Yesterday, James Cameron found out that he’s no longer the King of the World. There is a new king — actually a queen — and it is Wonder Woman.
Cameron said to The Guardian:
“All of the self-congratulatory back-patting Hollywood’s been doing over ‘Wonder Woman’ has been so misguided. She’s an objectified icon, and it’s just male Hollywood doing the same old thing! I’m not saying I didn’t like the movie but, to me, it’s a step backwards. Sarah Connor was not a beauty icon. She was strong, she was troubled, she was a terrible mother, and she earned the respect of the audience through pure grit. And to me, [the benefit of characters like Sarah] is so obvious. I mean, half the audience is female!”
Let’s just say that people did not react well to Cameron, who always considers himself to be the most important piece of his movies. True, he has created some great female characters — but he’s your stereotypical narcissistic director who believes that everything he does is better than anything else.
The fact that Cameron actually sees “Wonder Woman” as objectified reminds me again of just how important it is to have films directed by women be at the forefront of the culture. When all our perspectives are from the white male point of view, we see a skewed world.
On the upside, the internet swiftly pushed back on Cameron’s comments. Readers rightfully pointed out that his “Wonder Woman” criticism was really just an excuse to brag about his own films:
Criticism is never effective when it's followed immediately with "But you know who did it better? ME!!" Back to Pandora, Mr. Cameron! https://t.co/E3lZsPBX94
Others focused on Cameron’s own history of treating women as objects:
James Cameron says #WonderWoman objectified its star and was "a step backwards" from Sarah Connor. James Cameron also directed this 👇 https://t.co/qImXSFBkdE
And, of course, there were words about Cameron the Mansplainer:
thank god for james cameron, mansplainer of What True True Feminism Looks Like: https://t.co/Ol7P22d3mV
“Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins also took to Twitter to address Cameron’s take on her film. She argues that “the massive female audience who made the film a hit … can surely choose and judge their own icons of progress.” In other words, women are smart enough to recognize objectification when they see it. They don’t need Mr. Avatar to spell it out for them.
Jenkins has recently become a spokeswoman for the need for female filmmakers in the wake of “Wonder Woman’s” success. “I hope the success of the film will lead to change and lead to other people getting opportunities,” Jenkins said, per The Hollywood Reporter.
The more female directors and female-driven stories there are, the more movies will reflect their audiences. And, with any luck, we will hear less nonsense from deluded male directors. The world is different than it was before this summer and that’s because of “Wonder Woman.” Things can’t go back to before. There is only forward from now on.
