appearance, her long white dress and her reserved stance to the audience. Meanwhile, Meryl Streep slots perfectly into the 'mother' role, which is connoted to us mainly by the audience's prior knowledge of her age and previous roles, but also by her more masculine attire that suggests to the audience that we are not to be concerned with her looks, and her presence at the centre of the poster which provides her with a sense of importance and parental authority.
These restrictive but supposedly active roles show that whilst there may be a larger quantity of mainstream female driven films being produced, they are still rooted in a somewhat old fashioned and patriarchal understanding of what it can mean to be a female.
A significant example of this, that reinforces Mulvey's theories and displays Hollywood's reluctance to provide the audience with an alternative representation of a woman, and to place a strong and active female character at the centre of mainstream cinema is their adaptation of bestselling novel 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'. It was first released as a Swedish film directed by Niels Arden Oplev in 2009, before being remade by American director David Fincher in 2011.
The promotional material created for the American release featured several glaring differences to its Swedish counterpart.
The most obvious, and telling of these differences is the inclusion of Mikael Blomkvist's character (played by Daniel Craig) in the 2011 release. In the 2009 release, Blomkvist's character is omitted from the film posters, meaning that the character of Lisabeth Salander (played by Noomi Rapace) is the sole selling point of Oplev's release. The poster gives prominence to the female character; her face and shoulders dominate the poster, producing an image that connotes the female's importance and central role in the narrative. Blomkvist's character is unnecessary to the introductory reading of the text. The audience is led by the poster to understand that Salander is the main character, which is reinforced by the title of the film.
In contrast, the 2011 release places Craig's Blomkvist at the forefront of the image, whilst Mara's Salander is left a significantly smaller space to feature at the back of the poster. The audience, upon viewing this poster, are clearly being influenced to read this formation of the characters as an order of importance, with Salander's crucial and active role in the film now being undermined. Of course, there are several arguably rational explanations Hollywood can provide to excuse this disregard of the female. There is the fact that Daniel Craig, as an A List actor, is a major draw for a cinematic audience, who is likely to guarantee the film's success simply by being in it, due largely to his other key Hollywood role as James Bond, a point that is made by Sam Sarrowitz in his book Translating Hollywood: The World of Movie Posters, where he states 'posters designed for the US Market almost always stand out because of their emphasis on stars' (Sarrowitz, 6, 2007).
He lends the film a credibility that could not be secured in Hollywood by relying on the merits of Rooney Mara's acting abilities, particularly given the fact that she is a relatively unknown actress. By placing Craig at the forefront, Hollywood is hoping to signal to their target audience that the film is worthy of viewing. This in theory works particularly well considering the relative similarities in genre between the Bond films and the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (both are crime based, dramatic thrillers).
However, the producers of this poster have not simply relegated Mara's character to the background of the image, they have turned her on her side, so that she, unlike her 2009 counterpart, no longer faces the audience to directly address them. Rapace's Salander, as well as being the dominant feature of the 2009 poster, also stares directly into the space inhabited by the audience, her expression steely and determined. This again connotes her strength and domination in the film, and provides the character with a purpose the viewer is drawn to explore and investigate. Mara's Salander, however, stares into the periphery, her gaze unfocussed and weary, whilst Craig's Blomkvist faces the audience, with an intense yet mysterious gaze that performs in the same way as Rapace's Salander, to draw the viewer in with an intrigue. Mara is not so subtly being represented as a secondary, passive character, not lacking in similarity to that of a Bond poster: the main difference being, of course, that she is not what Hollywood would deem as a conventionally attractive female.
Although this point may be discredited with a deeper textual analysis of the actual narrative, in which Mara's Salander becomes integral to the narrative and is shown to be something of more or equal value to Craig's Blomkvist, to a prospective audience viewing this poster as they pass it either in the cinema or in the public, their understanding of this is limited by the advertising. As this was a high budget, Hollywood release, there would logically be a greater presence and distribution of this image than there would be of an alternative, foreign release like Oplev's adaptation, which simply reinforces the dominant ideology, and represses an alternative view of women.
