Friday, October 27, 2006
Week 7: Film Genre I: Narrative, Genre and the Politics of Representation
Thelma and Louise
Country: USA
Director: Ridley Scott
Year: 1991
Length: 129 min
Language: English
Awards:
Critical Comments:
Thelma and Lousie is undoubtbly a road movie where both ladies had to make a getaway first from their daily lives then to Mexico after accidentally commiting a murder. This element of the road movie is mixed together with the Western as one leg of the journey takes place across the Texas landscape with the appearance of cowboys (JD). During this leg of the journey, Thelma and Louise become fugitives of the law and they both become care-free, living as happy outlaws with fredom, just like in the Western genres where the law cannot catch them, at least until the end.
The characters of Thelma and Louise are so rich in diversity that differet types of study can be done on their characteristics alone.
First of all although many may find this disagreeable but I feel that the relationship between Thelma and Louise suggests the bond between a mother and a daughter. Thelma (who is ironically a housewife but has no kids because her husband was 'not ready') acts like a wild child. She is eager to break free from her mould as a housewife who isn't allowed to do a' goddamn thing', she initially leads the duo into trouble as she nearly gets rape by a married man on the way to their vacation. She is reckless and rebellious against strict control and order (like absconding from the house without the permission of her husband, 'letting her hair down' with strong liquor and easily exchanging conversation with a stranger at the bar that could rape her). However once trouble starts when Louise shoots her would-be rapist, Thelma becomes helpless, frozen with fear and panics, following the lead and orders of Louise right after the traumatic moments. The wild side of Thelma is one aspect that makes her childlike in the sense that she wants to go out and experience the world, without fear and taking risks. She yearns to travel but 'didn't have the opportunity' to do it. When Louise asked her whether she has found her calling, she screams out that she has found 'the call of the wild'. But her recklessness not only causes trouble for both of them not once, but thrice. First she was being too friendly with a stranger who would turn out to be her rapist, second she left their 'future' unguarded after her delliance with JD and lastly she told JD who was later arrested by the police on where they were headed. This foolish recklessness is part of being young at heart (Thelma got married at the age of 18).
Louise, on the other hand, is like a mother to Thelma because she is the one that constantly keeps Thelma in check and tells her what to do. We can see an instance of Louise's maternal instinct is when she tells a couple of young girls that they are too young to be smoking and that it ruins their sex drive. One other simple example is when Thelma places her legs on the dashboard for Louise's Thunderbird convertible, Louise nags at her. Her controlling nature is akin to a parent to a misbehave child and its is that nature that is similar with Thelma's husband that was acting more like her father, 'you're as bad as Darryl'. This motherly nature is also seen when she tells Thelma that she is not used to seeing her so 'sedate'. She is the one that takes charge of what they are going to do after shooting the rapist. She was the only one who had a real plan to run all the way for Mexico and talk to her boyfriend, Jimmy, to wire her savings to her. Only when all their money had been stolen does Louise finally breaks down in despair without anymore options on what to do next.
However when the film nears to its end, the bond between mother and daughter seemingly dissipates. The 'daughter' Thelma all grown up from her ordeals and traumas (nearly getting rape and cheated by JD), becomes an adult. The tone of the remainder of the film explores Thelma and Louise as two individuals rathers than having a shared bond. This individuality and independence is a central theme that can be expected from the Western genre. The idea of self-justification (like how Thelma politely robs the store and how they deal punishment on the harassing truck-driver) on a woman can be read as a masculine side of feminity. The idea of women having to depend on men breaks down in this film which shows that feminism isn't a weakness but can be a strength. Independence is a part of feminism.
In fact the film addresses feminism and masculinity both ways. The men in Thelma and Louise are particularly queer. Masculinity is a confused idea represented in the film. The society is patriachal (Thelma and Louise would not be believed), they underestimate women (Thelma's husband calls her a 'nutcase') and deny feminity (one of the police officers calls love, 'that kind of shit') but they display feminity themselves (the police officers watching a melodrama and the patrol officer who cries like a baby after hearing a few gunshots). This is an interesting approach to queer theory. While Thelma and Louise as females are gradually becoming stronger in a feminise sort of way, the men in the film are becoming more feminine. From a pro-feminism perspective, feminism is seen to be growing to become more stronger while masculinity is in the decline. While in another way, this could be seen that there is another side to masculinity that is feminine and there is another side to feminity that is more masculine. This way, the film is opening up another side and revealing the other side of things, re-exploring and changing the ideas that we once had about masculinity and feminism.
