Defend the Indefensible: films in which gorgeous, independent, "edgy" women have nothing better to do than break uptight whiny squares out of their bubbles

Is it inherently sexist just because it's a male romantic fantasy?

I dunno if it's "inherently sexist" but as a pattern of fiction across any number of movies, comics, TV shows etc., it has this kind of worrisome mythmaking quality, and if I have to back up my suggestion that it's sexist then I would say: the myth told is that women, however busy they may initially seem to be with their rock band, small business, novel, whatever, they will totally drop all that and devote themselves 24/7 to getting a guy to try bowling for the first time or whatever.

But I do think this probably is less about sexism than about contributing to distorted (male) nerd perceptions of how social interaction and dating "work," which is really where I come on board being annoyed.

they will totally drop all that and devote themselves 24/7 to getting a guy to try bowling for the first time or whatever.

Ok, but you seem a little het up about this. I mean, how long does bowling take? Surely at some point women who seek relationships do make time for some bowling, right?

but that's unfair. all romantic myths are based on the desirable other dropping everything in favor of you, sweet & secretly perfect you. like why would prince charming put aside the pressing affairs of state to rescue some chambermaid from her life of toil?

xpost

so what makes this difference than your typical romance movie aimed at a female audience?

Also, it isnt real life, its a plot point to drive a story, without which the movies'd be pretty dull.

I dont know if I'd want to go see "the wedding singer who never actually got his shit together and plated mario kart for 2 hours while drew barrymore sat in an office chatting some other guy all together on AIM".

i dont really see what was manic abt ramona flowers? she was pretty much the opposite.

lugubrious pixie dream girl

like why would prince charming put aside the pressing affairs of state to rescue some chambermaid from her life of toil?

He wanted to bang her iirc

and she wasn't a chambermaid she had her own farm.

looking to score some more land, eh? Fuckin royalty.

Titanic is one of very few Manic Pixie Dream Boy films.

― Melissa W, Wednesday, 8 September 2010 03:43 (7 hours ago)

ha, I hadn't thought of this. But I think it's related to a particular subgenre in which the uptight career-driven woman is shown the wonders of life by some heart of gold lower class schmuck. It does seem like a format that's distinct to the lowest of the low, TV movie kind of setting though. The only particular ones that come to mind immediately, and I don't know if I'm remembering them correctly, are Curly Sue starring Jim Belushi and some Christmas film starring Steve Guttenberg as Santa's son. Quality films one and all. (Actually as a connoisseur of the bad Christmas movie I think there are several in this vein.)

Steve from sex in the City and miranda the icy lawyer he impregnated and then defeated into compromising her ideals.

Something Wild >>>>>>>>>>>>>> any other movie mentioned in this thread.

Although obv Heathers and Eternal Sunshine have plenty to recommend them.

Has this genre ever overlapped with films in which independent, "edgy" rookie cop has nothing better to do than break uptight whiny square cop near retirement of his bubble?

'the rookie' is all time imo

Yes, Dragnet.

where does 'trading places' fit in to all of this btw

I'm not going to say it's rational, but for some reason the word "lugubrious" makes me think of Jabba the Hut. Every time.

they make films about these women because they totally exist

anyone who is a writer will tell you, 'write what you know', and that's exactly what happens

^^^sprung

Sideways plays with this.

also, someone is really proud of the phase 'manic pixie dream girl', but most of the women aren't that unusual. it's the boy who is usually the problem. i think i have more of a problem with the 'hot tub time machine'/'yes man'/'wedding crashers' thing of the adolescent-man-in-his-forties hooking up with a sorted-out girl in her twenties. 'greenberg' was superficially like this but the girl was a mess too and also it was good and those films kind of aren't. (there are some laughs in 'yes man' and 'wedding crashers' but they aren't 'good films'.)

Robin Wood, in his bk on Hawks, talks abt "the lure of irresponsibility" in relation to Bringing Up Baby, etc

i've always liked that phrase and have tried to live my life by it

the myth told is that women, however busy they may initially seem to be with their rock band, small business, novel, whatever, they will totally drop all that and devote themselves 24/7 to getting a guy to try bowling for the first time or whatever.

OTMOTMOTMOTMOTMOTOMOTMOTMOTMOTMOMTOMTOTOTMOTMOTMOMOMTOMTOMTOTMOTMOT

contenderizer right below that is also OTM but the OTM-ness of the bowling post rang in my head like a big brass gong.

Also I have been cranking about this character type for almost the last 10 years only I didn't call her MPDG, we called it "her kookiness will save you."

can i just also for a sec rep for the boring guys that don't want their heads wrecked by kooky girls spoiling their weekend plans to stay home and do crosswords kthx

la strada

the cat from outer space is a classic feline example too

Julie Delpy in the Before Sunrise series.

no.

next!

http://www.crankycritic.com/archive99/posters/forcesofnature.jpg

yeah, julie delpy character's not kooky, just awesome.

ethan hawke's character also not an uptight whiney square

http://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/problemchild.jpg

Films in which gorgeous, independent, "edgy" children have nothing better to do than break uptight whiny squares out of their bubbles.

look who's talking obv

has anyone mentioned BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE yet? because that one.

bonus: dude is blind

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrKwSacntb8

Oh PLEASE WE'RE JUST HAVING KICKS!

ethan hawke's character also not an uptight whiney square

Cross out "uptight".

movies in which blind al pacinos break uptight whiny squares out of there bubbles

there

he's not really a square...i guess you could call him whiney but he doesn't seem unjustifiedly so. i dislike ethan hawke in general but he is p likable in those movies.

xxp to Alfred

think soto means he is uptight but not the other two

I mean that he wasn't whiney winegarten

This is a great idea for a genre, and I know I've seen numerous films over the years that belong. I'd need a while to work up a list. One that jumps out is The Sterile Cuckoo, although with qualifications; Liza Minelli's edginess is (if I have this right--it's been a while) tied in with deeper emotional issues, and you wouldn't call her conventionally gorgeous.

Ok, but you seem a little het up about this. I mean, how long does bowling take? Surely at some point women who seek relationships do make time for some bowling, right?

― kenan, Wednesday, September 8, 2010 2:22 AM Bookmark

OK, but I'm not objecting to the idea that at some point in the relationship they go bowling - - - it's this sequence where she's like "You're cute. You wanna go bowling Tuesday?" the guy, you know, he's in his tie and is really flustered and unsure and is like "i've never, uh i've never been uh, b-b-bowling" and she finds this really attractive and charming rather than being like "Who the fuck has never been bowling?" And this is fine as one moment in the story, but it's repeated in larger scale across their entire relationship, the woman is initiating and forcing through everything.

ex Will Ferrell is an asshole tax auditor who has never had a chocolate chip cookie. Maggie Gyllenhaal, a hip bohemian baker businesswoman, finds this irresistible:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rCmX-TAl1w

I mean, I want Maggie Gyllenhaal to force-feed me chocolate chip cookies as much as the next guy but it just reaches a point of ridiculousness.

Films in which gorgeous, independent, "edgy" cats in hats have nothing better to do than break uptight whiny squares out of their bubbles.

films in which gorgeous kansas barns have nothing better to do than break uptight whiny witches out of their ruby slippers

can i just say that i think louis ck and parker posey pretty successfully turned this trope on it's ear and made it into something at once fairly unlikely yet believable? + awesome? [SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER] i mean she's just giving the shlubby nice guy one last chance before.... i dunno, it all makes sense. for once. plus, not the ending to the arc i was expecting.

seeking a friend for the end of the world tho - i liked the movie fine, but steve caroll? really? WHY HIM?