Thanksgiving movies a feast for boys, girls go hungry

Let’s see, no school today and my daughters want to see a movie.

Is it too much to ask for one holiday movie to put a female character front and center as it does for male characters in all 5 holiday movies?

What about a mother-daughter saga instead of father-son one as in “Arthur” (Santa’s incompetent son) and “Happy Feet” (Mumble’s son can’t dance like he can)?

Or a girl buddy movie as in “Puss In Boots” (Puss and Humpty dream, go on adventures, and finally, transition)?

I don’t know what “Hugo” is about but something tells me not a girl.

Puss In Boots:

Hugo:

Happy Feet 2:

Arthur Christmas:

8 thoughts on “Thanksgiving movies a feast for boys, girls go hungry

  1. Instead of making assumptions based on titles and what other movies “seem” to do, why don’t you make an effort to find out some facts before you denigrate something, Magot? I mean, that’s what we want for our children isn’t it; to be valued for all that they have to offer, not just the assumptions that are made at first glance? I’m not sure what the value is in denying any child a good, though imperfect, film if the imperfections are of a nature that can lead to conversation about things like characterization, plot development, ect. that are age appropriate for the child.

    • Hi Kina,

      I agree that its best to see a movie before analyzing it, but I’m interested in more aspects than that.

      People choose to see movies based on advertising and promotion. A lot of thought goes into titles, posters, and trailers. That’s why it’s fascinating to deconstruct them. For example, Disney execs famously changed the movie title from “Rapunzel” to “Tangled” because they decided highlighting a girl’s name was bad for business. Obviously, opposite (or exactly the same) choices were made with “Hugo.” That repeated sexism is throughout Hollywood movies.

      Margot

  2. The Muppets at least has 2-3 strong female characters! You’d better choose that one! And if it’s outright sexist, I’m gonna lose my mind with anger.

  3. I haven’t seen Hugo yet either, but that is one I would not write off, based on the book and on the trailer. It doesn’t swing against your overall argument, that there is a huge lack of girl protagonists… but I am hopeful that Hugo won’t leave girls out in the cold. We’ll know soon!

  4. Haven’t seen, “Hugo,” yet, but the other central character in the book is a pretty cool girl. Not a glowing recommendation, but better than nothing. Wait … maybe nothing IS better …

Leave a Reply to MaryCancel reply