Typical conventions of Superheroes
Superheroes are generally characters that have gained or been born with superhero powers, and they use them to fight crime and to protect people. They normally have enemies called super villains for example how Batman has the Joker, these are the typically binary oppositions. The typical conventions are that they have extraordinary power, skills and equipment, and also technology. For example how Iron Man has his suit, and how Spiderman has his web. They more often than not are there to stop and prevent crime, and are reluctant to kill people. They have a secret identity which is also shown by there costume, and the name that they have to prevent people knowing their secret identity so that their families and friends don’t get hurt. They also have someone that they rely on like Batman has his butler Alfred. Each Superhero should have a theme, which could be shown by their costume, colour, or their name. For example, how Batman has a black costume to resemble a bat and has a symbol of a bat, and how he has the bat-mobile.
The stereotypical superhero almost always wears a mask to hide their identity. The hero’s ordinary world is also a typical convention, based on why they wanted to become a superhero in the first place. Most superhero movies show friends and families who may or may not know about their identity. The characters could also have a love interest, but can’t be with them because of their secret identity. Most Superhero characters have many criminals that they fight before they meet the villain. The differences are shown between the hero and the villain. For example Batman has a grim personality, and is quiet, dark and mysterious; where as the Joker, his arch enemy is lively and colorful. They normally are wealthy and have a less supervised job, such as Batman has Wayne Enterprises and how Superman is a typical reporter. Another thing they have is a hidden base or headquarters like Batman has the Bat cave, where he keeps his bat mobile, weapons and costume. They also by and large have a story which shows why they became a superhero and it is usually something tragic that has happened in their past or a freak accident. With every superhero they have a weakness. For example Superman’s weakness is Kryptonite; it can be psychological, external or internal.
Usually, superheroes have side-kick like Batman had Robin; their job is to help the main superhero out. The sidekick is generally younger than them and has less experience but has potential. However not all superheroes are independent; some are in groups such as the Fantastic Four and X-Men. Superheroes are originated from comic books, and they have then been made into TV shows, films and other media as well as merchandise.
Superheroes are generally characters that have gained or been born with superhero powers, and they use them to fight crime and to protect people. They normally have enemies called super villains for example how Batman has the Joker, these are the typically binary oppositions. The typical conventions are that they have extraordinary power, skills and equipment, and also technology. For example how Iron Man has his suit, and how Spiderman has his web. They more often than not are there to stop and prevent crime, and are reluctant to kill people. They have a secret identity which is also shown by there costume, and the name that they have to prevent people knowing their secret identity so that their families and friends don’t get hurt. They also have someone that they rely on like Batman has his butler Alfred. Each Superhero should have a theme, which could be shown by their costume, colour, or their name. For example, how Batman has a black costume to resemble a bat and has a symbol of a bat, and how he has the bat-mobile.
The stereotypical superhero almost always wears a mask to hide their identity. The hero’s ordinary world is also a typical convention, based on why they wanted to become a superhero in the first place. Most superhero movies show friends and families who may or may not know about their identity. The characters could also have a love interest, but can’t be with them because of their secret identity. Most Superhero characters have many criminals that they fight before they meet the villain. The differences are shown between the hero and the villain. For example Batman has a grim personality, and is quiet, dark and mysterious; where as the Joker, his arch enemy is lively and colorful. They normally are wealthy and have a less supervised job, such as Batman has Wayne Enterprises and how Superman is a typical reporter. Another thing they have is a hidden base or headquarters like Batman has the Bat cave, where he keeps his bat mobile, weapons and costume. They also by and large have a story which shows why they became a superhero and it is usually something tragic that has happened in their past or a freak accident. With every superhero they have a weakness. For example Superman’s weakness is Kryptonite; it can be psychological, external or internal.
Usually, superheroes have side-kick like Batman had Robin; their job is to help the main superhero out. The sidekick is generally younger than them and has less experience but has potential. However not all superheroes are independent; some are in groups such as the Fantastic Four and X-Men. Superheroes are originated from comic books, and they have then been made into TV shows, films and other media as well as merchandise.
Directors
X-Men/Director Captain America: The First Avenger/Director The Avengers/Director
Bryan Singer Joe Johnston Joss Whedon
X-Men/Director Captain America: The First Avenger/Director The Avengers/Director
Bryan Singer Joe Johnston Joss Whedon
Creators
A teaser trailer narrated by Samuel L. Jackson for The Avengers. All of these films are produced by Marvel and they are distributed by 20th century fox, Paramount Pictures and Walt Disney Studios.
A teaser trailer narrated by Samuel L. Jackson for The Avengers. All of these films are produced by Marvel and they are distributed by 20th century fox, Paramount Pictures and Walt Disney Studios.
