Feminist Film Theory in Legally Blonde

Women are equally important assets as men to the media industry including the film industry which was highlighted by Julia Woods in Gendered Media (1994). Throughout history, women were inevitably misrepresented in films as a reflection of the norms of society which puts women at a secondary and submissive position. With the modernisation of society in terms of education, awareness began to arise which was evident in film with the emergence of feminist film theory in 1920 and intensified as awareness increased (Hayward, 2013). Therefore, feminist film theory was at a peak during the 1960s where women began to actively defend their rights in all aspects including politics, economics and social issues (Hayward, 2013). Film literates have analysed the relativity of women represented in film to everyday society and came up with theories to explain the phenomenon. The report elaborates on the concept and themes of feminist film theory according to as well as aims to discuss the representation of women in film specifically through the film Legally Blonde directed by Robert Luketic.  By firstly studying the concept of feminist film theory, it makes it easier to analyse how films such as Legally Blonde base their story structure on the themes as well as manipulate certain aspects of feminist film theory to convey intended vision of film makers.

Feminist film theory is derived from the feminist movement based on the ideology of feminism which defines as the advocacy of women’s rights based on the analysis of previous exploitation of women’s rights (Hayward, 2013). As films are a reflection of societal norms, it is evident that the representation of women in films affect our culture and vice versa (History Matters, n.d.). The common themes in feminist film theories include discrimination, stereotyping, objectification, oppression and patriarchy (Hayward, 2013). Furthermore, the theme of feminism in films is evident in three ways. Firstly, the misrepresentation of women is evident through the bias assumption of their sexual identities (Hayward, 2013). This is to reflect the double standard towards women due to male supremacy. Secondly, the ideal type of women will be prominent towards the end of a film with women characters of different personality and behaviour (Hayward, 2013). Lastly, the relativity of women in film with women in everyday life is to view the movie from a women audience’s point of view (Hayward, 2013). Interpretation of feminism through film is an effective and entertaining manner of raising societal awareness through the interpretation of application methods such as the character development. These principles are evident in the film, Legally Blonde.

The film revolves around Elle Woods. It is about the struggles she faced being a woman whether she was a beautiful sorority leader or intelligent lawyer. When her boyfriend broke up with her because of her personality and life of being a sorority girl, she was determined to transition to becoming his ideal type which was an intelligent lawyer. Hence, she enrolled herself in Harvard Law School. There, she had to overcome many struggles of being stereotyped as an unintelligent woman due to her attractiveness. The film shows the prejudice and discrimination towards her as she was stereotyped as a “dumb blonde” as well as how she overcame the stereotype by making her own intelligent decisions.

Legally Blonde is a film which applies feminist film theory to narrative development. It takes on the first way of looking at feminism in films which is the stereotypical assumption of the lead's, Elle Woods’, sexual identity and capabilities based on her attractive appearance that is stigmatised by a male dominated society. The film encompassed the common themes found in feminist films. Firstly, discrimination was evident as Professor Callahan constantly made Vivian (visual 1) get him coffee instead of his other male students due to her gender. 


Visual 1

Secondly, stereotyping was evident as society stereotyped Brooke Taylor (visual 2) to be an exploiter or gold-digger because she married an old successful businessman. 


Visual 2

Thirdly, objectification was evident during the scene where Elle Woods first arrived at Harvard, and the students viewed her as a Malibu Barbie Doll due to her appearance (visual 3) without much consideration towards her achievements. 


Visual 3

Fourthly, oppression was evident as Paulette (visual 4) was emotionally abused by her husband and he kept her beloved dog when they split up. 


Visual 4

Lastly, patriarchy was evident during the discussion of Elle Woods’ admission into Harvard. The admissions board constituted of all men whom had the power to decide who enters to the prestigious university (visual 5). 


Visual 5

In short, the themes of discrimination, stereotyping, objectification, oppression and patriarchy found in Legally Blonde has classified it as a feminist film.

As a recapitulation of the report, feminist film theory defines as films based on the common themes such as discrimination, stereotyping, objectification, oppression and patriarchy towards women. These films include Legally Blonde as its narrative structure was guided the themes of feminist film theories. The film shows the misrepresentation of women and attempts to rectify the false perception towards women’s capabilities. As film content evolves, so does our culture.  Therefore, films based on feminism such as Legally Blonde play a crucial role in raising awareness towards the issue of gender inequality and increase familiarity towards the term feminism. Films should be used as a tool to empower women instead of degrading them through proper and justified representations of women’s roles in society.

References

Hayward, S. (2013). Cinema Studies The Key Concepts (4th ed.). USA: Routledge, pp. 137 – 148.

History Matters. (n.d.). Films as a Social and Cultural History. Retrieved from

Wood, J. T. (1994). Gendered Media: The Influence of Media on Views of Gender. Gendered
Lives: Gender, and Culture, 9, 231-244.

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