EVERYONE IN AMERICA NEEDS TO SEE THIS MOVIE. I mean this 100% literally. The film documents in excruciating detail the often ignored or trivialized problem of just how terribly the media in this country portrays women, and also delves deep into the assumptions and biases surrounding that portrayal. It is a massive and provocative indictment of phallocentric status quo in the entertainment industry today, and has the potential to bring about huge, important changes.
I first learned of the film a couple of months ago, when the trailer was going viral on facebook and tumblr, and while I was thoroughly shocked by the issues it raised, I remember thinking that in reality, I would probably be too lazy to actually get out and see it. I’M SO GLAD I WASN’T! (The trailer, by the way, is essentially a mini-version of the overall documentary–I’d highly recommend watching it RIGHT NOW).
The only problem with a film like this that makes its argument so cogently, that articulates so well what people have been trying for years to say, is that it makes for poor post-movie conversation. On the way out, I overheard a conversation that went something like this: “Well, shit. They already said it so well. I have literally nothing to add.” However, the more I digest the experience, the more I want to continue the dialogue it starts. The film is, more than anything else, a powerful call to action, and its Web site, missrepresentation.org, details specific steps you can take toward curbing the wildly inappropriate, demeaning, and counterproductive way that the mainstream media portrays women. Please check it out.
And now, since I can’t say anything else even remotely meaningful, I’ll leave you with a quote featured in the movie from Pat Robertson, ultra-conservative nut-job and host of The 700 Club:
“The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians”
And he said this in NINETEEN-NINETY FUCKING TWO! How long is it going to be until such bigoted viewpoints become marginalized enough that we don’t have to put up with them on TV? Sheesh.
(Okay, now I promise this is the last thing: a really interesting article about weird prejudices that still DOMINATE Hollywood).
