*What do you guys think? Can it? Why? Why not ( Read more... )

It has, at this point, become a bit obvious to point out the lack of female characters in children’s entertainment: the Pixar movies, the morning cartoon shows, even the Legos that they play with - unless, of course, the product in question was designed specifically for girls, which raises another set of issues about self-reinforcing stereotypes. ( Read more... )

An article of mine that I wrote for my own site with little intention has whipped up a storm of attention via twitter, and been reposted at the New Statesman, a national UK magazine that I've written for before in the past. The subject? The portrayal of women in a recent film ( Read more... )

TRIGGER WARNING: Descriptions of rape, sexual assault and violence.

The Invisible War is a documentary about the prevalence of rape within the U.S military and how it gets covered up by the system.
According to the Department of Defence 20% of all servicewomen have been assaulted while serving.

Trailer.

Click to view

Interview with the director and two soldiers who ( Read more... )

Indian actress Nikhita Thukral has been banned from appearing in Kannada language films for three years over an alleged affair with another actor.

The Kannada Film Producers' Association imposed the ban on Ms Thukral saying she had spoiled the "domestic harmony of a fellow actor".

She denies having an affair with the actor, known as Darshan, a ( Read more... )

Focus Features Picks Up Black Lesbian Film “Pariah”

'Focus Features paid “well under $1 million” for the worldwide rights to Pariah, the black lesbian coming-of-age film that earned a standing ovation on Sundance Film Festival’s opening night [...].

Pariah also made the front page of The New York Times‘s Sundance coverage from last ( Read more... )

Possible Trigger Warning: mentions of non-consensual sex.

Emily Browning was left fuming after her sex scene with Jon Hamm in Sucker Punch was axed from the upcoming action movie in a bid to please U.S. censors.

( Read more... )

Fans of The Hunger Games - the dark and addictive YA trilogy that is the hottest kid-lit read this side of Twilight - have been avidly following casting rumors for the forthcoming film adaptation. But while director Gary Ross initially told Entertainment Weekly that the actress playing resentful revolutionary heroine Katniss Everdeen needn't be a " ( Read more... )

In 1996, the world was a very different place. Mel Gibson--pre-Passion, pre-anti-Semitic, misogynistic drunken tirades--was still a bankable Hollywood movie star. Rene Russo had yet to disappear off the face of the planet, and it was at this time that these two starred together in a movie called Ransom.

The plot of Ransom is simple (spoilers ( Read more... )

Tangled is Disney's version of Rapunzel . To be honest, I have very little idea of how this move deviates from the the fairytale we are all familiar with. If you are interested in the preview, you can check it out here. What struck me about the story of Rapunzel, is the celebration of her flowing long blond hair. I think it is no accident that ( Read more... )