Where's the cheesy lesbian Love, Simon? or the deep and thought-provoking lesbian Moonlight? Where's the wild and out-of-control lesbian I love you, Philip Morris?
Why do lesbians' love stories have to end in a break-up, in death, in close-ups of sweaty breasts that the male director thought was necessary?
I think one part of this problem is the fear of a woman not needing a man. Even in the very openly gay worlds of ancient Greece and Rome lesbians were considered taboo for this express reason. Women need a man but a man doesn't need a woman. Lesbians by their very nature cannot follow this line of thinking. I think the idea of an independent woman only works in broader society if a man is still in her life. Think of the classic "working girl" stereotype of the '80s, she's a bit cold and bossy but her life is dedicated to working until she meets a man who makes her rethink that (or in some cases it's a comedy and the man is one who stays at home and takes care of the kids, in that case, the working girl never goes beyond her cold exterior). Female independence comes with some stipulations that we have barely gotten over.
Now many women are arguing they don't need a man but the expectation is that one day, after they have had their fun, they will marry a man but they won't have to give up their dreams to do it.
But lesbians? They will never find a man to marry, at least by definition. They are the epitome of the early 2000's feminism of "we don't need a man a man needs me".
That's not even to talk about how white lesbian films are, nearly every film on the lists I looked at was of white or half-white relationships. Gay romance hasn't gotten much farther from this hole either. Is it just a matter of time? or will this fear hold mainstream lesbian romance back for way longer than it has held back gay romace?
You bring up some great questions. It is unfortunate that lesbian films are overly sexualized. In general, I feel that a lot of men and movies fetishize lesbians while not considering lesbian relationships as a real legitimate thing.
ReplyDeleteI really like your blog post! I never really thought about how lesbian relationships are portrayed, but now that you've talked about it, the lesbian narratives are very limited. The whole notion that women need to end up marrying a man is absolutely absurd, and I really hope there will be movies about women that don't end up living their societal expectation.
ReplyDeleteI think things will likely take time to progress. It is very important to realize that the fetishization of lesbians is not equivalent to equality or positive change. A lot of lesbian films do fetishize them and this is likely due to a lot of straight men fetishizing lesbian women. At least that's just part of it of course. I'm on the same boat for sure though, there needs to be an improvement on the depictions of lesbian romance in film and more representation of non-white LGBT romance. It will likely take time.
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