Men, what do you think when you see female action heroes in movies/TV (in general and individual cases)?

32 comments

  2. Usually the same thing when I see a male super hero, The only difference is I might be attracted to the women

  5. I was 100% fine and non-judgmental about female action heroes until they came out with *She-Hulk: Attorney at Law*.

  7. It entirely depends on the movie.

    Superhero stuff, anything goes. It’s all dumb anyway.

    More realistic action movies, I like to see clever uses of skill as seeing a woman out-muscle a significantly larger man is an immersion breaker.

    Something like Prey, that just came out is a female action hero done right.

    Unfortunately, I think we still suffer from people writing too many original action films with male leads so that when people do utilise a female lead, they kind of make too much of a point of it and it ends up being a little too on the nose with the “girl power”, if you will.

  8. “There is no way this tiny girl is going toe to toe with these big dudes who are also trained to fight.”

    But.. I mean.. action movies aren’t exactly known for their realism in any case. So w/e.

  9. Depends solely on the movie being good or not lmao.

    Arcane? FUCK YES

    Mulan live action? FUCK NO

  10. I hope they are actually new cool heroes instead of overloaded with political intention as that tends to take away screentime for actual character development. In general I like to see characters being them not being used as billboards for some message. Remember the action movies that were overpacked with product placements the main character had to use, even though their appearance made no sense in the whole setting? Same thing, can ruin a movies immersion in an instant.

  11. If the movie is good, then its good. The character’s gender doesn’t influence my opinion of the film itself. Its the plot that matters.

  12. Cool beans UNLESS im getting a story arc along the lines of “im a woman” shoved down my throat.

    But in general, i like women heroines in moves and videogames. Make them bad ass or capable and im all in.

  13. Im happy they get to be an original character and not this bullshit where they recast an existing character as a woman just for the sake of diversity. Eg. The movie “Kate” was a good start

  14. Ripley in Aliens, wonder woman, Lara Croft, there are loads of strong female action characters and those movies are good.

    When it’s something where the original movie or idea was a male lead character and it’s been rewritten as a woman, those movies tend to be not great and the main selling point is the gender change to make a statement rather than a beneficial story enhancement.

  15. If the character was written to be a woman, perfect. Like Lara Croft. If they just want to add a woman into an action movie because of inclusion, no thanks.

  16. It just depends how the character and overall movie is written, not so much whether the hero is male or female. If it’s a big dumb, escapist action movie it kind of doesn’t matter so long as it’s entertaining and reasonably well written. I don’t have huge expectations of those types of movies. If it’s a a super hero movie, same as action movies.

    So, really I judge by the same metric I would if it were a male lead if I’m being honest. I sort of have a low bar for movies: was I entertained, or not? If I’m entertained, I’m content, regardless of the movie’s flaws.

  17. It varies a lot based on the director. Sometimes they’re fun, sometimes dull. I watch lots of things with them in.

  18. That depends on the movie/TV hero. I grew up watching Wonder Woman and The Bionic Woman on TV and read WW in her comic book since my grandpa bought me my first one in the 70’s. I had TONS of examples of strong powerful female superheroes from the Isis/Shazam hour to the cheesy Electro-Woman and Dyna Girl, even Holly from The Land of The Lost was competent and didn’t need her father or brother to save her all the time, she saved herself sometimes too.

    Now days those women superheroes aren’t just about doing a job they have a huge feminist chip on their shoulders and their movies come off as more than a little man bashing. They’ve turned a great hero like Thor into some underpowered codependent man-child while Jane Foster is the kick ass hero we all need and are supposed to love. The new Wonder Woman film( not 1984) was great because everyone got to shine, Diana was kick ass but so was Steve at the end doing what only he could do.

    I enjoy women in movies/tv but how about not making the men a bunch of weak stupid losers to make the woman that much more powerful or superior.

  19. I grew up on Xena: Warrior princess. So I like it when female action heroes do hero shit like they are there to be heroes. Equal in strength and importance to male characters.

    I don’t like it when female action heroes stop to yell “girl power” after every punch, like they’re there for the studio to congratulate itself for being _so_ enlightened for having WOMEN who can FIGHT in the cast (but not enlightened enough to give any of these badasses you’re so proud of a movie, _Marvel_)

  20. Furiosa yes

    Ghostbusters reboot no

    ​

    That’s the kind of vibe I go for.

    ​

    Random not traditional action but 10 Cloverfield Lane’s protagonist was great I think

  21. As long as she isn’t crying about how hard women have it & the character isn’t a complete Mary Sue. You can be a bad ass spy, super hero, vigilante but don’t fucking be preachy and trying to shove girl power down my throat (especially at the expense of a story and a good character).

