Cinematography of Female Objectification from the Perspective of the Male Gaze: Sucker Punch

Oğuzcan Acar

Makale detayları

Cinematography of Female Objectification from the Perspective of the Male Gaze: Sucker Punch

Yazarlar:

Oğuzcan Acar

Yayıncı:

Istanbul University

Ana Başlıklar:

Ekran Medyası

Dergi:

Filmvisio Issue 1, pp.181-201

Belge Tipi:

Makale

Yayın Tarihi:

10/2023

Belge Dili:

Türkçe

Document ID (Org No.):

2001296732

pISSN:

2980-3101

Anahtar kelimeler:

Özet:

 Sucker Punch 2011, directed by Zack Snyder and his first film not based on source material, has been the center of controversy since its release. The two main groups at the center of the debate are as follows: One group says the film represents womens empowerment from a feminist perspective, and the other group claims on the contrary that the production contains misogynistic elements. Female actors play the main roles in this film and are the focus of the story on the fictional level. The main basis of criticism has been the presence of scenes that hyper-sexualize women and reproduce certain gender stereotypes. The defenses against these criticisms have been stated on the basis that the points considered problematic in the production were mainly due to viewers whod internalized these problems. Among the issues that reproduce the gender stereotypes the film claims to approach with a critical lens are a brothel making up the low-fantasy universe of Babydolls Emily Browning character, the women there being enslaved and working solely to satisfy male pleasure, the constant threat of sexual violence, and the invincible appearance of male power and the film emphasizes the invalidity of the counterarguments. A new evaluation focusing on these debates in the context of the seminal concept of the male gaze as emphasized by Laura Mulvey would provide a more accurate analysis. Therefore, an examination of the objectification of women in the film, the acceptance of the audience as a male subject, and the visual narratives appeal to male pleasure and to the reproduction of gender inequality, as well as other similar issues, will reveal whether the film was produced within the model of the male gaze. Ultimately, this will provide a clearer idea of whether the film opens the door to female empowerment as claimed or conversely to the objectification of women. This study aims to analyze this film that has been the focus of various debates through an evaluation from the perspective of critical feminist film theory.

 Sucker Punch 2011, directed by Zack Snyder and his first film not based on source material, has been the center of controversy since its release. The two main groups at the center of the debate are as follows: One group says the film represents womens empowerment from a feminist perspective, and the other group claims on the contrary that the production contains misogynistic elements. Female actors play the main roles in this film and are the focus of the story on the fictional level. The main basis of criticism has been the presence of scenes that hyper-sexualize women and reproduce certain gender stereotypes. The defenses against these criticisms have been stated on the basis that the points considered problematic in the production were mainly due to viewers whod internalized these problems. Among the issues that reproduce the gender stereotypes the film claims to approach with a critical lens are a brothel making up the low-fantasy universe of Babydolls Emily Browning character, the women there being enslaved and working solely to satisfy male pleasure, the constant threat of sexual violence, and the invincible appearance of male power and the film emphasizes the invalidity of the counterarguments. A new evaluation focusing on these debates in the context of the seminal concept of the male gaze as emphasized by Laura Mulvey would provide a more accurate analysis. Therefore, an examination of the objectification of women in the film, the acceptance of the audience as a male subject, and the visual narratives appeal to male pleasure and to the reproduction of gender inequality, as well as other similar issues, will reveal whether the film was produced within the model of the male gaze. Ultimately, this will provide a clearer idea of whether the film opens the door to female empowerment as claimed or conversely to the objectification of women. This study aims to analyze this film that has been the focus of various debates through an evaluation from the perspective of critical feminist film theory.

 Sucker Punch 2011, directed by Zack Snyder and his first film not based on source material, has been the center of controversy since its release. The two main groups at the center of the debate are as follows: One group says the film represents womens empowerment from a feminist perspective, and the other group claims on the contrary that the production contains misogynistic elements. Female actors play the main roles in this film and are the focus of the story on the fictional level. The main basis of criticism has been the presence of scenes that hyper-sexualize women and reproduce certain gender stereotypes. The defenses against these criticisms have been stated on the basis that the points considered problematic in the production were mainly due to viewers whod internalized these problems. Among the issues that reproduce the gender stereotypes the film claims to approach with a critical lens are a brothel making up the low-fantasy universe of Babydolls Emily Browning character, the women there being enslaved and working solely to satisfy male pleasure, the constant threat of sexual violence, and the invincible appearance of male power and the film emphasizes the invalidity of the counterarguments. A new evaluation focusing on these debates in the context of the seminal concept of the male gaze as emphasized by Laura Mulvey would provide a more accurate analysis. Therefore, an examination of the objectification of women in the film, the acceptance of the audience as a male subject, and the visual narratives appeal to male pleasure and to the reproduction of gender inequality, as well as other similar issues, will reveal whether the film was produced within the model of the male gaze. Ultimately, this will provide a clearer idea of whether the film opens the door to female empowerment as claimed or conversely to the objectification of women. This study aims to analyze this film that has been the focus of various debates through an evaluation from the perspective of critical feminist film theory.

