Where Are the Women? Chappie

WATWchappie

Sigourney Weaver’s weapons-contractor CEO doesn’t have anywhere near the screen time of the scantily dressed mommy to a newborn AI.

BASIC REPRESENTATION SCORE: 0

-10

Could the protagonist have been female without significantly impacting the film as a whole? (for a film with a male protagonist) [why this matters]

+10

Is there a female character with significant screen time who grows, changes, and/or learns something over the course of the story? (for an ensemble cast, or a film with a male protagonist) [why this matters]

FEMALE AGENCY/POWER/AUTHORITY SCORE: +3

Is there a female character with insignificant screen time in a position of authority? [why this matters]

Is there a woman whose role could easily have been played by a man? [why this matters]

THE MALE GAZE SCORE: -5

-5

Is there a female character with significant screen time who dresses less appropriately for the environment than her male counterparts do? [why this matters]

GENDER/SEXUALITY SCORE: -5

-5

Is there a female character who is primarily defined by her emotional or biological relationship with a child or children*? [why this matters] (*in this case, an AI child)

WILDCARD SCORE: 0

Is there anything either positive or negative in the film’s representation of women not already accounted for here? (points will vary)

No.

TOTAL SCORE: -7

IS THE FILM’S DIRECTOR FEMALE? No (does not impact scoring)

IS THE FILM’S SCREENWRITER FEMALE? Yes, one of two credited (Terri Tatchell) (does not impact scoring)

BOTTOM LINE: Yes, the movie features Sigourney Weaver as the CEO of a robotics weapons contractor, but she doesn’t have anywhere near the screen time — or anywhere near the impact on the story — as does the scantily dressed woman who is primarily mommy to a newborn AI.

Click here for the ongoing ranking of 2015’s films for female representation.

NOTE: This is not a “review” of Chappie! It is simply an examination of how well or how poorly it represents women. (A movie that represents women well can still be a terrible film; a movie that represents women poorly can still be a great film.) Read my review of Chappie.

See the full rating criteria. (Criteria that do not apply to this film have been deleted in this rating for maximum readability.)

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