Tarantino’s women
Jo Zelzulka
In this article, Zelzulka argues that Tarantino demonstrates a strongly feminist approach to his female characters including Beatrix Kiddo and Jackie Brown. both characters demonstrate strongly stereotypical views of womanhood through their prioritisation of motherhood. However, Zelzulka explains that this allows the characters to become more three-dimensional as the stories follow a plot which is able to intertwine motherhood within it. It is also clarified that ideas surrounding motherhood are present within the films not out of misogynistic views but from a place of adoration from Tarantino who describes his own mother as “ambitious, competent, successful, and well-educated” due to her ability to raise him without a consistent father figure for Tarantino. Jo also states that Tarantino’s representations of women display them as “strong, independent and complex characters…in all his films” further accentuating the idea that women in his films have characteristic depth and strength to them. From this it can be concluded that Tarantino chooses to present the female characters within his films as complex to reflect the strength and determination of the women within his own life who he appears to strongly uphold as both influential and inspirational. Zelzulka iterates at the end of her article that her opinion could be heavily influenced by the fact that she is a woman. She would see things from the perspective that supports her view that Tarantino would represent women and men in equal resale to of character without stereotyping either gender. Tarantino himself recognises the difference in approach which can be taken by men and women when looking into gender roles within his films. He elaborates that “…some of the strongest defenders of Reservoir Dogs were women…the women who got it would take on all comers.” which could suggest that Zelzulka may be accurate in her perspective of what Tarantino is trying to convey about women through the way that male characters within his films talk about and address women.
Feminist theory: Liesbet van Zoonen
Van Zoonen argues that females in media are often restricted to secondary roles as they are consistently led or controlled by a stronger male character. They typically possess the role of the romantic interest or another supporting role within television. However they tend to positioned in order to peruse male-based dependence through advice within magazines. Women are often constructed as passive participants in their roles which can be seen in sports coverage, shown in both magazines and news, due to the predominant focus on the performance of male athletes. This displays a clear theme in multiple media products of women being seen as almost a character that stands behind a man and bends to his will, creating patriarchal ideas about gender inequality and the stereotypical ‘weakness’ of women.
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Natasha’s Story: life as a new mum in temporary accommodation
Natasha discusses her fears as a new mother whilst being homeless. When her daughter was born, she felt terrified as her and her daughter had nowhere else to go. Natasha explains how living in temporary accommodation affects the lives of her and her daughter on a daily basis. She tells the audience about how their id mould and damp everywhere in the property. Her daughter has had a cough from the age of three days old until now. Within the property, there are damp collectors which tend to fill up within the space of a week and a half to two weeks. Natasha struggles to sleep because she is concerned that her daughter is going to stop breathing in her sleep. their toilet is filled with sewage and after it is flushed, it comes back with 20 minutes to half an hour. They are currently eating mainly tinned foods and baby dishes that do not need to be cooked because they do not have an oven. they also have rats within their accommodation, making the environment uninhabitable. She also explains that even without these issues, the accommodation is so small that it is dangerous for an adult and a toddler to be living there. Natasha does not feel safe in her temporary accommodation due to loud noises which can be heard from people being arrested and their doors being ‘booted in’. She has previously come back to her property and seen parts of the wall surrounding her lock that have been chipped away, making her worried for the safety of her and her daughter as she feels defenceless in the potential event that someone breaks in. She feels that there have been several serious issues that have never been dealt with. None of the tenants have direct contact with landlord and are only able to contact a team that works for the landlord, who have recently began ignoring Natasha’s phone calls and emails. Natasha and her child spend most of her day out of their accommodation, even in winter months just to escape their situation. One of Natasha’s neighbours has been in their accommodation for 7 or 8 years. Natasha said that feels that there are “not enough people that care” because there are not enough landlords that will help. She also discusses how there are a lot of new buildings being constructed but only to be bought or rented. She feels that these buildings should be social buildings in order to help thousands of people. Natasha often tells herself that their situation could be worse as her and her child could be living on the streets but due to the mice and sewage she feels that she is almost in that situation. Despite this, Natasha says that her child empowers her and is her motivation as she dreams of one day not being in temporary accommodation with her daughter. Through this video, Shelter informs the audience that temporary accommodation is not a solution to homelessness but instead the government need to invest in a ‘new generation of social housing’.
