Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl
Having just seen Kick-Ass, a movie about superheroes, which features a foul mouthed, violent adolescent girl, I thought about some representations of girls in movies and how a controversial character like Hit Girl could become a new cultural icon as well as a heroine for many.
Hit Girl is eleven years old, swears like she has forgotten how to use other nouns and verbs, and can lop a man’s leg off without flinching. But she is also brave, strong, resourceful, funny, loves her dad and likes going bowling. An unfortunate product of her dad’s upbringing, she is sweet as well as deadly. Understandably the film will court controversy because of her and, of course no parent would want their own child to emulate any of her actions, but she is incredibly compelling to watch.
It’s interesting how girls are represented on the big screen. I loved watching Vada in the My Girl films. She was brave and headstrong but she saw a friend die. I don’t think Hannah Montana or any of the High School Musical kids would ever have to go through the emotional hardships she (and us watching) did. I just wonder at the influence of some movies aimed at girls now. If, for example, Hannah Montana’s only problem is that she can’t find the right clothes to wear, how does this influence her girl viewers and their priorities? Watching Vada lose a friend told us that life can be hard, people go away but you should enjoy your time with people and live your life. Watching Hit Girl on screen made me hope for more interesting representations of girls in movies.
– Julie Anne Young
Junior Girl
Girl Museum
Interesting post. I’m really looking forward to seeing Kick-Ass.
My favourite film about girlhood (and so much more)is Persepolis, adapted from the autobiographical graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi; about a girl growing up in Iran just at the time of the revolution. It’s funny at times, heartbreakingly sad at others, and really insightful.
An interesting article from The Guardian looked at the changing roles of women in romantic comedies, and is well worth a read.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/feb/21/romantic-comedy-good-women
Lara Band
Junior Girl
Girl Museum
cool post, some of the most interesting yet obscured places where desired aspects of girlhood for me are found in very masculine movies where the two ideas (girlhood and hollywood masculinity) play interesting and sometime are portrayed as supportive and interactive poles. I think a very good example is the movie ‘Man on Fire’ (the recent version with Denzel Washington). How the little girl is portrayed in that movie in relation to Washington’s character is very desirable for a parent. I have a 3 year old daughter who adores Hanna Montanna and I would love her to watch ‘Man on Fire’ just for the litte girl character but its also not the kind of movie you’d want your 3year-old daughter to watch basically because of the typical Hollywood violence and the kind of masculinity the movie is appealing to. Now thats sad though I am thinking of ‘The Secret Life of Bees’ as a more appropriate choice….