One of the most polarizing topics in today’s world of social media and entertainment is that of feminism. Echos of this controversy are heard in discussion of comics, video games, TV shows and movies alike. As more films begin to dip their toes into the waters of female empowerment, there has been both expected and unexpected push-back. Most recently, the latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain Marvel, has sparked new fires within this debate.
A lot of the push-back for female-led films is made up of online keyboard warriors under the comfort of anonymity. Although the general rabble and misunderstandings do have a place in this conversation, the real discourse comes from those who have already more or less adopted a feminist worldview. These conversations take into account the nuance or lack thereof in the feminism of Captain Marvel, as well as how that feminism plays out in the real world. While some believe that Captain Marvel‘s feminism is resonant and powerful, ushering in a new type of female empowerment, others argue that Captain Marvel is not as ground-breaking as it is cracked up to be. As the world moves ever forward, humanity must continue to reevaluate the role of female empowerment and examine how and where it fits today.
The Feminism of Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel is undoubtedly a feminist movie. The very first official trailer for the film was praised for its clever word play showcasing the word “HER” fading into “A HERO.” A lot of noise has been made about the film as it is the first with a female lead in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Coming after 20 previous films, many boast that it’s about damn time. Although there are many amazing female characters already present in the MCU, none of them have had their own solo origin story. Captain Marvel is paving the way for the next era of superhero movies, which will hopefully include more female-led films.
Eliana Dockterman’s article for Time magazine entitled “How Captain Marvel Breaks the Superhero Mold” praises Captain Marvel for its altered approach to the female superhero. While acknowledging Wonder Woman as the first largely praised successful film with such a hero, she points out that because of this it had to be approached carefully. Wonder Woman could not be too polarizing, one way or the other, and the result was a “distinctly feminine hero,” complete with skirt and heels, a male love interest, and ideologies and displays of peace that were “awe-inspiring, not frightening.” What Captain Marvel does differently is allow its hero to be messy and more flawed. The character’s costume shows no excess skin, very reminiscent of something her male counterparts would don, and her attitude and mentality is more in line with those counterparts as well. Carol is unapologetic in her strength and wit. Because of this Captain Marvel is allowed to have bigger character flaws, and come off as not immediately and universally likable. Captain Marvel shows its audience of young girls that they too don’t have to be universally likable.
Where some writers expressing similar viewpoints can feel like they do not acknowledge or give full credit to the female-led films that have come before Captain Marvel, Dockterman excellently and eloquently does just this while also explaining how important Captain Marvel is. Separating the films and explaining how each had their own unique struggles, in no way does Dockterman come across as dismissing previous films, and this really helps to strengthen her claim.
Gathering quotes from the writer of the Captain Marvel comics (from 2012 and onward) Kelly Sue DeConnick gains Dockterman ethos, providing evidence that this is what Captain Marvel the character is intended to be. Additionally the incredible pathos of another female hero for young girls, this one dressed as nonsexual as possible, is reflected everywhere across social media in others who share the sentiments of Dockterman. In her words, “Captain Marvel represents a break from those walking clichés. That’s crucial because girls and boys need more female role models onscreen.” Providing more representation on screen can help shape the industry of film and allow more female-led films to be made.
Internet Backlash Against Captain Marvel
What Dockterman’s article only touches on, Alex Abad-Santos fully analyzes in his article entitled “How Captain Marvel and Brie Larson Beat the Internet’s Sexist Trolls.” Writing for Vox, Abad-Santos brilliantly and succinctly synopses the online backlash that Captain Marvel received before its release.
Perhaps one of the most important insights of Abad-Santos’ is how this backlash has been experienced by other films before. Films like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, as well as the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot received similar backlash for their choice of more diverse casting. He states that “this kind of backlash consistently erupts when women and non-white characters are at the center of Marvel Studios superhero flicks or other cinematic franchises with long, less-diverse histories.” Abad-Santos claims that the coverage and handling of the Captain Marvel controversy has learned from these past discrepancies, and successfully guided the conversation more toward the film itself and its message.
The language used to describe those behind the backlash can be seen as demeaning, but every article in which the people that review bombed this movie are discussed refers to them as ‘sexist trolls,’ and other similar names. For the most part this is rightfully so. The only danger with reducing all of these people down to such labels, even when they may deserve it, is that it can cause the discourse to halt. Instead of diving into the psyches of these (mostly) men who have such a problem with the idea of feminism and diversity in film (and in general), they are further ex-communicated from the masses. What is often lacking within this debate is examinations of the misconceptions about feminism, as many on the other side tend to think all feminists hate men. In reality, prejudice against men is just called misandry. If the Internet ruckus says anything useful, its that confusing feminism for misandry may be something that the feminist movement needs to clear up in the years to come.
The Concern for All or Nothing Feminism
Monica Castillo’s article for the Washington Post stresses an important issue the Captain Marvel controversy has manifested. She chose to title her article as “Hesitating to go see ‘Captain Marvel’? Then you must be a bad feminist.” Immediately her title, much like an Onion headline, highlights the absurdity of its claim. This type of immediate logos sets the tone of Castillo’s article.
