Blog 4

Women in Classical Hollywood Filmmaking

 

Women in classical Hollywood who wanted to work in film production were often times limited to careers of “feminine” jobs.  Our textbook lists a few of these jobs as secretaries, minor assistants, and script girls (p. 217.)  Very few women became motion picture directors and producers or screenwriters in previous decades, and there was a standard to a particular feminine behavior, which was often different from one era to another.

Although the standards differed from one era to the next to what a woman female character should play on screen, in a modern day society, females often have the same roles that women in classical Hollywood times.

For example, a current movie, “Iron Man,” which is based on an all-time classic comic book series, contains very stereotypical roles to the classical Hollywood era.  Iron Man, the man who can pretty much obtain anything he wants with his powerful iron suit and rescues innocent citizens, is the male hero of the movie.  

However, there to do his busy work is Pepper Potts, the super assistant.  There would be no Iron Man without her.  When Iron Man is off saving the world, his female assistant is “manning” his luxurious home, doing is busy work, and basically staying out of his way unless he calls on her for help.  There is a scene in the movie where he sees her for the first time dressed up in a gown, and views her with a sexual eye.  This is an example of the woman basically being the assistant around the clock unless she is viewed as a sex object, where then it is okay for her to stop her feminine job. Though the movie is twisted in the fact that Iron Man falls in love with her, Pepper still maintains the role of the passive woman similar to classical Hollywood film, where one can see that “good women” are like Victorian models usually virginal daughters who if they work at all do womens work (p. 218). Pepper  was seen in her dress in a very virginal light, for it was the first time Iron Man had ever seen her showing much skin, and not in secretary type clothes. 

Iron Man is just one example of how Classical Hollywood Film is similar to that of contemporary film.  From the way that films sell best with male action heroes, to women primarily taking on stereotypical femenist jobs, contemporary and classical film are more alike than different.