The male gaze theory comes from Laura Mulvey. (Loreck, 2016) The theory discusses ways in which females are portrayed in the media in which they are sexualised for male benefits and pleasure.
Production companies deliberately cast females in videos and films who are considered universally attractive for the purpose of males to feel enticed to watch the media product. This practice is sexist and heteronormative.
While the female gaze can exist too, the male gaze is more prevalent in the media due to the fact there are more males than females in existence. This still does not excuse the fact that females are being used for the use of male viewers and also does not excuse the fact that it is homophobia towards members in the LGBTQ+ community.
The male gaze can be seen across various music videos and films.
For example, the 2017 film Wonder Woman starring Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman exhibits use of the male gaze across the film and film thumbnail. Gadot is seen wearing slightly revealing clothes in the thumbnail which is an enticement for men to go and watch the film.
The film’s plot would have been able to still be played out as well as it was even if the thumbnail had been less revealing. The film does depict the comic books ‘created by William Moulton Marston, Elizabeth Holloway Marston and artist H.G. Peter’ (Brown, 2017) in ‘1941’ (Brown, 2017) and was first made into a film in ‘March 3, 2009’ (Brown, 2017).
Remakes of films in the twenty-first century films tend to take on a new approach in an attempt to reinvent films, and the creators of the 2017 film could have made the creative decision to turn the film into a feminist-facing film in order to subvert the context of the male gaze but this was not done in this particular instance.
2023 has seen the release of a slightly unexpected twist-in storyline in the new Barbie film directed by Greta Gerwig. The film subverts the male gaze and ‘does not give into the popularised pattern of sexualisation of women’ (Shatabdi, 2023). ‘The film follows Female Gaze, where the movie is shown from a woman’s point of view’ (Shatabdi, 2023) which is a new approach to the Barbie brand.
The new twist has caused some controversies online. However, due to the size and reputation of the Barbie brand, it can be seen more as a positive approach for young women and children to see such a big brand show females in more of a positive light in the media.Â
Reference List:
- Loreck, J., (2016) Explainer: What does the ‘male gaze’ mean, and what about a female gaze? The Conversation.
- Brown, T., (2017) 75 years of world-saving: Everything you need to know about ‘Wonder Woman’. Los Angeles Times.
- Shatabdi, J.T., (2023) Why the Barbie movie is making some people uncomfortable. The Business Standard.
