Item 1: Primary source: Alfie (US, 1966, Dir. Lewis Gilbert.)
This film is very useful in terms of representation of women because it shows how women were treated and represented at the time, and centuries before. It represents a time when men were superior and women were only there for the benefit of the man. It shows the emergence of the sexual revolution which also represents the beginning of change for the representation of women when they became more liberated.
Item 2: Primary source: Bridget Jones Diary (UK, 2001, Dir. Sharon Maguire.)
I feel that this film is very useful in terms of representation of women because it's very stereotypical in regard to the fact it focuses on a woman's struggle to find love, and her need to seek approval of a man, Bridget is seen to be very much reliant on male attention, which has of course changed over recent years thus providing a challenging representation to how women are portrayed on contemporary films.
Item 3: Primary source: The Ugly Truth (UK, 2009, Dir. Robert Luketic.)
This film is great in terms of showing how far the representation of women has progressed over time. In contemporary films women are individual, opinionated and liberated but they can also still be quite reliant on men which can be seen in The Ugly Truth as the main protagonist, played by Katherine Heigl asks the advice of a man on her love life- which shows that although women are now liberated and individual, they still seek the advice and approval of men. One could argue that the representation of women in romantic comedies has progressed but is still very much limited due to our patriarchal society.
Articles:
Item 4: http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2010/03/12/the-1960s-a-decade-of-change-for-women
This article is good in terms of showing the changes that happened in society during the 1960's -This decade was crucial in terms of the the shift of morals that occurred during this period which lead to an introduction into the liberation of women - new found rights - which began to come across in films made in this era - for example, the focus film Alfie.
Item 5: http://www.nerve.com/news/love-sex/study-media-representations-of-women-have-become-more-pornified
This article shows how women are more commonly objectified within the media these days - this representation is quite stereotypical of modern films. This portrayal is interesting when contrasting is against the representation of women in previous decades. Women have gone from being conservative, dependant and passive to liberated, individual and actively objectified.
Websites:
Item 6: Laura Mulvey feminist theory.
The concept that women are objectified and men are dominant in all media texts. This is an important source because this theory can be applied to almost every film that you watch, it is true that the representation of women is narrow and they are often passive.
Item 7: http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/824060/
Screenonline is a great source in terms of showing the progressive representation of women. It outlines how women were represented decade by decade and shows the gradual progression of female individualism. By the 1960's, when Alfie was produced 'female characters were seen to break moral codes and defy expectations of how they should behave - as represented by Alfie's many 'girlfriends' who were having an affair.
Item 8: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_feminism
The history of feminism is a key factor in the development of the representation of women over time, the different movements and how women were portrayed at certain points in society are reflected well in the focus films, particularly in regard to female liberation.
Item 9: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminist_film_theory
With specific reference to 'realism and counter cinema' It's relevant to my investigation and has proven to be a useful source because it highlights how feminist movements contributed to a fairer representation of women within the media which can be seen in the films I am studying.
Powerpoint presentation.
This presentation outlines the representation of women in the media during the 90's - This decade showed the emergence of female individualism - Women were no longer as dependant on men, they were able to go for higher paying jobs and women became more confident within society- living to please themselves.
Radio.
Item 11: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00c26xk#p00cgzx0
An interview with Kate Winslet talking about romantic comedies - 'The Holiday' - she says ''they are quite conventional, romantic comedies, aren't they? there is the expectation of the sort of lives and the way people end up is quite conventional.'' - This shows that the representation of people in romantic comedies are often stereotypical and the viewer can often predict what is going to happen to each of the characters. The aim of this source was to gain an insight into the view of an actress who stars as part of my focus genre.
An interview with Kate Winslet talking about romantic comedies - 'The Holiday' - she says ''they are quite conventional, romantic comedies, aren't they? there is the expectation of the sort of lives and the way people end up is quite conventional.'' - This shows that the representation of people in romantic comedies are often stereotypical and the viewer can often predict what is going to happen to each of the characters. The aim of this source was to gain an insight into the view of an actress who stars as part of my focus genre.
Item 12: Special feature on The Ugly Truth DVD
The special features on the DVD help give an insight into the construction of the characters and the gender differences which define their morals. It was useful to show the distinction between how men and women think and what they are looking for in terms of a 'perfect checklist.' It states that romantic comedies are stereotypical, they always begin with a man and a women who are in conflict and end in their love story. Rom coms are often clichéd and their outcomes are often predictable.
Books.
Item 13: E. Ann Kaplan - Women & film - both sides of the camera.
This book has proven to be very helpful in terms of the breakdown of the representation of women over time and how various feminist events have affected the way in which women are represented within the media. Ann Kaplan also has a theory that the representation of women is reliant on two different concepts: essentialism and anti-essentialism which is the battle between whether women are represented as their own individuals or if their representation is constructed to please the male eye.
Discarded sources:
Item 1: http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/hollywood/10216.shtml Doris Day interview - I though that this source would provide historical context but it didn't contain much useful information so I decided that the source wasn't applicable for this investigation.
Item 2: Film: Four weddings and a funeral - I didn't feel that the representation of women was solid enough to provide a good comparison, although it reflects morals of the 90's when marriage was still an important factor in most relationships, I didn't think that the themes explored had enough content.
Item 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/modern/jmurray_01.shtml It had interesting information about how women fought for the rights that they have in modern society but the information wasn't directly relevant to the investigation so I decided not to use it, in addition, the history of feminism is already covered in the sources I included so a personal story wouldn't have been relevant.
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