IN THIS SECTION OF MY BLOG I AM GOING TO BE LOOKING AT HOW WOMEN ARE REPRESENTED IN MARKETING MATERIAL.
The texts I am going to include are a range of different marketing material, from the x-men poster to images from the trailer. I am going to be using the avengers posters and again still images from the trailer. With this i am going to deconstruct the material and draw conclusions after researching the connotations of posters.
First of all, there are some main assumptions and stereotypes that are established about women in "superhero" films. I have been able to identify these by using Propp's character functions and my research has ultimately shown that within superhero films are seen as the "love interest", "princess" or the "prize" causing them to be sexually objectified and therefore the "damsel in distress". The male seems to always take on the role of the hero and the female plays the person in need of rescuing and does not make a contribution towards the resolution or final outcome.
Analysis.
http://www.themarysue.com/x-men-apocalypse-poster/
http://www.themarysue.com/rose-mcgowan-x-men-apocalypse-poster/
http://everydayfeminism.com/2013/11/female-characters-superhero-films
In this poster Jenifer Lawrence (Mystique) is shown to be helplessly strangled by a character which is three times her size (Apocalypse). Lawrence is shown to be naked and although strong it is more due to athleticism rather than muscle which counteracts her opponents physique. Lawrence is shown to be held by the throat and due to the fact this image has no context at all as the poster was one of the main marketing pieces, standing by itself it detonates fighting and violence against women but the connotations of this image are helplessness as this single visual was chosen out of 144 minutes of film and has been used as a representation of your entire movie. Due to the fact the slogan line is "only the strong will survive" shows to me that the image is saying only powerful characters will survive and that women are basically weak due to the fact that Mystique is being choked and therefor loosing the battle. The image is very male dominated and we can see how much of the billboard the man takes up with his strong, large arms and how small and helpless Lawrence looks in comparison to him according to the space that she takes up on the billboard.
Ultimately this connotates a negative portrayal of women as this poster represents her character, we don't see any images of Mystique looking strong and powerful (fighting the enemy) which would be empowering for women and go against stereotypical ideals of superhero women but the fact Marvel chose this poster dampens the image of women as a whole creating a negative representation for the audience. By using this poster as one of the main marketing points Marvel will have seriously decreased sales of the film as women may believe that is not how they should be represented and therefore offended. Female audiences may find this upsetting due to the fact violence against women is almost being promoted here.
http://www.themarysue.com/x-men-apocalypse-poster/
http://www.themarysue.com/rose-mcgowan-x-men-apocalypse-poster/
http://everydayfeminism.com/2013/11/female-characters-superhero-films
In this poster Jenifer Lawrence (Mystique) is shown to be helplessly strangled by a character which is three times her size (Apocalypse). Lawrence is shown to be naked and although strong it is more due to athleticism rather than muscle which counteracts her opponents physique. Lawrence is shown to be held by the throat and due to the fact this image has no context at all as the poster was one of the main marketing pieces, standing by itself it detonates fighting and violence against women but the connotations of this image are helplessness as this single visual was chosen out of 144 minutes of film and has been used as a representation of your entire movie. Due to the fact the slogan line is "only the strong will survive" shows to me that the image is saying only powerful characters will survive and that women are basically weak due to the fact that Mystique is being choked and therefor loosing the battle. The image is very male dominated and we can see how much of the billboard the man takes up with his strong, large arms and how small and helpless Lawrence looks in comparison to him according to the space that she takes up on the billboard.
Ultimately this connotates a negative portrayal of women as this poster represents her character, we don't see any images of Mystique looking strong and powerful (fighting the enemy) which would be empowering for women and go against stereotypical ideals of superhero women but the fact Marvel chose this poster dampens the image of women as a whole creating a negative representation for the audience. By using this poster as one of the main marketing points Marvel will have seriously decreased sales of the film as women may believe that is not how they should be represented and therefore offended. Female audiences may find this upsetting due to the fact violence against women is almost being promoted here.
