Presentation Script

Opening title screen of powerpoint with presentation title and images of the movie posters (Items 16, 17 and 18)

Speaker: We have seen a massive change in what is perceived as an independent woman in film but have we fully achieved a realistic depiction of an independent woman as a protagonist?

Change to next slide of powerpoint; an image of Marilyn Monroe in How To Marry A Millionaire (Item 19)

Speaker: Going back to the 1930’s, Marilyn Monroe is the kickstarter to sexual imagery in film.

During a time where women were still extremely oppressed, Marilyn Monroe was almost liberating as she brought promiscuity to the screens and “manipulated” men in her films for her benefit. Despite this, in the modern day, her image is now perceived as sexual objectification.

Change to next slide of powerpoint; quote “"I think Marilyn would be stunned to see how people have reinterpreted her life since she died," says Nancy Friday, author of My Mother, Myself and The Power of Beauty.” (Item 13)

Speaker: As we can see from this quote, Monroe is obviously not who all women want to be anymore. Thinking of a typical housewife in America, you would think that a woman who was portrayed to control men would be desired for a wife that is the property of her husband. We can see these desired traits in How To Marry A Millionaire. Monroe’s character, Pola, and her friends all try to seek out a millionaire that they can marry by means of seduction. Comparing a 1930’s opinion of this concept to that of a modern day opinion would be complete opposites. From this we can see how independance for women has evolved.

Change to next slide of powerpoint; movie poster for Kill Bill Vol. 1 (Item 17)

Speaker: Moving forward from the 1930’s, the early 2000’s came with a mixed portrayal of female protagonists. One icon is The Bride in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill. This character and film particularly stands out in the sense of independent women as The Bride intends on killing her ex lover. Strong, violent and clever, these characteristics of a female protagonist breakthrough the norms of most female protagonists. In Volume 1, she is clear on her intent with no barriers that we would typically think of, such as love.

Change to next slide of powerpoint: Image of Uma Therman and quote from Variety article: “Women would come up to me and they would say that somehow or other – they’d share a little bit — that that film helped them in their lives, whether they were feeling oppressed or struggling or had a bad boyfriend or felt badly about themselves, that that film released in them some survival energy that was helpful, and that is probably one of the most gratifying things that I have ever experienced in response to a piece of art,” (Item 6)

Speaker: Uma Therman, explains in a variety article that her role in Kill Bill empowers woman. From the quote (point at quote) the revenge aspect of the film has related to women and provided a release for those stuck in a negative situation.

Speaker: Despite this, there are still opposing views as to whether Kill Bill was a step forward for female protagonists and whether The Bride is a true icon of independence.

Change to next slide of powerpoint; with quote from Aideen Johnston "If he is going to make a film about strong women, why make it so unrealistic?" (Item 4)

Speaker: The unrealistic qualities come from The Bride's physical abilities, the majority of the audience do not know how to wield a samurai sword so looking at this fact we can question whether having an unrealistic image of a woman is effective in creating a strong woman, women can relate to.

Speaker: We can also relate this question to the third film I am going to talk about; Wonder Woman.

Change to next slide of powerpoint; Image of movie poster for Wonder Woman (Item 16)

Speaker: Compared to the other two films that we have previously looked, Wonder Woman was created in a time where feminism and equality are constantly debated. In today's society, people are quick to judge films and whether they are a benefit to women in film.

Speaker: One main way in which Wonder Woman is empowering is the fact that such an incredibly successful film was directed by a woman: Patty Jenkins. Despite this presentation being about the representation of independent women through a protagonist, we can still acknowledge the fact that a film about a strong woman was also directed by a woman. This film particularly stands out as being in the superhero genre, the character of Wonder Woman is completely new, it is almost as if Patty Jenkins introduced women's strong abilities into a genre dominated by men.

Speaker: In the same way that Kill  Bill is criticised for having unrealistic qualities, Wonder Woman's body and outfit are seen as an unrealistic quality. More of a modern day issue, body image now comes into play when talking about who we can look up to. In an article in the metro, the author Theresa Harold says "if being semi-naked is the most practical mode in which to save the world, where is Batman's mankini?", this raises the question is this film really putting women equal to men?

Change to final slide of powerpoint: Images of all three movie posters (Items 16, 17 and 18)

Speaker: The image of an independent woman has changed over the years as we can see. What you think an independent woman is, can be your own opinion, but despite having breakthroughs in film such as Wonder Woman, it is clear that we are still not satisfied with where we have gotten to. As opinions change through the years, will women ever be completely equal to men within the film industry.

Speaker: Thank you for listening.