My area of study is action films and more specifically action films that mainly focus on cars and how gender is represented in examples of these.
I am investigating gender in action films as currently the stereotype of gender is being subverted especially regarding women in action films as they are no longer being viewed as the ‘princess’ and are instead being viewed as the ‘helper’ or ‘sidekick’ in regards to Propp’s character roles. Another reason I’m investigating is because action films are one of the most popular genres of film currently and with the rise of the sub-genre of superhero films, they’re becoming even more popular. As I’m investigating action films I’ve decided to investigate an older, popular, blockbuster example of the original Fast and Furious (2001) and a newer, more niche example of Rush (2013) which is a one-off film. The key concept of my research is representation due to my research being about ‘the representation of gender in action (car) films. Representation is the purposeful depiction of someone or something in a specific way so in this case it would be how the producers and directors want viewers of action films to think about gender, this is usually through the codes and conventions of the film or the film’s genre. Representation of gender in action films is an interesting topic of research as there is a large variety of views available and shown across films, but also in Fast and Furious, as there is a massive cast there is multiple representations in itself through both main characters and unnamed ones that only appear momentarily.
In the action film Fast and Furious (2001) gender is shown in multiple ways through even just the main characters as in the first race when we meet Dominic (Vin Diesel) he’s shown through his side mirror to give a realistic view of him. This shot also shows Vin’s muscularity which is a stereotypical representation of men who race and are ‘into’ cars. This establishes him as an alpha-male from the outset of the film. This however, is contrasted through the character of Jesse (Chad Lindberg) who focuses more on the technical and electronic alterations behind a car done from a laptop rather than with a wrench, this is atypical of the usual ‘car guy’ as he also is shown to be a lot smaller physically than the rest of the characters which in action films suggests he’s more feminine. This is also paired with the fact he is so relaxed in his car contrasting to Brian (Paul Walker) who is shown in a close up to be psyching himself up and then loses. The way they’re dressed also is stereotypical as Dom wears a sleeveless shirt to show off his size and assert his physical dominance in comparison to Brian who is noticeably smaller. These three characters all contrast each other as where Dom follows the male stereotype of being physically dominating whereas the other two would be classed as “lacking” in size yet they are realistic, this shows the clear hyperbolic representations of men in action films that then consequently make unrealistic expectations for men which stereotypically is done by women in other genres and other medias. This almost unrealistic representation of women isn’t shown in Fast and Furious, however it is seen in Rush through the character of Suzy (Olivia Wilde) however, unlike the men in Fast and Furious the narrative isn’t focused on her as she is a relatively small part of the narrative which is typical of women in action films as she is shown to be just the wife and then the ex-wife of James Hunt. The first main representation of women in the film comes from the gathering scene where most women are shown to be scantily clad and clinging onto male racers, this paired with the fact that we never learn most of the women’s names representing these women as insignificant. Tasker (1993) “Roles for female characters are very much in line with traditional, even archaic, understandings of women’s role in society” this is seen as previously explained in both these texts however, Fast and Furious totally subverts this through Letty and Mia.
Laura Mulvey’s male gaze theory can also be seen here as most camera shots in Fast and Furious that involve women zoom in on their figure, this is due to the action film series being dominated by mainly male viewers so this representation wouldn’t offend them however, it would add to the enjoyment of some of these viewers whereas it would offend people if it was shown in female dominated audiences such as in rom-com films. However, although women are shown in this demeaning way this representation is subverted through the characters of Mia (Jordan Brewster) and Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) as they both are shown at one point in the film to be able to race which stereotypically isn’t believed about women as it is a well-known and believed stereotype that women can’t drive. Additionally, during the aforementioned racer gathering scene Letty approaches Dom and the camera focuses solely on her face and her dialogue in, this totally juxtaposes the previous shot of the scantily clad women all standing close to Dom suggesting flirtation, this contrasts the usual stereotype of women in action films as she intimidates the other women to leave which is an atypical representation of women, as it’s usually a male stereotype, to “use their muscle” to frighten off the stereotypical women from action films (stood close to the main protagonist whilst using showing their figure). This subverts the usual stereotype in everyday life as it’s normally men who are all over women and trying to flirt whereas in action films due to them being aimed at male audiences, by subverting the normal stereotype and making its own stereotype of women being all over men this appeals to the male audiences as they then see it as realistic. This could also be a metaphor for the Fast and Furious franchise helping cement women in action films as more of the hero rather than the one who needs to be saved as although this franchise is clearly aimed at male audiences, there is a strong focus on strong female characters that help continue the narrative and are key parts of it, whereas in Rush the main female characters are both the wives of the main male characters and only have minor parts in the narrative, which follows the stereotype of action films being male driven.
