It's Man Season Already: A Summer Preview and Angry Tirade

Just when you thought films could not get anymore male-based, this year's summer blockbusters are about to burst onto the screen and remind us who makes movies, who goes to movies, and who matters most on screen--and really, who matters most in our culture.

The other day, I was dialoguing with an Honors student in my Gender and Film composition class about her "lack of female athletes in cinema" paper, and I couldn't help but remark about how nearly every genre is jam packed with male characters, but females are either not present, relegated to the sidelines, or objectified. And in our conversation, my head started doing the math.

Starting last night with Iron Man and continuing with 5 more films in a matter of mere weeks, we will be treated with all the rippling muscles and testosterone we can handle... or even some we can't. It's Hero Time, folks, and since women are just not capable of being anyone's hero, this translates to men, men, men on screen. Men saving the day, (did I say "day"? Try saving the world), men learning life lessons, men scoring with women, men acting badass, men triumphing over adversity, and men being just fucking super cool.

In the wake of Iron Man, we get the male hero in Speed Racer next weekend, followed two weeks later by the perennial hero, Indiana Jones (May 22). A few short weeks later, on June 13, we get The Incredible Hulk...again (because the first time with an angst driven green man was not enough). And of course, no one can overlook the king of all Independence Day releases, Will Smith, suiting up for another hero role in Hancock on July 2.

Whew. That's a lot. Right? Nope. Apparently not, for a few weeks later, we also get the brooding, very handsome, manly, mysterious Batman in The Dark Knight (July 25).

Wow. I believe we get to see every age bracket of man represented on screen as superhero this summer, all between May and July. Where are the women?

Aside from just the super hero roles, most of the comedies this summer are also heavily male laden: Adam Sandler in You Don't Mess with the Zohan (June 6), Mike Myers in The Love Guru (June 20), Eddie Murphy in Meet Dave (July 11), and Seth Rogen in Pineapple Express (August 8). The only female-centered films of any kind that jump to mind are Sex in the City and Mamma Mia! (May 30 and July 18, respectively). Hardly the barrage we see of the male dominated flicks. In between said barrage, men dominate the animated films as well. Within the weeks of all the aforementioned movies, Kung Fu Panda (June 6) and WALL-E (June 27), both centered on male characters, are released.

Just as we can't find female centered characters in the sports film genre, we can't find any female super heroes either. So, apparently in the minds of writers, producers, and directors, no women play sports, have real important angst, and certainly no women are capable of being heroic. Are the creative teams just responding to what audiences want? Why are women not interesting to anyone unless they are spinning around a pole or are coifed side kicks?

I really don't know who I was kidding. Every season is Man Season... but at least we don't get the unadulterated hero worship like we do during the popcorn months. Look, I love film. I saw Iron Man last night and absolutely loved it (save a few issues I had, all of which will be enumerated in my forthcoming review). This tirade of mine is not about being pissed that movies are made with men in the lead. The point is that it's not just men that matter. It's not just men who have something to contribute. Women should be fairly represented on screen as well. And based on this summer's lineup, we have more than a long way to go, baby.