Women Who Wow Wednesday

Babydoll

Posted on January 30, 2013January 30, 2013 by Jack Flacco

In celebration of Women Who Wow Wednesday, this is my tribute to Babydoll, lead protagonist in the film Sucker Punch. If you haven’t seen the movie, please do. You won’t regret it.

Sucker Punch's Babydoll — Sucker Punch’s Babydoll

To protect her little sister from the evil clutches of her lustful stepfather, 16-year-old Babydoll takes it upon herself to exact justice by the end of the barrel of a gun. When she fires a round, the bullet ricochets and accidentally kills her sister. Surviving the attack, her stepfather commits Babydoll to Lennox House, an insane asylum where she faces a lobotomy. A lobotomy her stepfather secures with a substantial bribe given to the institutions’s head orderly. Babydoll escapes into her fantasies where they become her reality.

From there we see Babydoll involved in such feats as dragon slaying, Samurai sword fighting, and taking on an entire zombie army with the help of her friends Sweat Pea, Rocket, Blondie and Amber. Together, these girls kick butt to the extreme of awesomeness.

Now, before I go on, I’d like to address an issue. Critics in unison panned Sucker Punch for its numerous scenes of scantly clad women, calling the film exploitative. I happen to disagree. Unlike Black Swan, which critics adored, there is no nudity in this film. On the contrary, this film depicts women as having strength, fortitude and resilience. Since the majority of the film takes place in a brothel, what else should women wear under that employ other than lingerie? Have we forgotten what Nicole Kidman as Satine wore in Moulin Rouge, which fetched her an Oscar nomination?

Anyway, onward…

Babydoll, Amber & Blondie in Sucker Punch

Played by Emily Browning, star of Lemony Snicket‘s A Series of Unfortunate Events and Ghost Ship, Babydoll yields a traditional Japanese katana sword and a polished nickel-plated Colt M1911A1. To escape her enemy’s attacks, she dodges, performing aerial maneuvers to where she can best execute her counterattacks.

Reminiscent of Inception’s dream within a dream, the best action sequences come from Sucker Punch’s fantasies within a fantasy. Babydoll uses these fantasies to cope with the inevitable reality of her impending lobotomy. Wow, now that was a mouthful. Try to say that three times fast.

However selfish it may seem that Babydoll would rather escape within herself; throughout her fantasies, her fights are noble, just and right. She thinks of her friends first just as she had done when trying to save her little sister from her evil stepfather. Babydoll proves this countless times by deflecting an enemy’s attention from her friends, taking on the burden of their suffering. And as strong as Babydoll appears in her fantasies, the quiet resolve she maintains in reality makes her even stronger. It’s the only way she can face her lobotomy. For it’s with her sacrifice she saves her friends.

Where can we find this kind of devotion in real life? That’s a rhetorical question.

To me, if one were to give their life for a friend, that is the truest form of love anyone could ever possess.

Have you seen Sucker Punch? What did you think of it? Was it as confusing as some critics have made it out to be?

Women Who Wow Wednesday

We’re Off to See the Wizard

Posted on January 23, 2013January 23, 2013 by Jack Flacco

She doesn’t curse. She doesn’t swear. She doesn’t even own a gun. She’s the cutest redhead anyone’s ever seen. She’s also the epitome of American moral values. Who is she? She’s The Wizard of Oz’s Dorothy Gale, of course. And I’m proud to feature her as part of this week’s Women Who Wow Wednesday.

If you’re a regular reader of my blog, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I’ve dedicated a number of posts to some pretty violent female characters in movies. Other than Wonder Woman, most, if not all, have thrown a knife or fired a gun, beaten the crap out of their enemy, or jettisoned them into space. In a zombie apocalypse, those are the women who I’d love to have fight alongside me.

But Dorothy Gale? Sweet little Dorothy? How could she ever take on the undead?