Where Fast and Furious contrasts most stereotypical female and male representations, Rush follows stereotypical and “old fashioned” views, such as men being ‘womanisers’, this is shown through the character of James and the hospital scene, as he enters calmly and strolls in with what is revealed later to be a wound from a crowbar, this litotes from James is a stereotype of the male gender. This is also seen through the character of Marlene as she is constantly shown to be worrying about ‘her man’ Niki, this is a stereotypical representation of women as it is a common representation that women worry about most things, albeit this time it is actually deserved. James also follows stereotypical male representations as he is shown to be quick to anger as he falls out with Suzy, and even beats one journalist and uses a stapler one his face because he insults Niki, this aggression and power is a common stereotype in men in action films as seen through the characters of Dominic and Vince as they both act aggressively with Brian when he is talking to Mia.
Both actions films follow the stereotypical and common representations of gender as they show the men to be intelligent. This is shown in Rush through the character of Niki as he knows to setup the car with magnesium parts to make it quicker and knows clearly what is wrong with his future wife’s car when returning from Clay Regazzoni’s party. This is also represented through the character of Jesse in Fast and Furious as he is shown to be using the laptop to analyse how the cars are running through their CPUs. The fact that these movies focus on the males is stereotypical of actions films as noticed by Yvonne Tasker. Tasker (1993) “The action movie often operates as an almost exclusively male space, in which issues to do with sexuality and gendered identity can be worked out over the male body”. This shows that even in 1993 before both these films came out, actions movies were male dominated which suggests that in the twenty year between Tasker making that statement and Rush coming out, which now was four years ago, there wasn’t any developments or adaptations in the way that gender is represented in action films. Frederick (2007) “The action film, according to Gallagher “has historically been a ‘male’ genre, dealing with stories of male heroism, produced by male filmmakers for principally male audiences.” This also backs up the lack of development in gender in the action genre as once again it highlights the focus on male stories, as seen in both Rush and Fast and Furious, with the female characters not being the “sole and independent protagonist of the film” Frederick (2007), if both biological genders aren’t represented correctly then how can the ideological genders be represented properly, meaning that gender will not be presented properly until action movie producers stop following common stereotypes.
Another representation is through the relationship Dom and Letty, which is clearly based on action and thrills as they both race cars together and later in the franchise, get into more dangerous situations together. This totally contrasts the relationships of Niki and Marlene and James and Suzy as Niki and Marlene are quite reserved in their feelings for each other and lack excitement or danger as Niki is shown to retire from the Japanese grand prix whereas James continues. James and Suzy also represent a totally different relationship as they also have a totally contrasting relationship to the other two as they are clearly passion based and enjoy the risk that comes from James being a racing driver. James is even quoted saying “I have a theory why women like racing drivers. It’s not because they respect what we do, driving round and round in circles. Mostly they think that’s pathetic, and they’re probably right. It’s our closeness to death. You see, the closer you are to death, the more alive you feel, the more alive you are. And they can see that in you, they feel that in you.” Which represents a condescending view of women which was typical of women in the time that the film is based however, it has changed to the view that society has now. This also shows the basis of James’ and Suzy’s relationship as it is clearly based on fear and danger.