Question 2

To what extent has the opportunity for women film-makers increased? A study of the following Milla Jovovich films 'The Fifth Element', 'Resident Evil', and 'Ultraviolet'.

The opportunity for women in film has increased vastly, but only to an extent. Woman now can take on tough and dangerous leading roles where they are the hero of the movie; and stereotypically these roles would be played by men, but woman can now be portrayed as the fighter and protector of the other characters in a movie. However do the woman that play these roles need to be attractive and maintain their femininity for their roles to be seen as successful?

To help answer my hypothesis I studied the movies The Fifth Element, Resident Evil and Ultraviolet as they all had one thing in common, a female protagonist played by the actress Milla Jovovich. I chose to study this actress as she does a lot of movies where she is a tough female icon or role model who has to protect and save the lives of many people. However, Milla is a model turn actress who is attractive and remains feminine in her roles.

So although the opportunity has increased for woman in the film industry, are these tough woman role models or eye candy? There are many different opinions on this and I will be exploring them all to help answer my hypothesis.

The social theory Two Step Flow says if someone we respect says something we are much more likely to agree with it and to be affected by it. So in theory if someone where to respect Milla and her acting abilities, then they are much more likely to believe the roles she is playing. So if she was playing the role of a tough action chick, the view would believe she is a tough action chick.

Some online reviews said “Meanwhile, with her fiery hair and occasionally-revealing costumes, Jovovich makes an impression, although her effectiveness has little to do with acting and less to do with dialogue (she doesn't have much to say)”. Another critic, who is also male, said“A planet-sized ball o' badness is hurtling toward the Earth at unimaginable speed. The only one who can stop it is fetching waif Leeloo (Milla Jovovich), whose "I dreamed I went walking in my Maidenform bra of the future" scene should insure her a place in the hearts of 14-year-old boys.” These reviews have nothing to say about Milla's acting, and more to say about how she looked and what she was wearing.