FEMINIST
FILM TAKES
By Laura J.
Weinstock
Women mutants have
power in The X-Men
Yesterday I went to
see a Summer Blockbuster, so I arrived with
low expectations. The X-Men completely
surprised me. Whoever heard of a Summer flick
that is actually about something? With
special effects that aren't the only reason
for the movie being made? With beautiful
cinematography and minimal violence? The
X-Men was gripping. The film was well made,
with a well-told story and characters that
displayed warmth and complexity. And, it was
quite a bit subversive for Hollywood.
The movie sucked me
in right from the dramatic opening scene. In
the rain and mud we see Jews herded toward
their deaths in the looming crematorium. We
hear the anguished cries of a mother
separated from her young boy. Instead of
being shot by the Nazis who surround him, the
boy's terror unleashes his nascent power: by
staring at the metal fence where his parents
were led away, he can bend it until it
breaks. This is the young Magneto, the future
villain of the story.
Most of the movie
occurs fifty years after that opening scene.
In this world, there are "normal" human
beings and hidden among them mutants, feared
and hated because of their special powers.
There is a hate-mongering senator who wants
to register the mutants, so the government
can control them. Among the mutants there are
two organized camps reacting to this
prejudice. One led by Professor Xavier
(Patrick Stewart) believes that normal humans
should be protected, despite their hatred. He
hopes (perhaps unreasonably) that humans have
evolved. The other, led by Magneto (Sir Ian
McKellen), believes "humans have evolved into
us." He doesn't trust humanity, having
witnessed firsthand how the Nazis began with
hatred and ended with the annihilation of
millions, including his mother and father.
Powerless no more, he wants to teach the
normals a terrifying lesson. He and Xavier,
the most potent of the mutants and former
friends, match wits throughout the movie. At
stake: the survival of human beings in their
present day form.
It is no accident
that Magneto is played by an openly gay
actor. The mutants represent those of us who
are different. Because the mutants must
remain hidden to the normals yet recognizable
to each other for their survival, they are
especially reflective of gay people. How
heartening to see onscreen, mutant children
leaving their homes and schools, so they can
be educated among people who not only won't
torture them, but who actually understand.
How many gay teenagers, despairing of ever
receiving such compassion, take their own
lives?
From the feminist
front, I give the movie mixed reviews. There
appear to be a relatively equal number of
female and male mutants, each with
impressively potent powers. Among Xavier's
female mutants is Storm, who can harness wind
and lightening and Dr. Jean Gray, who can
telekinetically move heavy objects with great
force. Then there is Rogue (Anna Paquin) who
accidentally put the first boy she ever
kissed into a coma. She drains the life-force
of humans and mutants she touches. She can
borrow the skills of the other mutants and
may well be the most powerful of all. Her
character begins with great inner strength;
she is unafraid of men (she hitch-hikes from
the south to Alaska for the adventure) and
she saves the life of a boxer in a seedy,
macho bar. She and the boxer, a fellow mutant
named Wolverine, (Hugh Jackman) are destined
to be soul mates.
On the down side,
well, there is the movie's title. It is based
on a comic by the same name, so maybe we can
forgive this choice. On the other hand, in
the first Star Trek series, the space
explorers go where no "men" had gone before.
By the second series, explorers went where
"no one" had gone before. The third series
has a female Captain. Hopefully, by the
sequel we'll get "X-Folk" or "X-People",
maybe "X-Guys" -- something gender neutral.
Perhaps by then, the folks in charge won't
all be men. They seemed to be hinting that
Dr. Gray might be in line for succession.
We'll see.
Not so excusable is
the reference within this movie to the
mutants as a brotherhood. If there are both
females and males we should be calling it a
sisterhood as well. Paquin's character,
despite her earlier strength, ends up being a
victim, needing to be rescued. It is true
that the rescue team defies traditional movie
stereotypes. The classic formula for action
or sci-fi movies is a ratio of one woman hero
to three men (where women are part of the
effort at all). In some movies the ratio is
worse, but never have I seen a film with
anything better. In the X-Men, there are four
rescuers and two of them are women. This is
groundbreaking.
That said, there
still are problems. The women may have
awesome powers but they aren't shown being
physically or mentally tough. Most of the
fighting occurs between men. There is only
one female mutant that fights well, Mystique,
a shape-shifter on Magneto's side. She is
physically powerful and smart (although evil)
but she is shown fighting practically naked.
(She can kick ass, but only if we're watching
her tits and ass? A reviewer for the New
Yorker said her thin layer of blue mud,
displayed her muscley physique. To me, it
reduced the splendor of her power--made her
seem more like mud-wrestler than Amazon.)
Storm (Halle Berry) can harness all of Mother
Nature yet is pathetically weak and easily
beaten. Dr. Gray can lift heavy objects with
her mind but is told by her unpleasant
boyfriend when to proceed. There are too many
fights between thug-like male mutants. The
men use their powers more often and with more
oomph. In the age of Xena and Gabrielle,
fighters-par-excellence, director Bryan
Singer has no excuse.
Despite its
shortcomings, The X-Men is one of the
best movies I've seen in ages. It is far
superior to films like the horribly sexist
Mystery Men, with a ratio of one woman to
eight or so men. (The woman's only power came
to her through her dead father's bowling
ball.) At least the next generation of
mutants in Xavier's school looks like a good
mixture of males and females of varied races.
With any luck, the sequel will be just as
well made, but packing a more feminist
punch.
Feminist Film Takes
also appears in Sonoma County Women's
Voices.
