Kathryn Bigelow, The Big Hooray, and The Disappointing State of Women in Hollywood
I’ve been singing the praises of Kathryn Bigelow ever since I first saw Near Dark in the mid-1980s. As a horror fan, a cinema junkie, and an emerging feminist, I couldn’t help but love that film even more after I realized who directed it. I was so excited that a woman was making bloody awesome movies, and I was all sorts of anxious to see what other women film directors would do, as it really seemed as if Bigelow had started to blaze some trail.
And then… nothing happened. Bigelow continued to direct films and television – some exceptional and some engaging-but-kinda-meh – but no wave of women filmmakers followed in her wake. And whenever I found myself talking with someone about women directors (in high school, college, and graduate school) we could always name just a small handful, and then we’d say, “But Kathryn Bigelow – she’s made it!” In fact, Bigelow has never – EVER – made a major studio movie (yep, including Point Break). She has always had to pursue independent financing for her projects. And there have always been long periods of time when she disappeared. But still, I really wanted and needed to assert that she’d made it. Because, despite all of my optimism, women directors have continued to be a rare commodity.
In 2008 I found out that she had made The Hurt Locker, and I was thrilled. I couldn’t wait to see her take on a war picture. But I also knew that the film was sitting on a shelf, waiting for distribution. Waiting and waiting and waiting. And then it was FINALLY released on a handful of screens in the middle of 2009. And it was stunning. I couldn’t believe how gripping, how disciplined, how thoughtful, and how exhausting the film was. And I worried that despite critical acclaim, Kathryn Bigelow (and The Hurt Locker) would disappear again, invisible to everyone except action junkies and feminist film fans.
And here we are now, at the beginning of 2010, and Bigelow has won the Directors Guild of America award. The first woman to ever do so. And she has become only the FOURTH woman to be nominated for a Best Director Oscar. [Count 'em: Lina Wertmüller (1976), Jane Campion (1993) and Sofia Coppola (2003).] And she’s cleaned up in critics’ circles.
This matters. This matters so much! And, of course, it’s totally complicated: Bigelow makes movies that dudes love, while so many other women directors are resigned to chick flicks, especially romantic comedies. Other talented women directors, indie and major studio alike - Kelly Reichardt, Lisa Cholodenko, Darnell Martin (who became the first African-American woman to direct a film for a major studio in 1994), Kasi Lemmons, and many more – haven’t been able to gain Bigelow’s credibility or audience draw (see my point above: they don’t make action movies) and often end up on very few screens. (And then there’s Jane Campion, who makes films that just freak the shit out of men.) And, yes, Bigelow was married to one of Hollywood’s most powerful producer/directors, and is now contending with him for the Best Director Oscar.
But still: HOORAY. In fact, a big hooray!
But it doesn’t mean that Kathryn Bigelow has made it. The Hurt Locker is not a commercial success. Bigelow may not get any major work after this. And her success doesn’t mean that women have made it in Hollywood. In fact, things are B-A-D for women in Hollywood, in front of and behind the cameras. The movie biz is a numbers game, and we need lots and lots more numbers: more women directors, more box office dollars for their movies. There are still precious few women writing and helming films that get any major support – and if their films don’t make a lot of money or if they have a reputation for being irrational and weird, they disappear. And all the while Joe McHack director gets the next action franchise sequel. We need more women hacks.
So I’m celebrating, but – seriously – we have a long way to go. And the only way to get there is to buy more tickets for women’s films. So, friends, let’s make it a point to get out and support women filmmakers. It’s the only vote we get in Hollywood. Let’s make it count!
And, you know, Lee Daniels is only the SECOND African-American director to receive an Oscar nomination. Spike Lee and John Singleton have both been nominated for screenwriting awards, but only John Singleton has received a directing nomination. So while I can get excited about Bigelow, I would do a big disservice by glossing over the issue of race in Hollywood here. I reiterate: I’m celebrating, but we have a long way to go.
