Kathryn Bigelow - Movie Review Example

Kathryn Bigelow The world of film making is a magical world where magic, quite literally, is created. Magic that enthralls and magic that captivates. Hollywood is looked up to the world over as the guru of the film making, and in Hollywood, few directors are credited with the title of being true magicians in the trade. Kathryn Bigelow is one such magician, the only female to be renowned and acclaimed so widely for her directorial skills. Born in 1951, Bigelow is a director, filmmaker, and a screenwriter. Being trained in the art of filmmaking from a very young age, she officially started off her filmmaking career with her first feature-length film. The first film, titled “The Loveless”, was directed in 1982 proved to be a debutorial success few others have achieved in their careers. Further along her career, she continued to produce box office hits. She directed and produced blockbusters including ‘Blue Steel’, of 1989, ‘Hurt Locker’ 2008, and her most recent movie, which she produced and directed, ‘Zero Dark Thirty”, 2012. All three movies will be discussed within this paper. Sean Redmond and Deborah Jermyn in the book “The Cinema of Kathryn Bigelow Hollywood Transgressor” have mentioned that Kathryn Bigelow is an auteur, meaning she has a distinct style, which reflects in her movies. Despite the fact that some critics claim that Bigelow does not have a distinct style owing to the fact that she has produced and directed a wide range of movies. They claim that Bigelow’s expertise lies in the fact that she refuses to be categorized. However, even so, this is true about Bigelow’s movies that they are mostly feminist, supporting the women strength. For instance, in the movie Blue Steel, released in 1989, the main character is a female. Played by James Lee Curtis, the character of Megan Turner is that of a rookie cop, who kills a criminal on her first night on duty. Things don’t go as smooth after that since she gets suspended by her superiors because of lack of evidence in her favor, and is accused of murder. Later in the movie, when she gets her badge back for a special case, she bravely struggles, and at last successfully brings the criminal, her own ex-boyfriend, Eugene Hunt (Ron Silver) to justice, with a lot of hard work. In this film, Bigelow shows Megan as a very strong female, a very determinant police officer, reflecting Bigelow’s own feminist views. Megan’s character defies the ordinary and takes assertive decisions that go against the traditional view of femininity. Being a strong supporter of female independence, Bigelow’s personal views do indeed come out in the movie Blue Steel. This depiction of strong females and a reversal of gender roles is not merely a coincidence restricted to Blue Steel. Kathryn Bigelow’s latest movie, Zero Dark Thirty hit the box office in 2012. Turning out to be an amazing hit, the movie not only became very popular, but also served to reflect the Feminist views of its Producer/Director – Kathryn Bigelow, to a great extent. Zero Dark Thirty is a brilliantly directed fictionalized account about the search for Osama bin Laden, that started since the fateful attack of 9/11 on the World Trade Center in New York – an event that changed the lives of many. The movie revolves around the very same incident. Although the film is about three Central intelligence agency officers working together, the director Bigelow only shows one character very closely, who is Maya (Jessica Chastain), a female. Putting the female character in the lead role speaks of Bigelow’s determinacy to see women in a league apart and above that of men. In the film, Maya helps carry out cruel and violent interrogations of detainees – in a manner unlike that of a lady. She is a very strong and powerful character. According to Kathryn Bigelow’s own words, “the Film is obviously about a woman”. These words were spoken in a speech that has been hailed by critics as one of an overtly feminist view, which gives evidence to the fact that Bigelow’s thought is very much aligned with that of feminism. This personal orientation comes out through her directorial skills, and is depicted in the movies she makes. The film Hurt Locker (2008), also a big hit action movie, is a war film about the war in Iraq. However this film does not reflect any feminist views, merely because of the nature of its theme, war. Wars don’t involve any women in them, and therefore to make a good and suitable war movie, Bigelow didn’t put any women in it. Even so, the movie is one that is described as an auteur view of the director. The three men depicted in the movie are not merely conventional males who follow the norms of the society. Placed in a time of war when the rule of law is suspended, the men, just like Bigelow’s female leads in Zero Dark Thirty and Blue Steel, defy the conventional gender roles structured by society. For instance, the role of Staff Sergeant William James, played by Jeremy Renner, is one of a character who is a reckless killer, and an expert in handling explosives. However, his macho image is polarized by the introduction of his sympathetic side – a masterstroke by Bigelow that humanizes the character to a great extent. Sergeant JT Sanborn is another male character oscillating between manhood and the masculinity defined by society at large. The recurring theme of gender role reversal is one that forces the audience to think and question while watching Kathryn Bigelow’s movies – a factor that may as well be responsible for her success in Hollywood. Part 2 Kathryn Bigelow has been hailed as Hollywood’s Transgressor by Deborah Jermyn and Sean Redmond. The implication attached with the word transgressor seems to suggest that Bigelow has defied the norms of Hollywood. In many ways, this is true. She has indeed defied and reset the norms of the industry by the very virtue of her being a female. In an industry that has predominantly been ruled by the male gaze, there exist barriers for women who want to prove their talent and skill beyond their sexuality. In the world of glamour, a woman’s physical appearance is what seems to determine her worth, but Kathryn Bigelow has proved that a woman’s genius is equally, if not more, responsible for her successful career. While it is true that women get acclaim within the industry as actresses, it is also true that the list of Hollywood directors has been for years dominated by men. In 2008, when Kathryn Bigelow won the Oscar for the Best Director for her film Hurt Locker she became the first woman to ever have done so. In a world where it is perceived that a woman’s perception of things is myopic to say the least, and biased and overtly emotional at its best, Kathryn Bigelow has produced a series of box office hits that have not only proved financial successes, but have also gained acclaim from critics. In directing war movies, Bigelow has proved that a woman is not only tough, but is also very sensitive of the minutest emotions in situations where apparently no emotions exist. The thought provoking film Zero Dark Thirty is one such example of the director’s skill. To call Bigelow Hollywood’s Transgressor thus becomes justified. With a background in painting and visual art, Bigelow could also be broadly described as having a great eye for color and composition. She loves colors in her films and encourages a lot of color use. But she also has a restless style that necessitates constant movement and often complex, organized orchestrated set pieces. Read More