Paper Sample on X-Men Films: Examining Patriarchal Myths Through Betty Kaklamanidou's Lens

Introduction

Betty Kaklamanidou's assessment of films explores the societal values that are elevated through the roles given to men. Men are always given roles above women due to the belief and manifestation of the "myth" that women are inferior than men. In her book, The Mythos of Patriarchy in the X-Men Films she proves the hypothesis of how the film X-Men portrays female characters (Kaklamanidou, 2011). In the film, the female characters seem to have evolved from the societal belief that is preset in regards to their ability. They are shown to not only have control over their lives, but also to partake influential, and leadership roles. Kaklamanidou observes the patriarchal representation in the film. She analyzes the trajectory of the major female roles and relates the trait representation to real life societal elements. In her analysis, she makes the assumption that the acting roles in X-Men are dominated by male chauvinism that prevents the women from rising to top positions (Kaklamanidou, 2011). This essay evaluates Kaklamanidou's sentiments against the presentation of female characters in the 2016 film X-Men.

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The Film X-Men

Apocalypse is directed by Brian Singer (Turner et al. 2016). The universe of the film is designed in a way that only men make the rules. The women find it challenging to ascend to the top. For this reason, the movie spouted heated, and controversial arguments. However, it should be noted that the film has some roles given to the female characters that supersedes those of the male characters. For instance, in the storyline of the film, the savior is a female character (Turner et al. 2016). Such portrayal is not enough as there are many instances where the act of patriarchy is shown. The females, and their powers are guided by the males. Additionally, the male characters have more screen time hence they conceal the heroism of the female characters. Therefore, the film X-Men affirms the submissions in Kaklamanidou.

Betty Kaklamanidou's states that "men are here to stay and women can only be led to believe they can fill their shoe, and act as equals (Kaklamanidou, 2011)." Such a statement portrays an overemphasis of the patriarchy in the film X-Men. Nonetheless, patriarchy works in a planned manner and so the superhero cinematic expressions in the film are deliberately given to male characters. Further, the hegemony in the movie despises the recently set respect for the powerful heroines in the film, and television (Turner et al. 2016).

Dominance in the Society

Unlike X-Men, other modern films have been keen on establishing gender equality in the representation of characters. Most of these movies are dominated by female ingenuity, and strength. They show that the females are just as capable as men in handling threats and showing villain traits. The mythos of patriarchy explored by Kaklamanidou are supported by the assumption that patriarchal structure is a myth in the modern society (Kaklamanidou, 2011). Such assumption is controversial according feminists who believe that there is still male dominance in various sectors of the economy. The film X-Men: Apocalypse is among the films that portrays male dominance in the society. The trajectory of the film shows that female heroines who defy the patriarchal structure is progressively, and subtly stripped of their cinematic presence and powers.

The male figures in the film X-Men comprise of Magneto (Ian McKellen), and Xavier (Patrick Stewart) who define the extent of good and evil (Turner et al. 2016). The two actors are portrayed as free people who can choose to do evil or good. For example, they can allow women to assume top positions in their world and even in a film narrative provided the heroines abide by their regulations. Betty Kaklamanidou defines the aspect of patriarchy as a myth (Kaklamanidou, 2011). In this context, a myth is shown as a discourse, which means a form of message, or communication that is not confined to oral communication, but also to other hidden representations such as sports, cinema, shows, and photography. Furthermore, the film expresses ancient myth whereby people are shown to have no eternity in that every scene is described as a human history. Besides, no one can last forever as history is defined by life and death. The controversy of the film revolves around social conflict.

Kaklamanidou affirms that cinema has become one of the platform for the discussion and expression of myth (Kaklamanidou, 2011). Films are believed to reflect the social status quo. At times it directly stimulates the participations in the real life context. The film also predicts the direction that the social history will undertake. For instance, in X-Men, superheroes are shown as part of a societal mythology that has been experience for past centuries (Turner et al. 2016). Kaklamanidou gives an example of Greek Achilles, and Hercules to be among the ancient superheroes. Such expression is visible in X-Men as the male characters are shown to be superheroes. They are able to fly and are portrayed to be immortal.

Analysis

Kaklamanidou's analysis of gender in the film is based on the dichotomy between human fantastic abilities, and strength, and human imperfections (Kaklamanidou, 2011). The aspect of superheroes is important and true in the 21st century films. However, the only issue is the rare exception that makes only male individuals to be the heroes. The patriarchal environment portrayed in the film is believed to be one of the mythic environments in the western world. The movie shows that the universe is male-dominated and that the women only try to follow what men are doing. According to Kaklamanidou, the franchise of the movies follows some backwards trajectory because its storyline dictates that the central character should be the main focus in each narrative (Kaklamanidou, 2011). She further shows that there is indispensable structure through plot characters, and evolution. Such notion is valid since the viewers are not made to learn the complete backgrounds of the actors (Turner et al. 2016). As a result, there is an anticipated emotional response from the audience.

The four films of X-Men were written, edited, photographed, and directed by male individuals. Lauren Shuler Donner is the only female in the main production team of the movie (Turner et al. 2016). She is one of the great female Hollywood producers. Kaklamanidou shows such disparity in the film production to show how the text will be narrated in reference to mail point of view. Such an incidence can be traced to the ancient Greek mythology. According to Kaklamanidou, the men in the film are making a statement about their society without understanding its meaning (Kaklamanidou, 2011). However, she denotes that the contemporary cinema has always tried to embrace female strength, and power and gender equally since the past few decades. Nonetheless, there are still certain films that consistently ensures that male supremacy surface. X-Men is among the movies that embraced male supremacy. The idea of this superiority is however a myth that is created above suspicion. The idea of myth in cinema is based on the fact that it is something that is talked about and not denied (Kaklamanidou, 2011). It clenches the innocence behind every story and shows innocence in every act giving it an eternal, and natural justifications.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Kaklamanidou's notion about patriarchy in X-Men is accurate to a certain extent. It shows that no matter how many accomplishments women have attained they will always be inferior to men. In the early scenes of the film, power is bestowed upon the central female characters. As the movie proceeds they are stripped this power little by little. All of their cinematic authority, and presence fades away with time. In the film, patriarchy is centered on Logan/Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), and Marie/Rogue (Anna Paquin). In the end of the film, Jean Grey (Famke Jansen) manages to rescue the entire world, and all the 'X-Men' by sacrificing herself. Such scenes show how women are controlled by men especially in the cinematic world. Therefore, Kaklamanidou's submissions can be related to the portrayals of the movie X-Men.

References

Kaklamanidou, B. (2011). The mythos of patriarchy in the X-Men films. The 21st Century Superhero: Essays on Gender, Genre and Globalization in Film, 61-74.

Turner, S., Shuler-Donner, L., Byrne, R., Isaac, O., Dougherty, M., Lawrence, J., ... & Munn, O. (2016). X-men: Apocalypse. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.