Comments on: THE HURT LOCKER at AFI Dallas, and Kathryn Bigelow’s girl problem http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/ Daily coverage of what is truly interesting in the film world Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:47:23 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.3 By: B. Bridges http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-134921 B. Bridges Mon, 28 Sep 2009 22:01:37 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-134921 "The argument that Bigelow’s work is somehow subversive just because she has a vagina is not only ludicrous, but unnecessary, being that her films are actually subversive." Correction: That argument *should* be ludicrous, but its not. This is because most industry and marketing guys still believe that by some mystery of biology the action (and horror, for that matter) genres are exclusively male territory. To these guys, the fact that she has a vagina really does turn their little world upside-down. And so far, no amount of evidence to the contrary has made a difference. Why do you think a director as talented and accomplished as Bigelow doesn't get major studio cred? Why doesn't she have carte blanche as an action filmmaker? If Katherine were named Charles, The Hurt Locker would have been marketed as an event picture, not given a limited release. Its not feminism's fault that Bigelow is an anomaly in Hollywood demographics. Focus your frustration on the truly misguided. “The argument that Bigelow’s work is somehow subversive just because she has a vagina is not only ludicrous, but unnecessary, being that her films are actually subversive.”

Correction: That argument *should* be ludicrous, but its not. This is because most industry and marketing guys still believe that by some mystery of biology the action (and horror, for that matter) genres are exclusively male territory. To these guys, the fact that she has a vagina really does turn their little world upside-down. And so far, no amount of evidence to the contrary has made a difference.

Why do you think a director as talented and accomplished as Bigelow doesn’t get major studio cred? Why doesn’t she have carte blanche as an action filmmaker? If Katherine were named Charles, The Hurt Locker would have been marketed as an event picture, not given a limited release.

Its not feminism’s fault that Bigelow is an anomaly in Hollywood demographics. Focus your frustration on the truly misguided.

]]> By: john murray http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-129669 john murray Sat, 27 Jun 2009 22:15:45 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-129669 Im going to see it tonight watch this space Vagina or no vagina Im going to see it tonight watch this space Vagina or no vagina

]]> By: Loge Norjodrsson http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-128406 Loge Norjodrsson Sat, 06 Jun 2009 11:27:25 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-128406 I find it all to interesting that the main article tried to see through the fact that the director is a woman whilst the commentaries seem only to concentrate on that very fact. I am sorry to say that war-related aesthetics are quite a long-standing, old, and even worne out tradition. The Czechs started it in the sixties, then came full-metal jacket, and even saving private Ryan (god, even Forrest Gump for that matter). I would say this kind of 'beauty' contained in an apolitical explosion can even been found in Rambo III, given the Afghanistan war (1973) was already a distant past when the movie was released. On the other hand, the soldier that only does his job (which is indeed killing people) and is unaware -let us say PRACTICALLY unaware- of the political situation that led to the conflict and which sustains it, is indeed a political stance: that of the soldiers themselves. The aesthetic reconstitution or the emplotment of a dramatic action is much more than just a matter of a value judgment; thus, the presentation of an apolitical highly-aesthetic version of an ontologically political situation is just a form of mutilation of that which is being represented. Let us not fool ourselves, this is not an enrichessement of a crude reality via the value of THE BEAUTIFUL, it is a castration of the object of representation by means of dressing it in garlands. There you are, a non-genital commentary I find it all to interesting that the main article tried to see through the fact that the director is a woman whilst the commentaries seem only to concentrate on that very fact.
I am sorry to say that war-related aesthetics are quite a long-standing, old, and even worne out tradition. The Czechs started it in the sixties, then came full-metal jacket, and even saving private Ryan (god, even Forrest Gump for that matter). I would say this kind of ‘beauty’ contained in an apolitical explosion can even been found in Rambo III, given the Afghanistan war (1973) was already a distant past when the movie was released.
On the other hand, the soldier that only does his job (which is indeed killing people) and is unaware -let us say PRACTICALLY unaware- of the political situation that led to the conflict and which sustains it, is indeed a political stance: that of the soldiers themselves.
The aesthetic reconstitution or the emplotment of a dramatic action is much more than just a matter of a value judgment; thus, the presentation of an apolitical highly-aesthetic version of an ontologically political situation is just a form of mutilation of that which is being represented. Let us not fool ourselves, this is not an enrichessement of a crude reality via the value of THE BEAUTIFUL, it is a castration of the object of representation by means of dressing it in garlands.
There you are, a non-genital commentary

]]> By: Glenn Kenny http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-124302 Glenn Kenny Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:09:15 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-124302 I was blown away to learn recently that Bigelow had been involved with Art & Language during her fine-art days. Suddenly everything she's done in film made EVEN MORE sense.... I was blown away to learn recently that Bigelow had been involved with Art & Language during her fine-art days. Suddenly everything she’s done in film made EVEN MORE sense….

]]> By: Noah http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-124040 Noah Tue, 31 Mar 2009 04:04:51 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-124040 I blame the feminist filmmaking obsession over 'The Piano' as a part of this problem. The notion of women as filmmaker has been embarrassingly reduced to what they explicitly represent, as opposed to what is inherently feminine or feminist in structure. With 'The Piano' Campion was heralded as a feminist filmmaker for showing us Keitel's dangly bits and and a neutered (mute) woman - a supposed flip on the emasculation issues of men and the objectification of the female anatomy by male directors. But all it was was a visual flip, not inherently feminist at all. The movie was traditional in structure with merely a superficial set of adjustments. With Bigelow you have a similarly flippant and shallow approach where she is judged by externalities of her gender and genre and not by the underpinnings of her work. In the case of Bigelow it masks the true strength of her work and her identity as a filmmaker. The simplicity of so-called feminist film theory does Bigelow's complexity a disservice. I blame the feminist filmmaking obsession over ‘The Piano’ as a part of this problem. The notion of women as filmmaker has been embarrassingly reduced to what they explicitly represent, as opposed to what is inherently feminine or feminist in structure. With ‘The Piano’ Campion was heralded as a feminist filmmaker for showing us Keitel’s dangly bits and and a neutered (mute) woman - a supposed flip on the emasculation issues of men and the objectification of the female anatomy by male directors. But all it was was a visual flip, not inherently feminist at all. The movie was traditional in structure with merely a superficial set of adjustments. With Bigelow you have a similarly flippant and shallow approach where she is judged by externalities of her gender and genre and not by the underpinnings of her work. In the case of Bigelow it masks the true strength of her work and her identity as a filmmaker.

The simplicity of so-called feminist film theory does Bigelow’s complexity a disservice.

]]> By: Ryan Stewart http://blog.spout.com/2009/03/30/the-hurt-locker-at-afi-dallas-and-kathryn-bigelows-girl-problem/#comment-124021 Ryan Stewart Tue, 31 Mar 2009 01:49:57 +0000 http://blog.spout.com/?p=12736#comment-124021 I would argue that she's better than most of the male action directors she could be grouped with. If not for the persistent ghettoization of action as a genre, she'd enjoy much more widespread critical acclaim. Blue Steel and Point Break are astonishing, amazing works of art - and I havent even seen THL yet. I would argue that she’s better than most of the male action directors she could be grouped with. If not for the persistent ghettoization of action as a genre, she’d enjoy much more widespread critical acclaim. Blue Steel and Point Break are astonishing, amazing works of art - and I havent even seen THL yet.

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