Super Post

While perusing the inserts of the Sunday edition of our local newspaper, I came across an article entitled

THE BEST SUPERHERO MOVIES OF ALL TIME!! (and the worst)

Oh yes, please. I enjoy a good superhero flick, just as much as the next person.

The list went a little something like this

                             GOOD                                                   BAD 

                    A couple of Batman movies                   A bunch of girl-hero movies

                    A Spiderman movie

Bwaugh? What the hell? What the fuck? What the fucking fuck? Why I have never, in all my years, been so appalled! Why, we ladies have many awesome lady heroes with which films are based around! 

What about one of the best-est and bad ass-est of them all, The Bride? What about her? Although, it isn't really a superhero movie per se... more of a revenge flick... I guess this rule applies to all lady-sploitation flicks.

Not a lady hero? Really?

But please, there are a ton of great female superheroes in film, like... The X-men ladies! Yes, those gals are really something.... even if they are ultimately overshadowed by Wolverines meat chops (superhero side burns). Crap, I reckon that includes even the un-traditional, but super awesome  (but supporting) sci fi and fantasy lady heroes, like Hermoine Granger, and Ripley, who is overshadowed by the big bad creature.

Begging your pardon, but I'm all kinds of awesome.

But, behold! My brainy, bad-ass-ed-ness!

Ugh... well, we always have... Wonder Woman. There you go, Wonder Woman- a super heroine and an icon in her own right. Even though, she is sort of viewed as camp- and really not on the same level as old Batman or even Superman... Plus, she was on tv.

Why won't anyone take me seriously?

And Good gravy, and let's not even talk about the hoards of sexy but stupid super lady video game movies. Bad scripts, bad accents, bad movies. All of them: Choppy, ridiculous and obnoxious.

Crap.

All right Hollywood- there's gotta be one, just one, spandex-ed, ass kicking, less tongue in cheek, more good vs evil, big budget, classic, all around great movie HEROINE that isn't a supporting character with a film named after her and solely about her out there. Not one? Not one that isn't regulated to the exploited, revenge, action, camp or "worst movie ever" genre? I love my Batmans, but come on.

Apparently, I am not the only one who has been thinking about this lately. It is a problem, people. A problem that, yes, is a direct result of a larger problem in film- where women (and people of color) are being overshadowed and are not equally represented. I once had a fellow movie nerd state that 2010 was a great year for women in film, but a lousy year for film. It was such an off hand, unintentionally insulting comment, that I couldn't really respond properly, without it sounding like I was a humorless bitch. If it was such a lousy year for film, then, in fact, it was NOT a good year for women in film. If the films with awesome lady characters were just so unremarkable, well then, what the hell good does that do? Good roles do occasionally exist in not so good films, but Great roles in Great films should go hand in hand. If a role is truly awesome, it is because the story around it is awesome. Not to say that actors do not give great performances in lousy movies- that is an entirely different discussion.

The first thing I would like to see an amazing, well received, instant classic super heroine film. Not a tv show- the ladies have actually had some good representation on the small screen thanks to the aforementioned Wonder Woman and others like Buffy and... and... Alias? There's a following for that, right? Even if W.W. and the Buffy were mostly camp, they still were tv super-lady icons with their own (major) tv shows. We just need one, just ONE on film. 

Just one, people.