Portrayals, voice, roles, filmmakers, etc.

Alline Cormier, the film analyst who puts women first, has analysed over 750 feature films from all genres and ratings (a majority being PG-13 rated), from a feminist perspective. Her analyses focus primarily on portrayals and treatment of women and girls. She discusses their sexualization, violence perpetrated against them, the voice they have (or do not have) and their interactions with other characters. Hollywood movies make up the bulk of the films analysed, given that those are the ones we tend to consume. Pictured below is a very small sample of the movies analysed in her books. Her YouTube channel (ACPicks) also features some interesting movie clips. You can also follow her on Twitter: @ACPicks2 and @ACPicks1. Check out her Shop to order a Women in Film 2022 calendar!

​My Oasis

Writing books about the sexualization of women in media can be demoralizing. From time to time I need to take a break from the movies I am analysing to watch movies that convey positive messages about women and include positive portrayals of women. The movies I prefer are the ones that feature women who have congenial and affectionate relationships with other women. The vast majority of movies do not; they tend to feature antagonistic relationships between female characters. Below are the movie posters of some of my favourite feature films. These picks tend to be devoid of sexualization and violence. They also tend to feature solidarity between women.

Pictured below: 9 to 5 (1980), Thelma & Louise (1991), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), The First Wives Club (1996), Brooklyn (2015), Hidden Figures (2016), Ghostbusters (2016), Suffragette (2015), Wonder Woman (2017), Steel Magnolias (1989), Copycat (1995), The Help (2011), Made in Dagenham (2010), Ocean's Eight (2018), Gorillas in the Mist (1988), Beaches (1988), Little Women (2019), On the Basis of Sex (2018) and The Lovely Bones (2009).