Essay --

After Mulveys opening was published, during the 1980s galore(postnominal) womens rightists who began to look for the meaning of female spectatorship raised many debates about the male gaze. (Stacey,1994, p24) As Rosemary Betterton enquires, what kinds of pleasure are offered to women spectators at bottom the forms of representationwhich have been mainly by men, for men? (Betterton, 1985 p4). Similarly, David Rodowick verbalize, Mulvey discusses the male lead story as an purpose of look but denies him the function of an erotic object and asks So where is the place of the feminine subject in this scenario? (Rodowick, 1982 p8) Many feminist carry theories have attempted to study Mulveys hypothesis further. One trend would be to look at the way film text produces diametric gendered spectator positions which goes against Mulveys and masculine models of spectatorship (Stacey 1994, p 25). On the other hand judge the masculinisation of the female spectator but arguing that due to familiar remnant the spectator therefore will get different visual pleasures from the text. I will look at three main theorists who fight against the Mulvey male gaze theory of the 1970s. Firstly, Raymond Bellours work, as written in Psychosis, neurosis, perversion, from Camera Obscura, has taken a physiological downstairsstanding of sexual difference in Hollywood cinema claiming a space for female desire. (Stacey,1994, p24) By investigating the dialogue of Hitchcock films, Bellour discovered an analysis of the way the gaze is created. Bellour stated The mechanisms for eliminating the threat of sexual difference represented by the figure of a woman, are built into the apparatus of the cinema (Bellour, 1979, p97) Although, his version is a in truth pessimistic ideology for the female desire, Bell... ...tic pleasure. (Stacey 1994 p29) The female spectator therefore takes on a specific meaning in cultures where women are so constituently defined as both subject and object of t he gaze. Thus wanting to be liked does not necessarily exclude an erotic component.(Stacey 1992, p30) Therefore, unlike Mulveys theory that all women are put in the masochists position in score to enjoy films where the woman is objectified, she states that there is potential homo-eroticism for all female spectators, whilst identifying with the woman-as-spectacle at the same time.(Stacey 1994 p 29) Using the theories I have discussed regarding feminist film theories , I will apply it to two of the most commercially ordinary Hollywood Romantic comedies, Pretty Woman and Bridesmaids. Since they both fall under this genre, I will be able to apply these theories and compare them accordingly.