It is somewhat conclusive from the texts that have been analysed that there have been no significant advances made by Hollywood and Mainstream cinema to commit to representing females in the same active roles that have been and are still currently being played by men. The sexual imbalance described by Mulvey may simply be too entrenched in society for there to ever be a change in this area. However, Hollywood as an entity should not be understood to represent western society as a whole, no matter how much it dominates it. It would be naive to consider that the limited view that is represented to us is something that is shared by the audiences, and it would be patronising to say that just because a text has been designed to be read a certain way by the spectator that it is necessarily accepted, or even interpreted this way. Mainstream cinema is often simply an escapist activity for the viewer, who is intelligent enough to know and understand that what is being represented is not 'the norm' that Hollywood perceives it to be. Looking to alternative producers of popular cinema, such as Britain, can provide more of a breadth of female roles, which, as stated by Sarah Cardwell 'with its perennial concern for realism, its desire to speak about ordinary lives and social concerns and its comparative lack of emphasis upon superficial beauty and glamour, has permitted a greater breadth of female representation' (BFI Screen Online, n.d). British, as well as 'alternative' American cinema are both able to provide western audiences with positive representations of females that will hopefully one day permeate the biggest and most successful releases of Hollywood studios.
Although this point may be discredited with a deeper textual analysis of the actual narrative, in which Mara's Salander becomes integral to the narrative and is shown to be something of more or equal value to Craig's Blomkvist, to a prospective audience viewing this poster as they pass it either in the cinema or in the public, their understanding of this is limited by the advertising. As this was a high budget, Hollywood release, there would logically be a greater presence and distribution of this image than there would be of an alternative, foreign release like Oplev's adaptation, which simply reinforces the dominant ideology, and represses an alternative view of women.
It is somewhat conclusive from the texts that have been analysed that there have been no significant advances made by Hollywood and Mainstream cinema to commit to representing females in the same active roles that have been and are still currently being played by men. The sexual imbalance described by Mulvey may simply be too entrenched in society for there to ever be a change in this area. However, Hollywood as an entity should not be understood to represent western society as a whole, no matter how much it dominates it. It would be naive to consider that the limited view that is represented to us is something that is shared by the audiences, and it would be patronising to say that just because a text has been designed to be read a certain way by the spectator that it is necessarily accepted, or even interpreted this way. Mainstream cinema is often simply an escapist activity for the viewer, who is intelligent enough to know and understand that what is being represented is not 'the norm' that Hollywood perceives it to be. Looking to alternative producers of popular cinema, such as Britain, can provide more of a breadth of female roles, which, as stated by Sarah Cardwell 'with its perennial concern for realism, its desire to speak about ordinary lives and social concerns and its comparative lack of emphasis upon superficial beauty and glamour, has permitted a greater breadth of female representation' (BFI Screen Online, n.d). British, as well as 'alternative' American cinema are both able to provide western audiences with positive representations of females that will hopefully one day permeate the biggest and most successful releases of Hollywood studios.
Bibliography
Cardwell, S. (2003-2012). Female Protagonists. Available: http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/824016/index.html. Last accessed 20th January 2013.
N, Denzin. (1995). The Voyeur's Desire. In: N, Denzin The Cinematic Society - The Voyeur's Gaze. Londin: SAGE Publications Ltd. . 42-63
MissRepresentation2, 2012 Miss Representation: Women and Film - Supply and Demand [video online] Available at: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo40Kwn1I-I>
[Accessed 20th January 2013]
Mulvey, L., n.d, Visual and Other Pleasures [ebook] Available at: [Accessed 28th January 2013]. - this will be amended before the final deadline, all of the physical book versions had been taken from the library so I have done my best to source it online, however, the source has limited information and is part of a compilation book, the name of which has not been stated
Sarowitz, S (2007). Translating Hollywood: The World of Movie Posters. New York: Mark Batty Publisher. 06.
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