Fregoso's articles focused on how certain groups are depicted in film on what she calls "The Bronze Screen." She specifically focuses on Chicanos/Chicanas, but her arguments can felt across several minority groups. One repeated point was that to a film should be made "by, for, and about" the group which is being portrayed (xiv). This is important because often times films that do not fit this criteria have negative consequences for those portrayed. Often times this can come in the form on an inaccurate depiction of the people, be unrealistic, or reinforce negative stereotypes the group faces. This was seen in the film Mi Vida Loca, which even had real gang members involved in the production. Because they didn't have enough control of the direction of the film, it missed the mark and showed detrimental stereotypes of the group which they claimed to be false. A legitimate chicano film would follow the "by, for, about" rule, while revealing a counter-hegemonic viewpoint for the group to fight against the negative stereotypes seen by the dominant group in the culture.
In the movie Billy Madison (1995) a problematic role is Billy's maid. The most obvious issues lie within the stereotypical role of an African American woman. Billy Madison's father is a wealthy white man, in a wealthy neighborhood, with a huge house, and he has a woman doing his work. In this particular clip, she is making him a sandwich while he sits on the stool and talks about his feelings. This only reproduces the stereotype that "women belong in the kitchen." Another issue lies within the race of the woman. While this movie was made 22 years ago, it still pushes the idea that African Americans are not thought of as a lower class. In looking at the cast list, Theresa Merritt (Juanita the maid) is the only non-white actor in the film. Within all the business meetings that take place, every single one is a white male. This negative stereotype against non-whites and women. In looking at how this film is shot, we see Juanita clearly in front of several dishes in the cupboard, while Billy sits in front of a door and part of the stove can be seen. Even during this conversation, the camera angle seems to reinforce that she is a maid and continue reminding the viewer that she is a servant in the home. This movie seems similar to Mi Vida Loca, in the fact that many negative stereotypes are reinforced and the representation seems inaccurate. The Movie Billy Madison having been written by two white men seems to depict many characters well, but Juanita is a stereotype role. This role was clearly not written "by, for, or about" real African American women who work in a service type industry like Juanita.
Comments
Post a Comment