Loaded: Lads, Mags and Mayhem
I watched a BBC documentary which looked into the Loaded magazine and its development throughout the 90s from its origin, aiming to appeal to audience similar to the creators of the magazines. The documentary begins by focusing on how loaded began, as a fanzine focusing on interviews with bands created by James Brown. Loaded was then officially created in 1994 with a team including James Brown, Kristen Smith, Martin Deeson and Michael Holden. The title ‘Loaded’ was seen as effective due to its polysemic connotations which Brown describes as “power”, “energy” and “sex”, insisting the magazine had action in comparison to its competitors GQ and FHM. The magazine chose to target itself towards ‘men who should know better’, inspired by a comment made towards Brown by a teacher whilst he was at school. Loaded was seen as a reaction to newly introduced stereotypes of the ‘new man’ based on political correctness within the 1980s and 90s, choosing to shut down these stereotypes. Loaded was aimed at those who were a part of the ‘lad’ culture. ‘Lad’ culture is perceived as what was a mass of popular culture amongst working class people, mainly men within the 1990s. David Baddiel was a large part within this ‘lad’ culture along with other popular figures within media at the time such as Gary Oldman, Eric Cantona, and Paul Weller, who were perceived as ‘cool’. Baddiel comments that there was a redefinition of the word ‘lad’, causing a redefinition of the type of masculinity that had been looked down on by others previously. In early stages of production, it was suggested to Brown that the magazine included everything men like apart from women, which led to a change in approach and Liz Hurley featuring within the magazine. Sawyer suggested that women only seemed to be included within the magazine when sexualised, which continued and accelerated throughout the magazine’s production, especially after Brown left and was replaced by Derek Harbinson. This is a contrast to the way women were often represented when the magazine first began as they were typically seen as able to become a part of the ‘lad’ culture as ‘ladettes’ whose lifestyles were characterised in a similar way by humour, indulgence and hedonism. However, towards the end of the 20th century women who had largely been empowered within the ‘lad’ culture were once again being asked to strip for the magazines, solely seen sexually. Alongside the launches of Nuts and Zoo, an increased depiction of female nudity was seen within Loaded magazine. The magazine was now depicted as pornographic due to a shift in its focus from ‘lad’ culture to naked women. The circulation declined within the 2000s compared to the 1990s when the magazine launched. This can be perceived as a result of Loaded’s change in approach from capturing lad culture to becoming a magazine with a “babe-only cover policy” as described by Meg Carter in The Independent.
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I, Daniel Blake review
Directed by Ken Loach, the film focuses on problems within the welfare state and its ability to support those in need. The film follows the story of Daniel Blake, a man that seeks help as he is unable to work, and his interactions with the social support in place assigned to help him. Loach uses the film to highlight the issues within the system and its limited accessibility for those that need it most. For example, the increased use of the internet within the application for benefits is displayed to be extremely problematic for those that lack digital convergence is displayed within the film. People who are unfamiliar with technology are expected to use the internet to access financial support such as applications for benefits. Through this Ken Loach reflects how the measures put in place to request help are often difficult to access by certain sections of society. This furthers the idea that the state is not always wholly considerate of people's ability to access the help they are being told is available to them. Loach has produced several films reflecting a similar message about the inaccessibility of the welfare state, suggesting that no real change has occurred. One character in the film references Iain Duncan Smith, who was Secretary of State for Work and Pensions following the 2010 election, further suggesting that the state itself is at fault for the lack of support for those in need. I feel that the film was a realistic and emotional representation of how the welfare state treats those in need and does not always entirely consider the circumstances of those in need. Beyond this, I felt that the film suggests that help is only available when its too late, reflected by the end of the film. In my opinion, I feel that Loach has been able to allow the audience to engage and build a relationship with a character that is based on stories of real people, encouraging ideas of collective responsibility within society, due to the unreliability of the welfare state.
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