Women stereotypically in superhero films
The superhero genre is full of stereotypes about women; audience reception theory would suggest this is because the genre is seen to be dominated by men, and so the representation of women is imbalanced. There are three main archetypes, those being the caregiver, the temptress and the damsel in distress. Male audience members would consume these texts for entertainment and are presumed to not want women in their texts.
http://via.library.depaul.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1172&context=etd
https://griid.org/2013/02/12/normalizing-male-dominance-gender-representation-in-2012-films/
Superhero movies have a diversity problem. Why do super-powered genetic mutations select white people almost exclusively? Why, if super-soldier serum and weaponized armor allows for heroics regardless of natural strength, are there no super-strong women? Why is every film superhero heterosexual? All of the box office triumphs by DC and Marvel have starred white, straight, male superheroes and that must change.
Women have always appeared in superhero films, but female characters of the ’70s were almost exclusively love interests with no broader purpose or identity. Characters like Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson are exuberant and even tough, but their real purposes are in their relationships with Superman and Spider man. In the Superman trilogy of the early 2000’s, each movie involves Mary Jane getting captured and saved by Peter Parker. Thor’s Jane Foster and The Dark Knight’s Rachel are a modified version of this trope.
A more recent development in the depiction of women in superhero films is what the documentary Miss representation labels as the “fighting fuck toy.” These women, while physically powerful, are primarily sexual figures. X-Men’s Mystique, for instance, spends most time naked (or, more accurately, covered in a skin-tight blue body suit made to look like a natural blue skin). In The Avengers the Black Widow and Agent Hill both wear skintight black body suits. The nature of their fighting leans heavily on sexuality. Mystique often chokes people with her legs, and the Black Widow wraps her thighs around bad guys’ necks. These women, as well as Cat woman from The Dark Knight Rises and Emma Frost from X-Men: First Class use seduction as methods of interrogation and coercion. In small doses, this reads as women taking control of their bodies and using eroticism to their own gain. Seducing villains into telling secrets or making incorrect moves in battle is clever and paints the bad guys as uncontrolled and stupid. The overuse of this seduction, however, creates an implication that the female superhero can only be the femme fatal. It limits the ability of the female superhero to be dynamic.
The superhero genre is full of stereotypes about women; audience reception theory would suggest this is because the genre is seen to be dominated by men, and so the representation of women is imbalanced. There are three main archetypes, those being the caregiver, the temptress and the damsel in distress. Male audience members would consume these texts for entertainment and are presumed to not want women in their texts.
http://via.library.depaul.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1172&context=etd
https://griid.org/2013/02/12/normalizing-male-dominance-gender-representation-in-2012-films/
Superhero movies have a diversity problem. Why do super-powered genetic mutations select white people almost exclusively? Why, if super-soldier serum and weaponized armor allows for heroics regardless of natural strength, are there no super-strong women? Why is every film superhero heterosexual? All of the box office triumphs by DC and Marvel have starred white, straight, male superheroes and that must change.
Women have always appeared in superhero films, but female characters of the ’70s were almost exclusively love interests with no broader purpose or identity. Characters like Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson are exuberant and even tough, but their real purposes are in their relationships with Superman and Spider man. In the Superman trilogy of the early 2000’s, each movie involves Mary Jane getting captured and saved by Peter Parker. Thor’s Jane Foster and The Dark Knight’s Rachel are a modified version of this trope.
A more recent development in the depiction of women in superhero films is what the documentary Miss representation labels as the “fighting fuck toy.” These women, while physically powerful, are primarily sexual figures. X-Men’s Mystique, for instance, spends most time naked (or, more accurately, covered in a skin-tight blue body suit made to look like a natural blue skin). In The Avengers the Black Widow and Agent Hill both wear skintight black body suits. The nature of their fighting leans heavily on sexuality. Mystique often chokes people with her legs, and the Black Widow wraps her thighs around bad guys’ necks. These women, as well as Cat woman from The Dark Knight Rises and Emma Frost from X-Men: First Class use seduction as methods of interrogation and coercion. In small doses, this reads as women taking control of their bodies and using eroticism to their own gain. Seducing villains into telling secrets or making incorrect moves in battle is clever and paints the bad guys as uncontrolled and stupid. The overuse of this seduction, however, creates an implication that the female superhero can only be the femme fatal. It limits the ability of the female superhero to be dynamic.
Men took more than 70% of speaking roles and just 6% of films featured a gender-balanced cast. The women who do feature are much more likely to be shown partially nude, or in more “sexualised” clothes than their male counterparts – more than three times as likely, in fact.