Where Are the Women? Our Brand Is Crisis

A female protagonist in a position of authority, in which she is allowed the space to be professional and be heeded by men, is a very good thing.

BASIC REPRESENTATION SCORE: +25

+25

Is there a female protagonist? [why this matters]

FEMALE AGENCY/POWER/AUTHORITY SCORE: +4

Is there a female character (either a protagonist or a supporting character with significant screen time) in a position of authority (politics, law, medicine, etc.)? [why this matters]

-5

Is her authority presented as having a negative impact on her life? [why this matters]

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

More than one? [why this matters]

THE MALE GAZE SCORE: 0

[no issues]

GENDER/SEXUALITY SCORE: 0

-3

Is a dead mother mentioned? [why this matters]

Is a dead father also mentioned? [why this matters]

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: +29

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

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

BOTTOM LINE: A female protagonist in a position of authority, in which she is allowed the space to be professional and — more importantly — be heeded by men, is a very good thing. Even the overarching suggestion that her particular brand of authority is bad for her is a person isn’t enough to sink a movie that otherwise grants women multiple roles in positions of power and influence, and never treats them like eye candy.

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

NOTE: This is not a “review” of Our Brand Is Crisis! 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 Our Brand Is Crisis.

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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