Garden State. I loved watching it again after a couple of years away. It's typically male-dominated. Male protagonist with male friends, male enemies, and male doctors. But, the love interest, Sam (played by Natalie Portman), is well-developed and totally acceptable in my book. I'm glad she doesn't want to be anybody's bitch.
I liked that "Let Go" by Frou Frou was used in such a key moment in the film, but the soundtrack is otherwise very guy-heavy.
Also, and this is just a personal beef I have, but I think Zach Braff writes movies just so he can make out with pretty girls.
Take away message? Let's get some young, talented, Braff-ish women to whip out some equally fun but more lady-friendly films! I wouldn't complain about hearing more awesome all-girl or female-fronted bands on soundtracks either. ;)
Garden State is an autobiographical film, so wouldn't it seem appropriate for it to seem male-dominated if that's what his life was actually like? Also, Zach Braff hand-picked the songs before the movie was even financed, as they were meant to give insight into the main character, which, again, should explain a male-centric composition.
ReplyDeleteSide note: Have you ever listened to the soundtrack for Elektra? Though I think the filmmakers missed the mark on their rendering of the character and the storyline, some great female-led tracks by the Donnas, Megan McCauley, Evanescence, and the defunct Full Blown Rose are definitely highlights. I know its only 4 tracks out of 15, but by today's standards - especially for an action/comic book movie - that's pretty decent.
All right, Mike, here goes!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, thanks for the tip on Elektra. I'm not a huge comic book movie fan, but maybe I'll check it out!
And I get what you're saying about Garden State being an autobiographical film but, in real life, don't we all come into contact with about 50% males and 50% females? (Unless we're in the army or are engineers or something like that...) It would seem Zach Braff just chose to portray more male characters from his real-life experiences.
Also, I really don't feel that it's wrong for a movie to be dominated by males. As long as, when you take the industry as a whole, there are just as many movies dominated by females. Which is obviously not the case. So, as I've said before, this is no one person's fault. It's not Zach Braff's fault. It's a systemic, cultural problem. And I think Garden State would have been a more interesting movie with a greater female presence in it.
I'm thinking of some gender plusses of the movies now that I'm considering it again. I'm remembering Sam's mom, who's a well-written character, as well as the wife of the guy living in the ship in that sinkhole they go to. Although both of these women are mothers (which, realistically in New Jersey many of the women Braff would come into contact with would likely BE mothers), they are written in a thoughtful way, I think. Braff could have been lazy when he created their characters (they're small parts), but instead he made them kind of quirky and interesting.