Let’s take a look at what we got. She grew up on a farm. Not a small feat for a young girl, you know. She’s probably seen things done to animals that’d make a billy goat puke. Like rabbits skinned, chickens defeathered, turkeys beheaded, and the family pig, which I don’t think its name was Wilbur, fattened up for months until it reached implosion weight. Then with tears flooding her face, seen it slaughtered in the cool of the day.

So yeah, Dorothy grew up on a farm. She’s seen things.

Okay, so she’s got a tough stomach, but is she strong? I would say so. How else could one explain the absolute fear that gripped the Tin Man and Scarecrow when The Lion showed up? Dorothy stood her ground, though. She didn’t run away. She didn’t cry. Nooo, no. She walked right up to the snarling beast and smacked it across the mouth. “You should be ashamed of yourself!” She snapped, and she stared him down, she did.

Yes, but I can still hear the doubters. She couldn’t hurt an ant, I hear. She’s as gentle as a rose. She’d help a butterfly caught in a web.

Oh, yeah?

She dropped a house. On a witch. Not any ordinary witch, mind you. On THE Wicked Witch of the East. The most fearsome witch of the eastern hemisphere. And then she lied about it. When confronted by The Wicked Witch of the West, Dorothy looked her straight in the eye and lied.

“Who killed my sister?” the Wicked Witch of the West asked. “Who killed the Witch of the East? Was it you?”

“No, no.” Dorothy said. “It was an accident. I didn’t mean to kill anybody.”

“Well, my little pretty, I can cause accidents, too!”

Oh, really. Was that a threat?

Dorothy didn’t take too kindly to those words. No one threatens Dorothy Gale and gets away with it. Especially some cheap floozy who picks her clothes from the leftover Halloween bins at Wal-Mart. No way. From that moment on, the Wicked Witch of the West was on Dorothy’s hit list.

Once the Tin Man, Scarecrow, Lion and her sidekick Toto had the castle surrounded, Dorothy moved in for the kill. She executed her vindictive plan against the witch by drawing in the winged monkeys to the center of the tower. This would ensure she had witnesses, causing no one to doubt her supremacy. Then, in front of all the captains of the monkey army, she melted the witch. And like the coldhearted killer she was, she stood by watching the witch writhe in agony.

She even went so far as to get rid of the Wizard, cutting him loose in a balloon heading for Kansas.

Oh, yeah. I want Dorothy on my team. If anyone can vanquish the undead in a zombie apocalypse it would be Dorothy.

There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.

Have you seen The Wizard of Oz? If not, have you ever wondered what the movie or the books are about?

Women Who Wow Wednesday

Mathilda

Posted on January 16, 2013January 16, 2013 by Jack Flacco

Last week, for my Women Who Wow Wednesday series, I wrote about The Bride, Quentin Tarantino’s blitzkrieg. This week, I’m concentrating on Mathilda, Luc Besson’s hitgirl—raw steal for nerves and a tummy made of iron.

When Natalie Hershlag auditioned for the part of Mathilda in the movie Léon: The Professional, everyone had fallen off their chair for her jarring performance. She would make the perfect compliment to Jean Reno’s hitman character, Léon. Little did anyone know this wonderful actress would grow up to become the celebrated Natalie Portman, who also starred as Evey in 2005’s V for Vendetta.

A child to a father who made a bad deal with drug dealers, Mathilda found herself orphaned by the very people who ought to have protected her—the cops. She turns to her neighbor down the hall at the bloody scene of the murder for protection: Léon, a professional hitman working for the outfit—the organization the very same cops hire to remove the competition.

Well, at least that’s the gist of the movie’s plot. What makes Mathilda unique is her age; she’s twelve years old, and her determination proves her capable of becoming a hitgirl, good enough to exact revenge one day on the scum who murdered her family.

At the time, 1994, the movie proved quite controversial for a number of reasons

Because of Mathilda’s young age, some critics found her use of firearms unnerving

Again, because of her young age, those same critics found portions of her performance bordered on the sensual

Lastly, the violence and language depicted in the film may suggest the filmmakers condoned such behavior in society

Any movie critic wondering about violence, sex, gunplay and kids have yet to watch Sergio Leone’s 1964 film Fistful of Dollars. Produced thirty years before, it remains a classic among film buffs. Guaranteed, a more conservative audience viewed this film back then.

