Gala Woolley

In light of the exciting (and long-awaited) news that the new Bond girls will "feel like real people", courtesy of Phoebe Waller Bridge’s collaboration for Bond 25 , I am reminded of Laura Mulvey’s feminist film theory. At the fiftieth anniversary of the Bond franchise, it is the perfect time to reflect upon the evolution of “the Bond girl”, from 1962’s Dr No to the most recent Spectre in 2015. In Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, Laura Mulvey coined the term ‘male gaze’, to define how women in film are represented from the perspective of a white, heterosexual male. Her theory implied cinema was a patriarchal and misogynist medium, in which women were sexualised and eroticised as objects of male desire. Mulvey describes the traditional exhibitionist role of women in cinema, who are “simultaneously looked at and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness ”. Mulvey contends that “all t...

Thelma and Louise are, in my opinion, the most iconic duo in the history of cinema. Speeding down the American highway in their Thunderbird 66 convertible, two best friends leave behind their domestic roles for the open road to self-discovery and independence. Heralded as a “feminist fable”, Ridley Scott’s 1991 adaptation of Callie Khouri’s Oscar-winning screenplay is a total must-see for everyone. Since our favourite childhood Disney films, we have been conditioned to believe that a happy ending means marrying our Prince Charming and living happily ever after.  Revolutionary in its refusal to submit to the heteronormative and patriarchal institutions that dominate Hollywood, Thelma & Louise is a celebration of solidarity and companionship, where romantic relationships take a back seat and strong women drive the action. Not to be judged by its frankly insulting, happy-go-lucky trailer , the film is far from your average chick-flick or soppy rom-com. Taking a dramatic turn earl...