A major concern of people who may not have enjoyed Captain Marvel, or just weren’t particularly interested in it, is that if they speak their minds they will instantly be labeled as sexist. Of course, just because one doesn’t like Captain Marvel doesn’t mean they are automatically sexist. Castillo laments, “As a critic and feminist, I don’t like being told I will have to love this movie by default because it’s led by a strong female character.” Monica Castillo’s main claim is that Captain Marvel should not have to be treated as the end all be all of women in film, just as Wonder Woman and Star Wars before it should not have been. One could even argue that this viewpoint is reflected in Captain Marvel itself, when the title character finally tells her gas-lighting former comrade Yon-Rogg “I have nothing to prove to you.” Putting the success of all women on the shoulders of one superhero film is absurd, and Castillo does well in highlighting the concern for taking such all or nothing sides in the discourse on feminist films.
Loss of Subtlety and Depth
Jess Joho from Mashable had another important point to consider. In her article “Captain Marvel’s Shallow Take on Feminism Doesn’t Land,” Joho highlights the issues she had with Captain Marvel‘s plot and why she thinks it does more of a disservice to feminism. While she acknowledges that some scenes are emotionally impactful, she still found the film to be lacking upon deeper contemplation. She states that it “stinks of corporate-mandated female empowerment,” and the focus on it being the first female-led MCU film has allowed real character development to be stunted. Joho highlights the potential dangers of teaching young girls that they have to be like boys to be strong. “Captain Marvel is at its most empowering when it forgets to applaud itself for being Marvel’s first movie with a solo female lead,” and when lead actress Brie Larson is allowed to play off of other actors in quieter scenes.
While this is an important insight, to judge a Marvel movie on its depth may not be the best call. Seeming to address this, Joho does add “I hate holding [Captain Marvel] up to a level of scrutiny we’d never hold other equally OK Marvel movies like Ant-Man up to.” Similarly to Monica Castillo, Jess Joho anxiously awaits the day when one film is not the deciding factor in an entire discourse on representation in cinema.
Feminism’s Role Today
Today, the only people truly against feminism seem to be those small but loud minority groups that resort to review bombing and angry YouTube comments. Although due to their loudness they must still be addressed, the true conversation around feminism has moved to the different ways in which feminism manifests itself. While of course representation and female empowerment are important, some argue that not all forms of it are as commendable as others.
Reviewing films is in many ways a subjective experience. For some, Captain Marvel and its feminism came off as too on the nose or misplaced, while others found that it genuinely moved them to tears. The point of the discussion is not to decide whether this film is good or not – ultimately, that comes down to the individual. However, it is important to ask how feminist values manifest and what they say about society now.
When stripped down to its very core, the film is about more than feminism and representation. Like the superhero films before it, Captain Marvel aims at connecting its audience to its larger than life hero. Before being blasted by a Tesseract-powered space-plane engine, Carol Danvers was a bad-ass in her own day-to-day life. It is reconnecting with her humanness at the climax of the film that ultimately allows her to break free from her captors. When the Supreme Intelligence tells her “Without us, you’re only human,” Carol replies with “You’re right.” The following scenes showing Carol at various stages of her life having fallen and getting back up is not just a show of female resilience, but of human resilience. Good representation connects all viewers on the most basic level of human empathy, and as Carol Danvers gets up once again to face her former ally Captain Marvel tells its audience that to be human is to fall down and have the courage to get back up. This message is important not just to young girls and women but to everyone. Whether that message resonates is another story.
Works Cited
Abad-Santos, Alex. “How Captain Marvel and Brie Larson Beat the Internet’s Sexist Trolls.” Vox, Vox Media, Inc., 11 Mar. 2019, http://www.vox.com/culture/2019/3/8/18254584/captain-marvel-boycott-controversy.
Captain Marvel. Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Performances by Brie Larson, Jude Law, Annette Bening. Marvel Entertainment, 2019.
Castillo, Monica. “Hesitating to Go See ‘Captain Marvel’? Then You Must Be a Bad Feminist.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 7 Mar. 2019, http://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/03/07/hesitating-go-see-captain-marvel-then-you-must-be-bad-feminist/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.b2c7754409f9.
Dockterman, Eliana. “Why Captain Marvel Is Unlike Any Other Superhero.” Time, TIME USA, LLC., 4 Mar. 2019, time.com/5541824/captain-marvel-different-superhero/.
Joho, Jess. “Captain Marvel’s Shallow Take on Feminism Doesn’t Land.” Mashable, Mashable, 9 Mar. 2019, mashable.com/article/captain-marvel-feminism-female-superhero/#WvgtqOmd0gqt.
Leishman, Rachel. “The Emotional Impact of Captain Marvel Still Has Us Tearing Up.” The Mary Sue, The Mary Sue, LLC, 18 Sept. 2018, http://www.themarysue.com/emotional-impact-of-captain-marvel/.
Peris, Sebastian, and Sebastian Peris. “First Reactions To Brie Larson’s ‘Captain Marvel’ Hit The Web.” Heroic Hollywood, Heroic Hollywood, 20 Feb. 2019, heroichollywood.com/captain-marvel-first-reactions/.
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