Insider
Film
Great actors deserve great
roles
Why is it that women actors are given second best film roles?
By Oliver Bessell
I personally don’t know
anyone who can deny
female acting talent, the
likes of; Meryl Streep,
Helen Mirren or Emily
Blunt are some of the
greatest there’s been,
each with some great
movies attached to their
names. While I can
completely agree on
“why its time” for fe-
male lead movies, I
have to ask myself…
why do it if you don’t do
it right? The division
over recent movies is
incredibly interesting.
Films like Star Wars:
The Last Jedi are criti-
cised by fans for not
appeasing the standards
of its predecessors and
for mishandling its cen-
tral male lead in Luke
Skywalker, in favour for
its new lead, Ray. What
I feel these movies do
wrong is utilising its fe-
male lead to be a
spokesperson for equali-
ty and feminism. While
the film industry is a
powerful tool for this
message and if done
correctly it could be a
thought provoking film
with a meaningful
stance. Yet when the
message your repre-
senting becomes more
noticeable than the plot,
that’s when you’ve gone
too far. Other movies
have also not worked,
like the female lead re-
boot of Ghostbusters which
is critically panned or
Oceans 8 which only did
okay. What I feel is going
wrong with these projects
is the pre-established his-
tory of the movies chang-
ing so rapidly with no ad-
justment period. Most like-
ly because executives feel
a female leading movie
could thrive with an almost
guaranteed audience and a
large interest generated.
Now with Pirates of the
Caribbean following this, as
reports state the aim of
replacing Johnny Depp af-
ter his firing was in the in-
terest of a female lead for
future instalments. To con-
clude, is it right for female
Female leads
should be giv-
en their own
movies and
stories not just
slotted into a
previously
male role.
“It’s just
amazing”,
Jodie
Whittaker
on being
cast as The
Doctor.
lead movies or even
TV, like the notorious
casting of Jodie Whit-
taker in Doctor Who,
to rely on a pre estab-
lished franchise to sur-
vive while in most cas-
es annoying fans? Or
should they be inde-
pendent , courageous
and bold and create
stories of their own,
with a strong female
lead, a strong story. If
this is followed I be-
lieve the ideology of a
female lead movie
won’t be met with
scepticism but with
interest of knowing it’ll
be great.
The College magazine online: sixthformmag.blogspot.co.uk