Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Ouch!



Will admit I have some sympathy with the views posted here:
I’ve already started to read posts about how hot Rooney is with her nipple ring on full display.  That’s enough to start my blood boiling.  Lisbeth is not supposed to be hot.  That’s one of the reasons why we love her so much.  She doesn’t play by the rules and now we have a poster that puts her right back into the girl box.
Lizbeth is just about the last person on earth who would ever want to attract sexual attention. In fact, her feral aversion to that and most other forms of human contact is pretty close to the heart of the character.

Of course people realize that this is a Hollywood ad image in a standard format. At the same time, they love Salander and are offended when, in their eyes, she isn't treated with respect. A fanboy-adjacent response, from an unusual demographic, and sympathetic as such.

This angry blast gets it right.

Discussion in progress here.

8 comments:

Tulkinghorn said...

When you've got a minute (after you've picked yourself up off the floor) you can explain to a waiting world what the fuck the tag line means.

(Are they referring to the covert ops group that, in the interest of defeating the Red Menace, protected her father? Pretty lame, if so, although it is sort of the point of the plot..)

Tulkinghorn said...

Forget about the girl box and what Lisabeth is 'supposed' to be....

The half naked woman/fully dressed man thing has been a topic of anti-porn feminist analysis for about a million years: Depends for its effectiveness on the subconscious desire of men for dominance/rape... And don't get anyone started about the meaning of piercings. (In the book?) Especially amusing since of course the books are ABOUT the hatred of women.

(IIRC there was some young Hollywood actress (Scarlett Johansson?) who was upset at some Vanity Fair photographs of herself and some others undressed with a man who was not. See also many Calvin Klein ads.)

Tulkinghorn said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
David Chute said...

This post has been added by the author.

People love the character and are offended when she isn't treated with respect.

Tulkinghorn said...

Not being especially offended if someone makes a bad movie about a book I like, I return to the point that I think we both were making which is that advertising a movie of a feminist anti-rape novel with anti-feminist images (and unintelligible tag lines) shows a certain lack of understanding.

Tulkinghorn said...

Come to think of it, it's not surprising that a mega-buck Hollywood director would have unformed adolescent attitudes toward sex. Remember the orgy scene in "Eyes Wide Shut", which would have ended Kubrick's career if he hadn't died...

I get excited when the movie version of something I love is as good or better than the source but am really indifferent if it sucks. I guess that makes me half a fan boy and only half sympathetic.

Tulkinghorn said...

"Gets it right" is right. The rest of it is true as well. Maryann Johanson, whoever she is, is a bit of a genius.

David Chute said...

And a Doctor Who fan besides.