Re: Would Tomb Raider-type movies work better with lesbian protagonist
Well I think part of the problem with some of the female action heroes is that either they are so badass and gungho, that invariably any man they end up with ends up being "pussy-fied" and it just makes us guys look inept and like a bunch of dorks. OR they end up said badass heroine needing an assist from another badass dude, but then they both end up getting de-fanged because both of them can't really do something on their own, or it just ends up being a film about oneupping each other. Mr and Mrs Smith was kinda like that, a prettier version of Spy Vs Spy. They were both equally capable. Equally badass, and once they got over the one upping they kinda worked as a team, but both still kicked ass.
So its a fine rope. Either the woman or the man looks weaker. "But I still love/like ya" kinda way. Its not really even a matter of two women working together/falling for each other. I mean take Xena:Warrior Princess. It had a rather Lesbian subtext for most of its 6 years. Especially those last 2-3 seasons. Xena was still the badass, but Gabrielle could kick some major ass too, although it was frustrating that they still had her getting her saved by Xena, like Xena was just that much better.
So adding a "lesbian" to the mix doesn't necessarily make an action movie better or even worse for that matter, its just the way the characters are written and how they interact. I think action movies with more than one character work better when they're more of a "team" not just a "hero with a few sidekicks". No one is more or less badass, but each is badass in their own way. Like say fem hero 1 is a kick ass martial artist. Male hero is a kick ass marksman, fem hero 2 is a able to do something else. male hero 2 is able to do something else... each is kick ass in their own way and no one really overshadows the other. Kind of the one thing I liked about the Charlie's Angels movies, all three girls were equally kick ass and it seemed like all of Charlie's Angels had very similar training and could fight Demi Moore's former Angel nearly to a standstill simply because they all were sort of on the same playing field. Even though Cameron Diaz's character was sort of the unofficial "lead", Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore were still able to lead too. So that kind of dynamic worked for me.
Always drives me nuts when I see like the main hero guy saved by some new warrior chick and he's kinda de-fanged. Or vice versa.
As for the hot badass babe going for an average guy... well... hey most of the viewing audience are average guys that drool over the hot badass babe. I mean are we so vain that an attractive woman (or man for that matter) wouldn't be interested in someone who's more normal? So she's a kick ass killing machine, but he's a intelligent, witty, helpful, loyal partner. So what if he's got a beer gut. She just does more physically. LOL I'm sure kicking ass burns a lot of calories!
Well I think part of the problem with some of the female action heroes is that either they are so badass and gungho, that invariably any man they end up with ends up being "pussy-fied" and it just makes us guys look inept and like a bunch of dorks. OR they end up said badass heroine needing an assist from another badass dude, but then they both end up getting de-fanged because both of them can't really do something on their own, or it just ends up being a film about oneupping each other. Mr and Mrs Smith was kinda like that, a prettier version of Spy Vs Spy. They were both equally capable. Equally badass, and once they got over the one upping they kinda worked as a team, but both still kicked ass.
So its a fine rope. Either the woman or the man looks weaker. "But I still love/like ya" kinda way. Its not really even a matter of two women working together/falling for each other. I mean take Xena:Warrior Princess. It had a rather Lesbian subtext for most of its 6 years. Especially those last 2-3 seasons. Xena was still the badass, but Gabrielle could kick some major ass too, although it was frustrating that they still had her getting her saved by Xena, like Xena was just that much better.
So adding a "lesbian" to the mix doesn't necessarily make an action movie better or even worse for that matter, its just the way the characters are written and how they interact. I think action movies with more than one character work better when they're more of a "team" not just a "hero with a few sidekicks". No one is more or less badass, but each is badass in their own way. Like say fem hero 1 is a kick ass martial artist. Male hero is a kick ass marksman, fem hero 2 is a able to do something else. male hero 2 is able to do something else... each is kick ass in their own way and no one really overshadows the other. Kind of the one thing I liked about the Charlie's Angels movies, all three girls were equally kick ass and it seemed like all of Charlie's Angels had very similar training and could fight Demi Moore's former Angel nearly to a standstill simply because they all were sort of on the same playing field. Even though Cameron Diaz's character was sort of the unofficial "lead", Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore were still able to lead too. So that kind of dynamic worked for me.
Always drives me nuts when I see like the main hero guy saved by some new warrior chick and he's kinda de-fanged. Or vice versa.
As for the hot badass babe going for an average guy... well... hey most of the viewing audience are average guys that drool over the hot badass babe. I mean are we so vain that an attractive woman (or man for that matter) wouldn't be interested in someone who's more normal? So she's a kick ass killing machine, but he's a intelligent, witty, helpful, loyal partner. So what if he's got a beer gut. She just does more physically. LOL I'm sure kicking ass burns a lot of calories!