 Zack Snyderın yönetmenliğini üstlendiği ve kendisinin kaynak materyale dayanmayan ilk filmi olma niteliğini haiz Sucker Punch 2011, vizyona girdiği günden itibaren tartışmaların odağı olmuştur. Tartışmaların merkezindeki iki ana grup şöyledir: Filmin feminist bir perspektifte kadının güçlendirilmesini temsil ettiğini söyleyenler ve bunun tam tersine yapımın mizojinik unsurlar içerdiğini iddia edenler. Kadın oyuncuların ana rolleri üstlendiği ve kurgusal düzlemde hikâyenin ağırlık merkezi oldukları mezkûr filmde, bilhassa kadınları hiper-seksüalize eden ve belirli cinsiyet kalıplarını yeniden üreten sahnelerin bulunması eleştirilerin temel dayanağı olmuştur. Bahis mevzuu eleştirilere yönelik savunmalar ise yapımda sorunlu addedilen noktaların esasen izleyicilerin bu sorunları içselleştirmiş olmasından kaynaklandığı ekseninde belirtilmiştir. Babydoll Emily Browning karakterinin düşük-fantazya evreninin bir genelev olması, kadınların burada tutsak olup salt erkek hazzını tatmine yönelik çalışmaları, cinsel şiddet tehdidinin daimî varlığı ve erkek kuvvetinin yenilmez görünümü, filmin eleştirel mercekle yaklaştığını iddia ettiği cinsiyet kalıplarını yeniden üreten hususların başında olarak ifade edilmiş, karşı argümanların geçersizliği vurgulanmıştır. İşbu tartışmalara odaklı yeni bir değerlendirmenin ise Laura Mulvey tarafından vurgulanan ufuk açıcı eril bakış kavramı ekseninde yapılması, daha isabetli bir tahlil ortaya koyabilecektir. Dolayısıyla filmdeki kadınların nesneleştirilmesine, seyircinin erkek özne kabul edilmesine, görsel anlatının erkek hazzına hitap etmesine, cinsiyet eşitsizliğini yeniden üreten görsel anlatıya ve benzeri sorunlara yönelik irdeleme, filmin eril bakış modeline dâhil bir yapım olup olmadığının neticesini gösterecektir. Nihayetinde buna göre, filmin, iddia edildiği üzere kadının güçlendirilmesine mi, yoksa aksi şekilde kadının nesneleştirilmesine mi kapı açtığına dair sarih fikirler edinilebilecektir. İşbu çalışma, eleştirel feminist sinema kuramı perspektifinden bir değerlendirme ile çeşitli tartışmaların odağı olan bu filme dair bir irdeleme yapmayı gaye edinmiştir.

Makale detayları

Cinematography of Female Objectification from the Perspective of the Male Gaze: Sucker Punch

Yazarlar:

Oğuzcan Acar

Yayıncı:

Istanbul University

Ana Başlıklar:

Ekran Medyası

Dergi:

Filmvisio Issue 1, pp.181-201

Belge Tipi:

Makale

Yayın Tarihi:

10/2023

Belge Dili:

Türkçe

Document ID (Org No.):

2001296732

pISSN:

2980-3101

Male gaze

feminism

objectification

cinema

Sucker PunchEril bakış

feminizm

nesneleştirme

sinema

Sucker Punch

Sayı

Makale detayları

Yazarlar: Oğuzcan Acar

Yayıncı: Istanbul University

Ana Başlıklar: Ekran Medyası

Dergi: Filmvisio Issue 1, pp.181-201

Belge Tipi: Makale

Yayın Tarihi: 10/2023

Belge Dili: Türkçe

Document ID (Org No.): 2001296732

pISSN: 2980-3101

Sayı

Yazarlar:

Oğuzcan Acar

Yayıncı:

Istanbul University

Ana Başlıklar:

Ekran Medyası

Dergi:

Filmvisio Issue 1, pp.181-201

Belge Tipi:

Makale

Yayın Tarihi:

10/2023

Belge Dili:

Türkçe

Document ID (Org No.):

2001296732

pISSN:

2980-3101