FEMINIST FILM

THEORY

By Megan Mc Clean

WHAT IS FEMINISM?

Feminism is a collaboration of
movements and ideologies
aimed at defining equal rights
for women [fn.1].

FIRST WAVE
FEMINISM

There are three waves of feminism throughout history. The first wave
of feminism was formed in the late 1800s, also known as the
Suffragette movement. In the beginning of feminism these women
stood up for womens vote, as they wanted to be equal with men and
have the same rights to voting [fn.2].

SECOND WAVE
FEMINISM

The second wave of feminism

came in the 1960s. In this
movement women wanted
equality through their,
sexuality, family, workplace,
reproductive rights, de facto
inequalities and office legal
inequalities [fn.3]. This second
wave of feminism moved right
through the 80s into the early
90s.

THIRD WAVE
FEMINISM

The third wave of feminism was born in the early 90s through to
today. This wave involves ideologies focusing on equality for gay and
non-white women [fn.4]. Women in this wave want to abolish the
typical stereotypes for women but also, gender role expectations and
the queer theory [fn.5].

WHERE DID IT ALL

BEGIN IN CINEMA?

Feminism film theory was seen

to have begun in the second
wave of feminism in the 1960s.
This was after the radical
movement crashed in 1968
women began to look in more
detail of the female history
[fn.6]. In the beginning of the
movement women began to
move away from the idea that
capitalism is the reason for
women not being equal with
men. This is when the male
gaze was born.

MALE GAZEWHAT IS IT?

occurs when we as an audience are being put in the perspective of

the heterosexual man [fn.7] gazing at the women on screen as we
stare at their curves- as camera movement, lighting and slow motion
are used to emphasise this. In Mulveys theory she talks of how
women are placed on screen for the visual pleasure of men [fn.8] putting women in the position of being sex symbols or objects instead
of human beings. We as women then can only see ourselves as visual
pleasure for men, putting us in position of having to focus on what the
heterosexual man wants us to look like.

WOMEN WERE
PASSIVE CHARACTERS
OF CINEMA

In mainstream films women were seen

as the passive characters and the men
were active characters. This is when the
women were used as inspiration to the
man in the film and caused the man to
act on this, moving the storyline forward.
Women were seen to almost only exist
because of the male [fn.9] this can be
found in such films as 007. The
dominance of male gaze at the time
comes from the Hegemonic ideologies
that exist in our society [fn.10]- this was
an era where white heterosexual men
were in power and set to oppress the
underdogs such as women, gay people
and black people.

WOMEN WANTED TO
PUSH AWAY FROM
STEREOTYPES

women wanted to move away from the stereotypes of having to stay

in the kitchen and cook for the husband or clean the home.

FEMALE DIRECTORS
AND FILM MAKERS

HAIFAA AL-MANSOUR

First female director from

Saudi Arabia

I have chosen to look at the female

director Haifaa al-Mansour. She is the
first female director to come out
Saudi Arabia and is seen as one of
the country's best-known and most
controversial director [fn.11]. Saudi
Arabia is country known for its women
to be covered head to toe and stand
in the shadows of the men as they
have higher power. Haifaa al-Mansour
grew up in this society of oppression
for women and completely
understands how the lives of women
dont mean a lot compared to the
men.

WADJDA BY HAIFAA ALMANSOUR

The director of this film has a

subtle but powerful way to
express how women in Saudi
Arabia are oppressed and they
may not even realise it
themselves. Haifaa al Mansour
talks in an interview of how she
tries to tell an intimate story
and change peoples
perspective on film when they
see a human person, it puts a
face on a culture rather than
expose it [fn.12].

FILMING AND STORY

OF WADJDA

This is a perfect film that comes into contact with women of different
ages from Wadjda herself to her mother- as her mother is too
distracted by trying to make her husband happy by getting him a
second wife; where is the mothers happiness?

What I find so special about this film is

that the director does not try to
sexualise women or give them false
hope of how they should look. She
presents them in a realistic manner, so
that the point that she is trying to get
across becomes more real for the
women and also men watching. Unlike
the 1950s women- like in this film- have
got more realistic styles and ways of
life; even though Haifaa al Mansour
talks of how she tries to be respectful of
the culture [fn.13] she still makes a
powerful point of putting women in
power and changing the direction of
womens rights in Saudi Arabia.

Overall Feminism in film has powered a movement throughout the

past 60 years and shall continue. Women have come from being a
mans sexualised imagery on screen; to becoming their own
empowerment and moving the great voice of women forward. Even
though we still have so far to go for women to become seen as an
equal sex to men, we as women are slowly changing the perception
that women are second to men.