Anyway, back to Mathilda. Under Léon’s tutelage, she learns how to handle a gun, the art of stealth, and proper marking of a target. She learns the professional code of ethics. Mathilda also learns to stop smoking, stop swearing and stop hanging around weird dudes. Critics tend to forget those things when they review the movie for the first time.

She transforms from a lost child to a tough, goal-oriented young girl. However, director Luc Besson never intended her to become a crazed juvenile killer. He wanted her to remain innocent.

What do you think about children portraying roles typically suited for adults? Have you ever seen Léon: The Professional? Would you recommend your friends to see it? What did you think of Natalie Portman’s performance?

Women Who Wow Wednesday

The Bride

Posted on January 9, 2013January 15, 2013 by Jack Flacco

Welcome back to Women Who Wow Wednesday, the series about female characters I admire in film and TV. If you’re looking for additional WWW Wednesday posts, you can find them under the Features box of this site. Have fun!

Boy, oh, boy… I’ve wanted to write about this character for so long. I think it’s time. Back a few years ago, she rocked my world. I just hope I can do her justice with my homage to her character. Bear with me as I gather my thoughts.

If you haven’t seen the movie, I insist you drop everything, go to Netflix and get it. Hold on, read this post first, then get the movie!

In the first movie, the audience simply knows her as The Bride, a blonde of unassuming demeanor. Beaten to an unrecognizable blob by members of her own gang the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, she rises from the pool of her own juices, seeking those who betrayed her. One by one, she exacts revenge, leaving no one behind.

Who is she?

She’s Beatrix Kiddo. Although we don’t know that until the second movie where with her bare hands she cracks open the coffin they buried her in and continues to spread her wave of terror on those miserable traitors who left her for dead. The conclusion is when she comes face to face with the mastermind of the perpetration—Bill.

Yes. If you haven’t already guessed it, I’m talking about Uma Thurman’s character in the movies Kill Bill: Vol. 1-2.

When the studio A Band Apart Films released Quentin Tarantino’s ode to the Seventies Kung-Fu genre, it placed a solid bet of its success on the performance of Uma Thurman. After all, she worked in Tarantino’s first movie Pulp Fiction, how could they lose? Wow, did they sure win on that wager. The statuesque actress’ character cut, maimed, killed, decapitated, disemboweled, hurt, pounced, exterminated, vanquished, conquered, splattered, squished, destroyed, terminated, disfigured, mutilated, injured, slaughtered, and slew anything and everything that stood in her way. Here was a character with the single-minded resolve to hunt down and kill any collaborator who had turned on her. She was perfect.

And the box office loved her. A $30 Million budget—the film grossed $180 Million worldwide.

Her weapon of choice? A Samurai sword fashioned by Hattori Hanzo. The finest katana sword he ever created. And, the deadliest. With it, The Bride cut down the Crazy 88. But let her bare hands not fool you. She used them to pluck the eye out of Daryl Hannah’s character Elle Driver. And let’s not forget the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique she ultimately delivered on David Carradine’s character, Bill. She gave a whole new meaning to the phrase: He died of a broken heart.

If anything is clear, when the character The Bride made her debut in 2003, she not only made money for the studio, she also became a symbol of what was missing in movies a decade ago: A strong, leading lady, with determination and potency well above her male counterparts.

What do you think of Uma Thurman’s brutal portrayal of The Bride? Did she set the bar too high, leaving other female leads to rethink their acceptance of leading roles in action flicks? Let me know. Leave me a comment!

Women Who Wow Wednesday

Hit-Girl

Posted on January 2, 2013December 30, 2012 by Jack Flacco

Welcome back to Women Who Wow Wednesday where I talk about girls or women who leave a trail of inspiration in the wake of their success. Most of the characters are fictional. If you would like to view the rest of the Women Who Wow Wednesday posts in the series, you can click on the Women Who Wow Wednesday link at the top of this post.

