Hollywood is creating more kickass female characters, which is great. But why are directors are still treating women like pieces of meat to sell tickets?
Though the movie isn’t as terrible as many critics would lead you to believe, Batman v Superman success on the big screen is debateable. It failed to make the now cherished billion dollar mark, though it did recoup its costs. Hopefully. Beyond that, it left a series of plot holes and bad reviews that stretch from here to Krypton. Editing a solid 30 to 40 minutes out and tightening up the premise would have definitely helped the good parts breathe. But for all of the conversation about the good, the bad, and the future of DC on the big screen, one question just keeps nagging at me.
Why was Amy Adams in a bathtub?
One of my favourite actresses, Amy Adams, plays Lois Lane to Henry Cavill’s Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman in Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and theoretically any DC movie coming up where her character is needed. I’m not going to say she’s my favourite Lois Lane in movies or TV (I have a soft spot for Margot Kidder) but she does a good job and fits the tone of this new era. That being said, there is one scene early in Batman v Superman featuring Adams and Cavill that just stands out in the wrong way.
After a particularly trying incident involving terrorists and Superman saving the day, Lois Lane is relaxing in a hot bath. Clark comes in and they have a conversation. The subject of the conversation is neither relevant nor is it the issue. The context is the issue. The entire conversation happens while a fully clothed Henry Cavill stands over a presumably naked Amy Adams in the bathtub.
Prudishness isn’t the issue here. You really don’t see much of Amy’s body beyond what you would see in an elegant red carpet dress. And even if we did, I wouldn’t care about that.
Age and body aren’t the issues here, either. Hollywood has a weird thing about “older” women and their perceived attractiveness in movies. Amy Adams is in her early 40s, which would only be considered old in Hollywood, and could definitely do a scene like that if she chose to.
The issue here is why. There is no logic to having Amy Adams in a bathtub talking to a fully clothed man. There is no benefit to the movie to set the scene like this. The exact same conversation could have happened more effectively in virtually any other location, from the living room to the bullpen at The Daily Planet to the kitchen at an Outback Steakhouse. The scene leads to a moment of passion when Clark climbs fully clothed into the bathtub with Lois. Again, that moment of passion could be done anywhere. Imagine the same moment playing out on a prep table surrounded by steaks while Outback employees gaze on.
Okay, maybe that exact scenario wouldn’t work but you get the idea.
This scene immediately reminded me of one from the first Avengers film. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts are activating his new building in New York and, for some reason, Gwyneth Paltrow is wandering around in a pair of Daisy Duke cut off jean shorts, a costume option probably not of her own choosing. Again, this is not an issue of prudishness or age/perceived attractiveness. Like the Amy Adams scene, the jean shorts just seemed out of place in the narrative and in contradiction to the character.
There is an attempt to portray both Pepper Potts and Lois Lane as strong female characters that provide a necessary counterpoint to male hero figures. The problem with the jean shorts or the bathtub is that they play into old school views on women in movies, as set pieces rather than characters. It is an absolute objectification of the character and the actress playing her. Moments like this take female characters like Lois and Pepper from well-rounded back to an object to be leered at in a matter of seconds.
These scenes wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow 30 years ago. It was common place to have random naked women in action movies whether it made sense or not. And it usually didn’t. But we have theoretically advanced since then so moments like this seems seem quite out of place. Virtually every movie in Fast and Furious franchise has at least one scene where they go to a crazy street race party with scantily clad women shakin’ it all over the screen. Even in a movie that’s about sometimes criminals driving cars real fast to solve almost any problem, these scenes make no sense and stick out.
DC recently doubled down on this behavior with Suicide Squad. I liked this movie a lot more than most critics, in large part to some of the key characters. Of particular importance was Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. She did an excellent job portraying the character with what she was given to work with, especially a costume that was so inexplicably skimpy it actually progressively climbed further up her butt throughout the movie. Why was she in those shorts? It was a terrible costume choice that devalued what was an otherwise great performance. Karen Fukuhara also did a good job of playing Katana but again within the confines of what she was given to work with. Her character became a caricature in a tube top when she should have been a battle worn ass kicker.
Viola Davis was the only principle female cast member in Suicide Squad that wasn’t sent into battle partially undressed. Also, Viola was one of the most menacing characters in the movie.
I’m not questioning the actresses in these films. They’re adults who can make their own choices on what they do and don’t want to do on screen. I’m in no position to judge them. But I do question the filmmakers behind these movies and challenge them to do a bit better by the female characters in these movies and the actresses playing them.
There aren’t a lot of female characters in this genre of film so the ones we do have should be the best versions of themselves possible.
Also, please set more scenes in the kitchen of an Outback Steakhouse.
Editor’s Note: Reading this article also made me think of a glaring example in Alice Eve’s portrayal of Dr. Carol Marcus in Star Trek Into Dumbness. Marcus was a character that was originally a brilliant scientist that created Genesis. But hey…T&A. Right?
Again, let the record show that this isn’t a prudish essay against a women displaying her body in any way she sees fit. But as Ian points out, this is Hollywood manufacturing scenes that strip women down, not because it grows the story or their character, but because it is what they think we want to see in order to sell tickets. Scantily clad Carol Marcus and Harley Quinn in particular were heavily used in the marketing of both these movies. I’d rather see empowered women.
And if you think we’re overreacting, can you imagine how silly such scenes or costumes would if we dressed heroes like Batman the way we do our female characters?