The iconography that is recognisable in the film and is expected from the Western genre is the gun. Thelma initially brought the gun with her as a precautionary measure. It did came to use and resulted the death of the rapist. The gun ,during the beginning of the film, is a tool of protection.
Much later in the film, the gun is used by Thelma to scare the police patrol and tuck him into his own crusier's boot. The gun suddenly elevates its status from protection to power (in which case against man or men). As Thelma and Louise break free in the wild Texas landscape, liberated from the patriachal society, they are express this freedom through power, power gained outside the constraints of the (patriachal) law which is what the gun represents.
Readings:
Country: USA
Director: Ridley Scott
Year: 1991
Length: 129 min
Language: English
Awards:
- Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen - Callie Khouri (Academy Awards)
- Best non-European Film - Ridley Scott (Bodil Awards)
- Best Actress - Geena Davis (Boston Society of Film Critics Awards)
- Best Foregin Actress - Geena Davis & Susan Sarandon (David di Donatello Awards)
- Best Screenplay-Motion Picture - Callie Khouri (Golden Globes)
- Actress of the Year - Susan Sarandon (London Critics Circle Film Awards)
- Director of the Year - Ridley Scott(London Critics Circle Film Awards)
- Film of the Year (London Critics Circle Film Awards)
- Best Actress - Susan Sarandon & Geena Davis (National Board of Review, USA)
- Best Supporting Actor - Harvey Keitel (National Society of Film Critics Awards)
- Golden Spike - Ridley Scott (Valladolid International Film Festival)
- Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen - Callie Khouri (Writers Guild of America)
Critical Comments:
Thelma and Lousie is undoubtbly a road movie where both ladies had to make a getaway first from their daily lives then to Mexico after accidentally commiting a murder. This element of the road movie is mixed together with the Western as one leg of the journey takes place across the Texas landscape with the appearance of cowboys (JD). During this leg of the journey, Thelma and Louise become fugitives of the law and they both become care-free, living as happy outlaws with fredom, just like in the Western genres where the law cannot catch them, at least until the end.
The characters of Thelma and Louise are so rich in diversity that differet types of study can be done on their characteristics alone.
First of all although many may find this disagreeable but I feel that the relationship between Thelma and Louise suggests the bond between a mother and a daughter. Thelma (who is ironically a housewife but has no kids because her husband was 'not ready') acts like a wild child. She is eager to break free from her mould as a housewife who isn't allowed to do a' goddamn thing', she initially leads the duo into trouble as she nearly gets rape by a married man on the way to their vacation. She is reckless and rebellious against strict control and order (like absconding from the house without the permission of her husband, 'letting her hair down' with strong liquor and easily exchanging conversation with a stranger at the bar that could rape her). However once trouble starts when Louise shoots her would-be rapist, Thelma becomes helpless, frozen with fear and panics, following the lead and orders of Louise right after the traumatic moments. The wild side of Thelma is one aspect that makes her childlike in the sense that she wants to go out and experience the world, without fear and taking risks. She yearns to travel but 'didn't have the opportunity' to do it. When Louise asked her whether she has found her calling, she screams out that she has found 'the call of the wild'. But her recklessness not only causes trouble for both of them not once, but thrice. First she was being too friendly with a stranger who would turn out to be her rapist, second she left their 'future' unguarded after her delliance with JD and lastly she told JD who was later arrested by the police on where they were headed. This foolish recklessness is part of being young at heart (Thelma got married at the age of 18).
Louise, on the other hand, is like a mother to Thelma because she is the one that constantly keeps Thelma in check and tells her what to do. We can see an instance of Louise's maternal instinct is when she tells a couple of young girls that they are too young to be smoking and that it ruins their sex drive. One other simple example is when Thelma places her legs on the dashboard for Louise's Thunderbird convertible, Louise nags at her. Her controlling nature is akin to a parent to a misbehave child and its is that nature that is similar with Thelma's husband that was acting more like her father, 'you're as bad as Darryl'. This motherly nature is also seen when she tells Thelma that she is not used to seeing her so 'sedate'. She is the one that takes charge of what they are going to do after shooting the rapist. She was the only one who had a real plan to run all the way for Mexico and talk to her boyfriend, Jimmy, to wire her savings to her. Only when all their money had been stolen does Louise finally breaks down in despair without anymore options on what to do next.