  22. Entirely on how they are written.

    There are some great ones,
    Such as Sigourney Weaver – Alien, Mila Jovovich – Fifth Element (Although somewhat shadowed by Bruce Willis male lead,) just to name a few.

    Though I haven’t been watching movies in a while, because in last 10 years or so there has been only few worth watching. and just about everything else is super hero trash.

    And some I completely miss, as they don’t score big/be controversial (in good or bad) in some way in America, I just never hear about them.

    And lately some of the movies / TV series’es have been written so poorly, that no matter who is in that movie, I don’t even care, Not watching.

    So, Just give me a good action movie with female lead, I watch it, and I probably like it.

  23. The writing and plot are more important. There are plenty of female led movies and shows that are great, and plenty that are just done poorly. It’s no different from a male lead.

    One of my favorite examples is Death Proof. All female heroes, all awesome.

    The problem is when creators blame the audience for not enjoying garbage movies.

  24. As long as they don’t draw attention to their sex, I enjoy them like any hero. To actively and repeatedly state they’re a *female* hero undermines any accomplishment making it out to look like they’re goal is to make or prove some point and actually not for greater good.

    Which is more heroic; Doing good because it’s the right thing to do, or doing good to prove a point to no one in particular?

  25. Nothing.

    Except “Captain Marvel” her character was way boosted and she’s not that damn powerful to 1v1 Thanos. Not even close. But I say this because I’m a comic reader. Other than that I see em just like I see any other actor. Male or female.

  26. Alien and Mad Max Fury Road are awesome action movies with a female protagonist.

    I don’t care that the protagonist is female. I like that it’s a good movie.

  27. Nothing, either the character is good or it isn’t, it has nothing to do with gender.

    The modern notion of there are no female led movies, or stars, or women in action etc, irritates the hell out of me. I’ve loved films since I was little, and some of my favorite characters were women. Everytime I hear someone trying to say that or say finally a female hero or whatever…..wtf films have you been watching? No love for Sarah Connor or Ellen Ripley? They have 2 of the best characters arcs in all of cinema. No love for princess Leia? She was a leader as well as a bad ass who was willing to get her hands dirty.

    For a modern example, Michelle Yeoh in everything everywhere all at once was fucking AWESOME.

  28. Buffy the vampire slayer is easily my favorite show of all time so I guess I am ok with it

  29. Mind if I rant? If they’re well written, they’re great. Farrah from MW19 (inspired by real life female commandos), OG Mulan, Sarah Connor, Ellen Ripley, just a few examples of women who had to work hard and adapt to rough situations. If they inspire us to do the same, they’re doing a great job.

    HOWEVER, that seems to be nonexistent today…many are cringe projections by their woke and egotistical writers who seem to have been hired right out of liberal arts college. She-Hulk is a prime example. I’m not a comic book buff, but the comic seems way more interesting than the Netflix show. The show is just a way to satiate the Twitter mobs. The whole premise is: 1)men are bad/dumb/creepy, 2)girls are bosses and strong and great at everything from birth, 3) being catcalled/objectified is worse than being a soldier in Ukraine, but it’s empowering to shake your CGI ass for social media.

    TLDR: writing matter greatly

  31. The same way I feel about men. I you give me a believable reason for their capabilities and competence, I’ll buy it. If they are an over-the-top badass and it’s not a comedy, it immediately becomes one. And if you expect me to believe that an untrained person can just rise to the occasion a be a total badass without any training or time, I’ll call that bullshit and besides, it’s a more enjoyable plot when the average person isn’t a total badass but still figures things out.

    Beyond that, it depends on the context of the film. If you throw out the basic rules of our universe and apply something different (i.e. Star Wars, superheroes, etc.) then as long as it follows the relevant established rules within the universe, I’m cool. Even then, the hero can’t be good at everything, else there is no hero’s journey and they are totally unrelatable.

    If it’s realistic or semi-realistic, use common sense. You can’t have a 5’6” woman, even if she is a trained badass, beating some giant thug up with brute strength. That’s just straight-up ridiculous. If she beats him with superior training, tactics, intellect, and the good old combo of surprise, speed, and violence of action then I’ll believe it. It’s the same thing when a smaller male character fights a giant thug. If he ends up beating him simply with brute force, I’ll call bs. So use common sense.

    No matter what, if you develop a character regardless of the gender and give us believable reasons to see them as capable, no matter what capability is in, we will buy it. If you give them flaws and reasonable limits on their capabilities, we will relate to them. And if you build and grow this character with time we will learn to understand them and who they are, seeing ourselves in them.

  32. If they’re well-written and not impervious to any challenges they face? I’m on board.

    So, in other words, the same way I view a good male hero.

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