Monday, March 30, 2015

Final Project: The Complex to The Simple



For my final project I am going to create a website discussing how women have been portrayed in films throughout history. From the early day of talkies – to today’s blockbuster hits.  I want to touch on the gender biases portrayed in films and analyze its likeness to reality. I want to talk about character complexities and try and figure out how women went from complicated characters to simple-minded, sexualized characters. I know... not ALL movies have women portrayed as such but I it’s important to take note of when it all changed.

 

I am making this website for different reasons. One, being that I love to watch movies. Two, because I think it’s important to know how the world has been and is still portraying women. in films. My goal for making this website is to hopefully encourage more people/women to take initiative and portray women as they are in real life. I want to inspire women like Lena Dunham to keep creating non-gender-biased films.

 

So far, this is all brainstorming still. I’m researching articles that already talk about gender-roles in films throughout history and some interesting statistics about it as well. My plan is to conduct my own research by watching films from the 1920s and comparing them to today.



List of (possible)  Films to analyze:
1. Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)
2. The Public Enemy (1931)
3. Mildred Pierce (1945)
4. Sunset Blvd (1950)
5. Breakfast at Tiffanys (1961)
6. Chinatown (1974)
7. Scarface (1983)
8. Pulp Fiction (1994)

I want to grasp movies from each decade. So if anyone has any suggestions on which films to watch, I would really appreciate it!

Even after I leave this class and graduate from college, new movies will continue to be produced and viewed. Many of which will be analyzed and with my blog I can continue to analyze today’s views of the modern woman as they come out in theaters. Hopefully we will see a change in character personalities, and characteristics. But only time will tell.

 

Current resources:






2 comments:

  1. I love the idea of analyzing the gender binaries that have prevailed over time. From today’s standpoint it’s the norm to think of women as the sex objects in films, it has become the status quo. It would also be cool if you could see if the movies also pass the bechdel test. Below is a link to a list of films that are considered women’s favorites; this may be of use to your project:

    http://www.imdb.com/list/ls000054490/

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  2. Really cool topic! I like how you're not only studying modern day films but how women's representation has developed over time. Quentin Tarantino is my favorite so I thought this analysis of women in his films may be of use to you. Maybe you could talk about the end result of female characters, if they stay consistently objectified and passive throughout the film or if they eventually become liberated.

    http://the-artifice.com/evolutions-of-women-in-quentin-tarantino-movies-revenge/2/

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