If you haven’t seen the movie Kick-Ass, boy, are you in for a treat. For us Canadians, the opening scene is a gift to those who work downtown. My building faces the building featured in the movie. So whenever I see the film, it reminds me of my daily commute to the city.

That’s not what I want to write about though. I would like to introduce to you Hit-Girl, the star of the movie Kick-Ass. Played by Chloë Grace Moretz, who also played Abby in the scary vampire flick Let Me In (the North American version of the terrifying Norwegian film Let the Right One In), she has the knack to put evil elements in their place. A salty mouth and the propensity for violence, eleven-year-old Hit-Girl takes flack from no one.

You read that right. She’s eleven years old, but she can use a gun like a professional soldier, throw knives like a ninja and take a bullet like a grown man. She has no fear, for fear is weakness. She has a vulnerability to her character only few know about. Let me rephrase that: She allows only a few to see her vulnerabilities. Her mentor Big Daddy, played by Nicholas Cage, taught her everything he knows.

The interesting part about Hit-Girl’s character is not so much that she’s eleven years old, but that she acts older than her age. This may shock the audience watching her antics for the first time. She is not a pushover, that’s for sure. Her hardcore superhero status beams loud and clear. No one should trifle with this girl of dangerous demeanor.

She may have an ally in Kick-Ass (a.k.a. Dave Lizewski played by Englishman Aaron Taylor-Johnson), but her thrill comes with vanquishing villains via her cunning and her deception. The deception being she’s only eleven years old. I think I’d mentioned that, right?

I said this before in other Women Who Wow Wednesday posts, women need characters in movies that empower them to reach their full potential. Hit-Girl may prove to be somewhat hard to digest for those with weak stomachs, but she certainly packs a punch when showcasing ideals for women searching for individuals of empowerment.

Have you seen Kick-Ass? What do you think? Do you think Hit-Girl is another one of Hollywood’s prefab superheroes designed to bring in oodles of cash at the box office? Or is she a force of reckoning for the evils that exist in this world?

Women Who Wow Wednesday

Wonder Woman

Posted on December 26, 2012December 26, 2012 by Jack Flacco

Welcome back to Women Who Wow Wednesday. If you haven’t read my intro to the series, you can search for it on my site with the keywords Women Who Wow Wednesday or you can click on the Women Who Wow Wednesday link at the top of this post. Simple, huh?

In my last WWW Wednesday post, I wrote about Wonder Woman in passing. Today, I would like to dedicate this post to her.

In the Seventies, Wonder Woman caused quite a stir among young men. Her most awesome costume and her raving beauty captured the imagination of male adolescents everywhere. I grew up in that era. I remember whenever an article about the stunner appeared in a magazine delivered to our home. I would hide it from my folks.

My father could never find the TV Guide that week.

When I look back, I stand by my words—the Wonder Woman of the Seventies stood as a symbol to eye candy. The series had great messages, mind you. To a growing boy, the message couldn’t be any clearer. But the show lacked a little something for women watching it. The message of empowerment. Women needed that message back then, yet TV did not conform to providing any impressionable example.

Fast forward to today. Warner Bros. tapped The Avengers writer Joss Whedon to work on the project sometime ago. He had some outstanding ideas. One of them:

“The whole idea of a woman who is basically more powerful than any man—and who will always be that, and comes from a society of women who are more powerful than men—is an interesting theme that I think can be very contemporary.”

The ideas weren’t enough to make the studio flip the green light.

In addition, Megan Fox, whose name floated around talks as the Amazonian goddess, had dissed the project:

“Wonder Woman is a lame superhero. She flies around in her invisible jet and her weaponry is a lasso that makes you tell the truth. I just don’t get it. Somebody has a big challenge on their hands whoever takes that role but I don’t want to do it.”

