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We Need to Talk About the 'Captain Marvel' Movie

Brie Larson and 'Captain Marvel' are blazing yet another trail for women, and it's freaking awesome.

By Reigning WomenPublished 5 years ago β€’ 4 min read
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Brie Larson signs an autograph for an adoring fan at the premiere of the Captain Marvel movie.

Okay okay, so when I heard the news about the new #CaptainMarvel movie, I just about flipped.

No, I'm not a huge #Marvel fan, I'm not even a huge superhero movie fan. And to be honest, I originally thought it could have been because it just wasn't my thing.

But as I really think about it and I look back on my childhood, I wonder now if my lack of interest was due, in part, to the lack of female leads in the superhero saga.

With the recent virality of 2017's Wonder Woman, I have a bit of evidence in support of that. Regardless of where my own personal disinterest might have lay, I think it's safe to say that the recent showing of women in Marvel or any superhero movies has been less than satisfactory.

*pause for snaps*

Now being that I'm not a huge Marvel fan and I've been thrust into the world of stream-on-demand Netflix and Hulu, I didn't actually now the film was already playing until I saw a post by the film's lead, Brie Larson.

While I'm not a direct Marvel fan, I am a fan of Brie Larson and, of course, the progression of women in any sense. So? I was thrilled when I saw the above image on her page, a stunning capture Larson at the premiere of Captain Marvel signing an autograph for a young girl in a Captain Marvel costume.

The photo itself speaks volumes to me. This young girl in a superhero costume, quite the refreshment from the media encouragement for little girls to wear pink princess dresses and cheerleader outfits, stands there is such adoration for her role model. If you will, her superhero.

The smile on her face, the sense of pride she feels as she's meeting what was once a fictional character in a comic or movie, kneels beside her in evening wear signs her name to something she may treasure for the rest of her life.

While some people see this and see stardom, flash, whatever it might be. I see nothing but impact.

The mere idea that this little girl saw Larson on a screen as a superhero, saving the world and ridding it of its evil, paints an entirely different picture of womanhood for her.

What's more, it sets an entirely different set of expectations for herself and her future, a ceiling that once looked only to be damsels in distress and women needing saving.

In this story, the captain is a woman. The lifesaver is a woman. The superhero is a woman.

And yes, I know that Wonder Woman has been a female figure of great proportion in recent years, but this premier not only furthers the agenda that Wonder Woman catalyzed, but it bolsters it.

In other words, there's legitimacy and solidification to the mission to thread much more significant female figures into mainstream media, even those made famous by Superman.

Now when I found this photo, I naturally had to emerge from under the rock I'd been living under and learn everything there are to learn about the current Marvel film.

My research lead me to a New York Times article that discussed the complexities of the "women problem" in the world of POW! and BOOM!

Disclaimer: the following synopsis is a reflection of how I took it, basically an opinionated reflection and regurgitation of the words fostered by The Times on the matter. So, do keep that in mind.

After parsing through the article and agreeing with about 90 percent of it, I realized something that it pointed out and rather abruptlyβ€”the Captain Marvel film is the first of its kind that focuses particularly on a woman.

This and other more slight reasons are why the NYT says Marvel has got a "woman problem."

Now, why do I give this much of a crap about this movie, you ask?

Here's the deal. Movies, shows, other forms of mainstream media have been a part of the major patriarchal problem way more often than they have the solution, and here's why.

When a little girl sees a movie where her only representations of herself are a weak, scared female being rescued by some guy in tights, well... that pretty much speaks for itself.

What does a little boy see? A strong, good-looking man with above-human capabilities flying around saving the world from all things bad.

The representation of a weak and incapable female spreads a subtle yet impactful message that women need a man in order to be saved, rescued or protected. The reality, as we know, quite the opposite.

Brie Larson, who originally expressed some level of hesitation on taking the role, represents a different identity, a different ceiling for little girls to aspire to reach.

So, why should we care? because more of this influence will spark a revolution of young girls believing in themselves genuinely and believing that they can do whatever it is that they want to do in this life, not just what is societally expected of them.

To this, we tip our crowns.

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About the Creator

Reigning Women

πŸ‘‘πŸ‘‘πŸ‘‘

WHERE πŸ‘ WOMEN πŸ‘ REIGN πŸ‘

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