Double Standards and Hypocrisy in Entertainment

Famously unnecessary scene in Star Trek

So what is it? We are prudes. No, no, scratch that. We are liberated. No, wait, not that. We view s*x positively. Absolutely not that. We are fucking confused; that is what we are. There are so many messages flying around which we are supposed to believe and try to grasp. The UK, Canada, and America are not s*x-positive countries, yet the adult industry rakes in billions a year; women often have to position themselves as sexy to sell records or be seductive to further their careers in the film industry. The #MeToo movement lifted the lid off of the casting couch culture and the sick objectification of actresses. But didn't we kind of know that already? Was it that much of a surprise? However, you know what surprised me? Australia. From what I have experienced and in researching the issue, they are ahead of the other 3 countries. Don't mind me packing my bags and the Melbourne or Bust tattoo on my shoulder.  

Loana may have been a beauty, but the outfit was
objectification of Raquel Welch and an unapologetic
choice in a very stupid movie.

Historically (the 1660s was when women were finally allowed on stage), acting was a profession for fallen women and mistresses whose fame and beauty could secure a benefactor who would keep them in luxury. Sometimes, rarely, their benefactors would marry them, but they were still kept out of polite society. Women were meant to be kept safely behind closed doors, tending to their husbands and children, NOT on display to inspire wicked ideas.  For poorer women, it was a way out of simply being a street or brothel prostitute. To "tread the boards" was a younger woman's game, and if they were smart, they would marry and hoard their jewels and money so they could retire quietly out of the public eye. Around the mid-1800s, it started becoming a respectable profession as the Industrial Revolution had created a middle class that enjoyed the theatre and had no strict rules about class that kept actresses from socializing among them. 

This brings me to s*x scenes in movies, how delicate that balance is for an actress's career, and whether she can still be seen as a serious actress outside of art-house films. I am not a fan of gratuitous s*x scenes in films because it feels more like a male fantasy than a woman's or an actualized couple. I read somewhere once that it is because the guys who couldn't get the pretty girl in high school are behind the cameras, and they have power now, so this is their chance to make women pay for their snubs. Not consciously, but somewhere in their fragile male egos lurks the 16-year-old nerd. 

In the entire film, Swordfish seemed like an excuse to fulfill male fantasies
about Halle Berry. She was paid an extra 500,000 just to bare her breast when
she balked at doing it. 

I know of actresses who had to audition in bikinis for roles that didn't even involve nudity or sex scenes. A very talented Yale graduate wife of a family friend quit and left acting. She is a theatre-trained actress and was told to look sexy for roles that didn't call for it. Her dream soured, and she couldn't live with it, so she quit and became a film editor. I don't believe that male actors suffer the same indignations for a minute. Not on your life. How often does a casting couch involve an actor when it comes to heterosexual transactional s*x? It can be similar for men when encountering a gay man in power; I know that can be a problem. Still, it isn't quite the same because the history isn't the same, and the number of heterosexual men in entertainment far outweighs bisexual or homosexual men in pure power positions. I am not dismissing it because victims are victims at the end of the day, but this article is about power and the subjugation of women. 

Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams in My Blue Valentine.

Ryan Gosling said in an interview recently that he and Michelle Williams got in trouble for the s*x scenes looking too real.  Gosling explained: "The s*x felt real – it wasn't sexy or a s*x scene', and that's why we got into trouble." And how often is that the case, and do we believe it is always the same for the actress? I also wondered if he discussed revealing this with Michelle. This is why I sometimes dislike s*x scenes; the actress has to give more of herself in an already sexist environment. Would Michelle agree? Or would she say that was his point of view? Mine is very different? 

The infamous leg-crossing scene in Basic Instinct

The notorious scene in Basic Instinct, when Sharon Stone crosses her legs without underwear, caused a scandal that follows her to this day. She asserts that she was told nothing could be seen, and yet everything was on display, humiliating her and changing the course of her career. The director could have edited that out or put it in shadows like she said they told her. The urge to blame Stone is strong. Why wasn't she wearing underwear then? Why would she do it in the first place? Maybe for authenticity, or maybe she only knows, and that should be enough.

How long did it take for us to see full frontal on males in mainstream media? My working theory is that men feel more insecure about their genitals than women feel about their breasts. I believe they project their shame of feeling inadequate onto women, so they have metaphorical dk-measuring contests by hoarding power and wealth, starting a global conflict, treating women poorly, and showing off their physical strength among some of their tactics.

Did you know her character was supposed to be a teen in
Transformers. Michael Bay made her come over and wash
his car to get the role. It is gross and skeevy. 

If more women were in power positions that could change laws and media, I think the landscape would look very different. Powerful women in power wouldn't use s*ex; they would use their intellect and emotional intelligence to get ahead. We wouldn't make older women MILFs or s*xless. We would do the opposite. This is why, more than ever, it is important for women to support projects led by women who deserve to be seen and reject projects that make us nothing but a backdrop for male toxicity and dominance. 

As draconian laws sweep through America and create a bone-chilling icy dread, women are losing ground. As we become more powerful, we can expect a pushback, and we may see it in what is offered for our entertainment. Hollywood has never been a bastion of equality or nearly as liberal as they like to congratulate themselves on being. One look at pay disparity and who runs the studios and talent agencies says everything. Until we can break that ceiling, we have to expect to see more of the same or worse and remain frustrated and objectified. 

This interview is infamous for how sexist it is. I put in part 1 & 2.