Stuff Hollywood Likes #3: Damsels in Distress
Omnipresent in the world of film since the first movies of the silent era, the damsel in distress can actually retrace her roots all the way back to the stories of Greek mythology. Ever since, she has become a staple of fairy tales, serials, melodramas, comics and of course, Hollywood movies.
In a male-dominated industry that still has to come to terms with a world that has ran amok with strange and unheard of concepts such as feminism and women rights, there is no doubt that the damsel in distress has a special place in the hall of fame of Hollywood stock characters. Much like virtually anything that Hollywood people enjoy “creating”, the damsel in distress is always a variation of the same thing presented over and over again. Indeed, her name could be Ann Darow, Lois Lane, Bella Swan, Mary Jane Watson, Vesper Lynd or Holy/Lucy McClane but her role is always the same: Get captured by the evil villain so the hunky (or emo in Twilight‘s case) male hero has to come to her rescue.
For that reason, if you ever find yourself among Hollywood people, under no circumstances should you ever mention that the damsel in distress is an archaic and generic character that is sexist and degrading to women. You will immediately earn the scorn and disdain of the people around you. Along with keeping countless numbers of actresses employed, she is also a way for chauvinist studio executives and filmmakers to portray ladies in a fetishistic nature. Helpless, clueless and invariably in need of a heroic manly figure to rescue and protect her, she is often found gagged, bound and facing abominable death traps.
In recent years, due to the fact that women can now voice opinions, drive their own car to the movie theater and even dabble in fantasies of equal rights with their hairier counterparts, the concept of the submissive damsel dependent on a dominant male figure has come under fire as a vestige of a male-dominated society. As a result, Hollywood has been a bit more subtle by making the damsel in distress spunky, and occasionally even empowering her to save the day at the end of the movie as shown in Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes (2009). However, you would be mistaken if you thought the Damsel in Distress is on its way out. She is just now called a romantic comedy heroine.
Who is your favorite damsel in distress in movies? Do you think men and women can achieve equality with characters such as these so widespread in popular culture?
19 Comments
Sexism sucks. That is all.
Ripley? Is that you Ripley?
No, I am Ripley. This imposter speaks the truth.
the princess bride for the win. cant beat the name “buttercup”
One of the things I find most interesting about the damsel is how she has transformed over the years. Up through the 50′s the damsel tended to be a rather submissive character. She’ll charm the pants off her capteurs, but through a few well placed baked cookies or congenial attitude. Looking at films like True Grit (original) and Die Hard, you see a more modern day damsel. She’s feisty, tough, and business smart with solid career prospects (i.e. a DA assistant in Batman Begins).
The big difference? The first plays into the antiquated male’s ideology of a heroic, possible gruff, man saving the fragile (virgin?) female. While, in contrast, the second is hollywood’s effort to adapt that old principle to a female audience. They hope that by making the female strong, they assuage any criticism in favor of presenting a male hero whose not so much tough, as easily sexualized.
Great post Castor!
Thanks Univarn! True, the damsel in distress has evolved over the years but invariably, she still needs a man to come and rescue her
I prefer my movie damsels to put other people in distress. That being said, Notorious (1946) is probably my favorite because Ingrid Bergman can play the soft and clearly distressed female without coming across as a weak willed character.
I am not sure but aren’t you referring to the femme fatale? You might be right about Notorius though! Need to revisit that one.
While her character might have certain traits of the femme fatale, I think the key difference is that the deceit of the femme fatale is evil and self-serving, while Bergman’s deceit is for good.
I really enjoyed Army of Darkness! I also liked what Enchanted did by reversing the roles and turning the male hero into the damsel in distress.
I don’t think it’s sexist for a man wanting to come to the rescue all the time.
But I get the point.
Maybe I should clarify what I said before:
The “damsel in distress” thing is sexist because the women are always like, “Oh, I’m a woman and I can’t defend myself!” Back when women didn’t have many rights it would’ve been fine, but now it’s just f**kin’ stupid. Fortunately, movies like Aliens have come along to prove that men aren’t the only ones that can save the day.
Yep, I think that sort of sexism is declining of late – it’s just so obvious that people spot it easier. I’ve been watching old films lately and it’s just so blatant that it’s hard to miss.
However, what’s more worrying is how Hollywood seems to be modernising its approach to women. It seems that making cosmetic changes count as negating sexism.
For example, let’s discuss unconventional family units – a woman who wants a child without a father in her life. In a romantic comedy, it’s now okay (in theory) for the audience to accept a woman getting pregnant without a man in her life (see The Switch, the Back-Up Plan, etc). This is good and great and fantastic, except…
It’s still not okay for a woman to raise a child without a man present. Even if the movie accepts that the woman can decide to get pregnant without a man involved, he always has to end up involved at the end. Because all women need a man in their lives to be fulfilled… even if they were too stupid to realise it at first. Even if they thought they wanted independence, they really wanted a big strong man to keep them safe. (see Baby Mama, etc)
It’s that sort of thing which frustrates me and it’s that sort of low-key sexism which grinds my gears, because the movies pat themselves on the back for recognising women’s lib and such, when they are just as fundamentally sexist as everything that came before.
I’m sorry, this turned into a bit of a rant. Great post, guys.
Don’t get me started…
Ha..ha.. I know Clara, I know.
But Castor, I never thought of Vesper as a damsel in distress though. In fact, she actually refused to be rescued.
Well the basic definition of the damsel in distress is that she gets in trouble and must be rescued by the hunky male hero. Ultimately, the fact that she is spunky, strong-headed or in this case, refuses to be rescued are only minor variations of the stock character.
Blame the Greeks on this one. The effects of patriarchy.
I still can’t think of my favorite D.i.D. in movies, but whenever I hear the term, I always think of Princess Peach. Poor Mario.
Women like the damsel in distress; if they didn’t the character wouldn’t exist anymore. Only a few radicals want total gender equality.
@Yesbut – Women don’t decide what Hollywood puts out. Far and away most movies are made by men. Look into what few movies are made by women and see if you can find any D.I.D.s in them.
Innyhoo – My “favorite” D.I.D. is Jessica Lange in ‘King Kong.’ All she does is act sexy and fall down every five minutes. Or the Smurfette in ‘Night of the Living Dead.’ She’s like a dish rag.
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