"Consider, for example, superhero movies like Spider-man or Superman. These action-packed films typically feature a strong, capable, intelligent man fighting a villainous force. The goal of course is to save humanity, but more often than not there is also an immediate need to rescue a damsel in distress. The female victim is typically delicate, naive, and defenseless, but at the same time sexy and beautiful. What she lacks in strength and cunning she makes up for in kindness and curves. It is not surprising (or insignificant) that she is often the object of the hero's affections."
From the information above I can establish that Wonder woman does not fit any of these stereotypes and therefore goes against the typical ideologies that many people have surrounding female superheroes, women can therefore be seen as positive role models for the audience to identify with and teach young girls that they do not have to objectify their body in order to be appreciated or acknowledged by a man. She outshines the boys, delighting in her own ability to kick bad-guy butt. It’s a glorious moment for fans who have been waiting many years for a female superhero to get a worthy big screen treatment. However, still in this image she seen as less powerful and the audience get the sense that the males in this image still dominate her. The two males in this image have a very powerful Saying this, wonder women's costume is very revealing and sexy which many could argue she is subject to the male gaze even though she is very empowering. At this point in the trailer we see Batman struggling for the first time, he appears to be trapped in the seat of his vehicle, whilst a fierce animal seems to spring itself onto batman the trailer cuts from the animal to batman struggling and finally to a wide high shot (birds eye view). In this shot the force and destruction which has come from the animal appears to be repelled by wonder woman's shield, this is obviously very unrealistic as all of that force cannot be avoided by a single shield. However the message of this scene is that wonder woman adopts the role of a stereotypical male superhero showing that the typical roles have been reversed.
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ANALYSISBatman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice Official final trailer. Picture from scene time 1:40-1:44.
http://time.com/4271356/wonder-woman-batman-v-superman/ http://time.com/4269544/batman-v-superman-easter-spoilers-easter-eggs/ http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-with-female-superheroes/ http://genderstudies.umwblogs.org/2014/10/09/feminist-themes-in-marvels-avengers-or-lack-therof-a-film-analysis/ (http://www.lse.ac.uk/media@lse/research/mediaWorkingPapers/MScDissertationSeries/2013/msc/112-Dutt.pdf) In this scene wonder women is seen as very powerful due to the fact she is standing in front of two men and her stance is suggesting that she is defending them from evil, the men look as if they feel like they're in danger due to the fact batman has his gun ready to retaliate against the villains. Wonder women is a very positive role model here due to the fact she is standing up for herself and not relying on a man to rescue her therefore not conforming to the stereotypical "damsel in distress" due to the fact she fights for herself and saving others. During the trailer and film wonder women doesn't ever have to seduce a villain in order to get her own way or win a battle in any way showing she is strong and independent. Moreover, because of this the audience have a very positive perception of wonder women and she may be seen as the face of feminism in terms of superheroes as she is not reliant on a male and shows women can be confident, strong, brave and sexy. |
ANALYSIS
In this poster Black Widow is represented as a very powerful, sexy, brave women who can stand up for herself, this goes against the expectations of how women are stereo typically seen in superhero films. Black widows unwavering and direct stare past the camera shows the audience that she is determined to kill and protect herself. However in this poster black widow is still wearing a very tight Lycra suit, this has been done for the male gaze, due to the fact that the director and therefore the encoder of this image is a man there is definitely a sense of the male gaze as well as making her seem attractive and desirable for the males who will watch the film. She doesn't however look innocent and cute she is represented as brave and powerful, mainly in control and fixed on what she wants due to the fact her eyes have a direct mode of address towards her target (looking past the gun and the camera) so we can't see who she is targeting but we know that she is therefore targeting.