However when the film nears to its end, the bond between mother and daughter seemingly dissipates. The 'daughter' Thelma all grown up from her ordeals and traumas (nearly getting rape and cheated by JD), becomes an adult. The tone of the remainder of the film explores Thelma and Louise as two individuals rathers than having a shared bond. This individuality and independence is a central theme that can be expected from the Western genre. The idea of self-justification (like how Thelma politely robs the store and how they deal punishment on the harassing truck-driver) on a woman can be read as a masculine side of feminity. The idea of women having to depend on men breaks down in this film which shows that feminism isn't a weakness but can be a strength. Independence is a part of feminism.
In fact the film addresses feminism and masculinity both ways. The men in Thelma and Louise are particularly queer. Masculinity is a confused idea represented in the film. The society is patriachal (Thelma and Louise would not be believed), they underestimate women (Thelma's husband calls her a 'nutcase') and deny feminity (one of the police officers calls love, 'that kind of shit') but they display feminity themselves (the police officers watching a melodrama and the patrol officer who cries like a baby after hearing a few gunshots). This is an interesting approach to queer theory. While Thelma and Louise as females are gradually becoming stronger in a feminise sort of way, the men in the film are becoming more feminine. From a pro-feminism perspective, feminism is seen to be growing to become more stronger while masculinity is in the decline. While in another way, this could be seen that there is another side to masculinity that is feminine and there is another side to feminity that is more masculine. This way, the film is opening up another side and revealing the other side of things, re-exploring and changing the ideas that we once had about masculinity and feminism.
The iconography that is recognisable in the film and is expected from the Western genre is the gun. Thelma initially brought the gun with her as a precautionary measure. It did came to use and resulted the death of the rapist. The gun ,during the beginning of the film, is a tool of protection.
Much later in the film, the gun is used by Thelma to scare the police patrol and tuck him into his own crusier's boot. The gun suddenly elevates its status from protection to power (in which case against man or men). As Thelma and Louise break free in the wild Texas landscape, liberated from the patriachal society, they are express this freedom through power, power gained outside the constraints of the (patriachal) law which is what the gun represents.
Readings:
- O'Shaughnessy, Micheal and Jane Stradler (2002) 'Genre, Codes and Conventions'. Media and Society: An Introduction, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 113-126. This reading tells about the framework of genre in film. It is interesting to see that O'Shaughnessy relates that some genres are grown within American society and that these genres can a form of cultural imperialism. This reading sees Thelma and Louise as a combination of three genres; road movie, buddy movie and the western movie. However I would like to suggest that Thelma and Louise can also be read as a criminal genre. There is the conventions of a gun, a crime (murder and armed robbery), a cop (or cops and even the FBI) and a thief (Thelma and Louise). One other thing that was pointed out by O'Shaughnessy is that Thelma and Louise used a repetition of themes and conventions in all three genres but reversed the gender of the characters that itself has provided new meaning. I believe that certain issues raised within a genre, like the femme fatale of the film noir can be addressed within the context or through the conventions of another genre. Such issues may revolve around sexuality, identity, politics and idealogy that have a universal issue in whatever genre that are explored. This means that like how the gun as an iconography in Thelma and Louise is interchangable from the context of a road movie to a Western, so as issues like feminity are addressed in Thelma and Louise as liberation of women to how the female role in society is changed (another form of 'liberation') in the film noir, like Killer's Kiss.
- Griggers, Cathy (1993) 'Thelma and Louise and cultural generation of new butch-femme' in Collins et ad, eds, Film Theory Goes to the Movies, New York: Routledge, 128-141. Thelma and Louise is examined by this reading from a very feminine perspective. I find that this reading gives a very different sort of perspective and gives whole new meanings from elements and discourses of the film that radiates with feminism qualities. The iconographies represented the issues related with women that is set within a patriachal society. Although I would feel that the readings gives a different perspective, I am unable to relate with the meanings that is imposed by this reading. However, from this I learn that film can be read from a gender socio-economics that may not be the main issue of but should contribute to gain a more complete reading of the film. Another point I like to add that relates this reading with Thelma and Louise is that feminity should be taken into consideration when females replace male roles in film genres.
# posted by KC @ 6:34 AM 