Thank goodness for that. I could never see Megan Fox as the statuesque crime fighter. What needs to happen is the studio has to attach a producer such as J.J. Abrams to the project. Then we might actually see a true, contemporary rendition of Wonder Woman. This superhero is much too important to candify again.

To me, Wonder Woman not only stands for truth but also inner strength. She’s the superhero most likened to Superman. She’s also an unblemished superhero. An incorruptible soul. Some call her naïve. I’d prefer to think of her as unpretentious. Her solutions to problems come in the form of truth.

I would love to see Wonder Woman on the big screen. Look how Captain America became such a success.

What about you? Any thoughts about a big screen debut for Wonder Woman? How about if she knew martial arts like Black Widow, would that seem like a good idea? Let me know below.

Women Who Wow Wednesday

Posted on December 19, 2012December 19, 2012 by Jack Flacco

Welcome to Women Who Wow Wednesday. Or as I’d like to call it: WWW Wednesday. This is when I get to ramble about awesome super chicks in movies and in comic books, and boast a little on their personas and their very cool skill sets.

This week? Let’s talk about Sigourney Weaver‘s character Ripley in the movie Alien. I have to say, if any character has that mix of strength and vulnerability we as a movie audience come to expect from a superhero, Ripley is that woman.

Back in the Seventies, there weren’t that many hero women on TV, or the movies for that matter, a woman could take pride in emulating. Well, there was Wonder Woman—ahem—but she was all candy. The most she could do is lasso a villain with her golden rope of truth and pump them, I mean, question them, for information. She also flew around in an invisible plane. Not bad for back then, although we haven’t seen any studios jump at the chance to make a Wonder Woman movie yet. I wonder why? *yawn*

Then there was the show Charlie’s Angels. You really don’t want me to get into them, do you? They were the epitome of hotness back then. Kate Jackson as Sabrina Duncan, Farrah Fawcett as Jill Munroe and Jaclyn Smith as Kelly Garrett played private eyes for the Charles Townsend Agency. Every week they emerged from their office to hunt for murderers, thieves and other lowbrow thugs. It was also an excuse to wear tight-fitting outfits and string-like bikinis for the adolescent males watching the show. But really, did women actually use these chicks as role models? I don’t think so.

By the way, the show is on Crackle.com this month, if you’re interested in watching the entire first season.

Then, out of the darkness, comes Ellen Ripley.

*spoiler alert*

When the spaceship Nostromo performs a flyby of an unknown planet, she awakens from stasis after receiving an unknown transmission. Once her crew lands on the planet, takes samples back to the ship—like we don’t know what’s going to happen—the alien life form kills everyone onboard except for Ripley, who manages to survive and kill the beast herself.

*end of spoiler alert*

Now, something we have to understand: back then, Ripley became the first female character to show a strong sense of empowerment over obstacles greater than herself. Let’s not talk about Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With the Wind (I have a special post planned to honor her most-incredible story). I’m talking about female characters tailored to fit male protagonist roles. She was the first for a starving Seventies generation. And that character became the mold for future female heroes appearing in movies such as Terminator, Kill Bill and Silence of the Lambs.

What makes Ripley unique? She shows a male toughness in the face of total defeat. Her strength lies in not folding under pressure and taking the shots, even if they hurt. Most of all, for the guys out there…who could ever forget the anticlimax of Alien when she struts around in her panties? This delicate image contrasts the hardness she exhibited earlier in the movie when battling the alien for ship dominance.

Is it a wonder so many sequels flourished from that one single movie?

When James Cameron took the helm of Aliens, the second film to the franchise, his love affair with strong women showed right on the screen. Ripley appeared buff, yet displayed a soft mother instinct. Something of which Cameron depicts in all his female protagonists in every subsequent movie he’s shot. But, I’m getting ahead of myself—I’m saving Aliens for another post. The point being, even Cameron recognizes the impact the Ripley character had within the movie Alien, and uses the strong woman archetype in his movies.

Are there female protagonists in movies you like? Why? Are they the type of women who you’d like to have by your side when battling aliens…or taking out the trash? Let me know, I’d love to hear your opinion.

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