"Scarlet Johnson's Black Widow has been subject to a higher level of scrutiny than any other character in the cast. Her costume, how she’s posed, what roles she gets to play, how much screen time, how much merchandise—every aspect of the character is weighted with meaning and expectation out of proportion to her place in the MCU. Even though, thus far, Black Widow has only ever appeared in other character’s movies and in supporting roles, as the only female, Natasha is not merely herself, a singular character, but she also carries the burden of being all of the women in the Avengers. Whatever hopes and aspirations anyone has for what a superhero who is also female should be, Black Widow has been the only figure to represent those qualities. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Natasha’s character development is seemingly given a strong turn towards conventional gender roles. You see her acting as caretaker for the Hulk, calming and soothing him back into Bruce Banner. In addition, she is written into a “Beauty and the Beast” romance with Hulk/Banner, acting lovelorn and unfilled in her current life as an Avenger. You also learn that she was made sterile as part of the Soviet training program that shaped her into a spy and assassin. While the film does not dwell on this point—and one can argue about how deep this wound is meant to go for her—it’s inescapable that this is a trauma that could only happen to Natasha."
"Scarlet Johnson's Black Widow has been subject to a higher level of scrutiny than any other character in the cast. Her costume, how she’s posed, what roles she gets to play, how much screen time, how much merchandise—every aspect of the character is weighted with meaning and expectation out of proportion to her place in the MCU. Even though, thus far, Black Widow has only ever appeared in other character’s movies and in supporting roles, as the only female, Natasha is not merely herself, a singular character, but she also carries the burden of being all of the women in the Avengers. Whatever hopes and aspirations anyone has for what a superhero who is also female should be, Black Widow has been the only figure to represent those qualities. In Avengers: Age of Ultron, Natasha’s character development is seemingly given a strong turn towards conventional gender roles. You see her acting as caretaker for the Hulk, calming and soothing him back into Bruce Banner. In addition, she is written into a “Beauty and the Beast” romance with Hulk/Banner, acting lovelorn and unfilled in her current life as an Avenger. You also learn that she was made sterile as part of the Soviet training program that shaped her into a spy and assassin. While the film does not dwell on this point—and one can argue about how deep this wound is meant to go for her—it’s inescapable that this is a trauma that could only happen to Natasha."
"Generally, in superhero movies, the gender roles are stereotypical. There is a man who comes to save the woman from peril and is deemed a hero. We are seeing the same amount of gender stereotypes in the superhero genre films that were released in 2012, namely, The Avengers, The Amazing Spider Man, Snow White and the Huntsman, and The Dark Knight Rises.
In The Avengers we see a collaboration of superheroes who are trying to protect the world from a super villain. In this instance, there was not a woman that needed protection, however, we still see stereotypical gender roles. The men are all fighting for control of the situation, each claiming to have the best solution to the problems they face. On the same level, they are trying to undermine the other male characters with snide comments. The main female character, the Black Widow, fights on the same level as the men do, an area we see a small amount of gender equity in the film. However, she is still very sexualized. When we first meet her character, she is playing the role of a prostitute, and is extremely scantily dressed. She is also the only character in the film that cries on screen. Additionally, there are undertones of a romantic relationship with another character. We see romantic relationships with nearly all of the characters in the film, however, her relationship is not spoken about, and therefore given more clout." Information taken from (https://griid.org/2013/02/12/normalizing-male-dominance-gender-representation-in-2012-films/)
This poster, like many others, shows all 6 avengers in one shot, however if you look at the poster in detail the audience can establish that Black Widow (the only female character) is positioned with her back facing the audience, her head is turned so we can see her facial features. This pose however looks unnatural, her arms are draped by her side and she is again holding a gun. Black widows mode of address is not direct, as i mentioned above every time we see her holding a gun she is not making any direct eye contact with the audience, instead, she is looking past the camera. Her eyes are rolled to the top of her head looking up with her mouth slightly open, this could be seen as seductive or sexual. The gaze that she holds seems to be emotionless- which is typical for Her hair seems to be in a fixed position, which with the content of this poster (fighting villains) seems to be rather unrealistic. Again, Black Widow is sexualised as the lighting in this photo seems to be solely enhancing her sexual features, and even though she is turned around the opposite way to audience, we can still see her breast and this is accentuated by the lighting coming down onto it and therefore making is obvious. In contrast to this, the men in this poster are