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From Maleficent to The Other Woman and X-Men, we looked at trailers for 15 of the season's most anticipated movies to see how women are faring on the big screen
It’s summer movie time again, and with the Cameron Diaz vehicle The Other Woman premiering Friday, it’s time to see what Hollywood’s take on 51 percent of the population will be this season. It’s no secret that women aren’t getting a fair share of worthwhile screen time in Hollywood: only 30 percent of all speaking roles belonged to women in 2013, even with huge hits starring women like Gravity and The Hunger Games. And summer tends to be the worst for women who are often relegated to playing a superhero’s damsel in distress.
But after The Heat’s success last year, it looks like we’re getting more women on screen—though that doesn’t necessarily mean more nuanced women. I’ve gone through the trailers for the big summer films starring the fairer sex. (I skipped movies like 22 Jump Street and Godzilla due to the total lack of women in the trailer.) And, wherewith my “woman rating” for each movie as “good,” “bad” or “ugly” based on the following factors:
How prominently the woman is featured in the trailer
How likely the movie looks based on the trailer to pass the Bechdel test—a handy metric that asks if two women talk to each other in a film about something other than a man
How original the female role looks
I have not seen any of these films, so I cannot judge them based on their quality. I also cannot predict if a movie like Walk of Shame is secretly a feminist manifesto that is being advertised as a movie full of prostitute jokes. I am basing my sexism analysis on the trailers alone. And full disclosure: I will see and likely enjoy many of the movies to which I gave “bad” or “ugly” ratings.
The Other Woman (April 25)
A romantic comedy starring Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann and Kate Upton about three women who find out they are all dating (or married to) the same guy
It’s summer movie time again, and with the Cameron Diaz vehicle The Other Woman premiering Friday, it’s time to see what Hollywood’s take on 51 percent of the population will be this season. It’s no secret that women aren’t getting a fair share of worthwhile screen time in Hollywood: only 30 percent of all speaking roles belonged to women in 2013, even with huge hits starring women like Gravity and The Hunger Games. And summer tends to be the worst for women who are often relegated to playing a superhero’s damsel in distress.
But after The Heat’s success last year, it looks like we’re getting more women on screen—though that doesn’t necessarily mean more nuanced women. I’ve gone through the trailers for the big summer films starring the fairer sex. (I skipped movies like 22 Jump Street and Godzilla due to the total lack of women in the trailer.) And, wherewith my “woman rating” for each movie as “good,” “bad” or “ugly” based on the following factors:
How prominently the woman is featured in the trailer
How likely the movie looks based on the trailer to pass the Bechdel test—a handy metric that asks if two women talk to each other in a film about something other than a man
How original the female role looks
I have not seen any of these films, so I cannot judge them based on their quality. I also cannot predict if a movie like Walk of Shame is secretly a feminist manifesto that is being advertised as a movie full of prostitute jokes. I am basing my sexism analysis on the trailers alone. And full disclosure: I will see and likely enjoy many of the movies to which I gave “bad” or “ugly” ratings.
The Other Woman (April 25)
A romantic comedy starring Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann and Kate Upton about three women who find out they are all dating (or married to) the same guy
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