Cover image: IMDb
James Bond, Grease, Ghostbusters. Popular films where misogyny runs rampant.
Revisiting some old movies, it’s no surprise to feel unsettled by what we once found funny or romantic…
Manhattan
In this film, Woody Allen’s 42-year-old character dates a 17-year-old high school girl, while actually being in love with a friend’s girlfriend. That synopsis alone is enough to make your stomach turn, even though it’s supposed to be a comedy.
The Kid from the Golden Goose
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn had a happy ending in real life, but their romantic comedy together is seriously questionable. The woman suffers amnesia after an accident, and her husband abandons her. Kurt Russell’s character, a single dad, seizes the opportunity: he convinces her she’s his wife and mother to four unruly kids. He takes her home to cook, clean, and care for the kids. In the end, the husband wants her back, but she realizes her life as a spoiled rich woman was empty and returns to her captor—sorry, the handsome Kurt Russell.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
The female lead is the embodiment of the dumb blonde stereotype: she throws tantrums in every scene and does nothing but get rescued. She has no personality, achieves nothing, and her character has no arc. Actress Kate Capshaw herself admitted her role was just “a silly, screaming blonde,” which is especially troubling since the director was her husband, Steven Spielberg.
Goldfinger
Women swoon over 007, even those not attracted to men. The beautiful Pussy Galore character is a lesbian, and by today’s standards, the famous stable scene feels a bit like assault. James Bond and Pussy start playfully karate-chopping and tripping each other, then Sean Connery aggressively pins her down and kisses her despite her refusal…
Revenge of the Nerds
This comedy is packed with extreme misogyny in almost every minute. The guys secretly film the dormitory and watch the girls naked. One character, disguised as Darth Vader, impersonates a girl’s boyfriend and sleeps with her—but in the film, this isn’t assault, it’s glorified.
Sixteen Candles
This 1984 teen comedy was a childhood favorite of mine and my friends. I thought it’d be fun to watch it again at 48 with my own teenage daughter—how wrong I was! There’s a scene where the popular guy “offers” his drunk, unconscious girlfriend to a loser guy to do whatever he wants, in exchange for another girl’s underwear. This scene horrified me today, and my daughter couldn’t understand why we once found non-consensual sexual abuse funny.
Ghostbusters
Everyone remembers this horror-comedy fondly, and when the remake was announced a few years ago, I decided to revisit the original. Bill Murray is one of my favorite actors, but as an adult woman, it was stomach-churning to watch how his character treats Sigourney Weaver’s. She complains about ghosts, but he doesn’t take her seriously and—despite being a scientist—flirts with her so disgustingly that she has to push him out of her apartment. Meanwhile, Dan Aykroyd’s character is involved in an oral sex scene with a young female ghost—no comment.
Cashback
This 2006 British romantic drama features a guy who suddenly discovers he can stop time, freezing everyone but himself. What does he use this power for? To undress pretty girls, of course. And we’re supposed to root for him to win the love of his dream girl…
American Pie
The main guy—who we’re supposed to root for as the hero—records himself having sex with exchange student Nadia on webcam. The girl knows she’s being filmed, and the whole school accidentally sees the video. The humiliated girl is sent back home, while the boys face no punishment.
Grease
Why is the story of Grease problematic? Because Sandy, the good girl, basically changes everything about herself—teasing her hair, wearing sexy clothes, even smoking—to win over Danny, a typical empty-headed, narcissistic pretty boy. Great message for young girls: change your personality, and maybe the guy who ignored you will finally notice.
