Hollywood’s Gender Flip Reboot Trend
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The newly released Enola Holmes 2 is another film upholding the trend of rebooting and remaking recognisable male figures. However, whether these light-hearted films are conducive to a greater female presence in Hollywood is debatable, perhaps these movies are merely forcing an unproductive comparison of the female remake and the male original.
Flipping an identity on the basis of gender remains a contentious issue. Some are outraged that a female could assume center-stage without an accompanying male. Others are angered that the guise of female parity is used to secure box-office success.
Rather than squeezing a token ‘woman’ into a male-driven ensemble, a female-led film, whether a reboot of a male original or not, is a long-overdue and positive transition. Cast-flipped films have a unique opportunity to explore the sexual and racial politics accompanied by placing characters of varying backgrounds into frequently white, heterosexual male-dominated contexts.
Earning $41.6 million on opening weekend, Ocean’s 8, the female remake of Ocean’s Eleven broke the box-office opening weekend record for all Ocean’s movies, pushing Solo: A Star Wars Story from the number-one spot. The commercial success of Ocean’s 8 rings true the same message Wonder Woman, Girls Trip and Bridesmaids have previously shown, that there is a demand for female-led films.
However, the common practice of gender-flipped remakes has as of yet produced more disposable and amusing films as opposed to moving or memorable pieces. Most swapped narrative films are not directed by women or people of color, and those that have a direct experience of racism and sexism would perhaps be more cautious about using stories as easy gags.
These female characters are frequently forced to prove themselves to be ‘as good as’ their males predecessors; the female remake of Ghostbusters will always be measured against the original. Individuals frequently removed from the mainstream deserve more than playing catch-up to the high-budget movies males have been starring in for decades.
Rather than reframing tried-and-tested male stories, there should be a greater focus in creating new female-led franchises. Women deserve to resonate with figures who don’t have an aura of their male predecessors and are individuals in themselves.
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Remakes and reboots operate under the false premise that there is a blank spot a female can fill as suitably as a male. However, to replace a high-performing, male-dominated franchise with a female character is more complex than that and there is a failure to explore the nuances of the female experience. There must be more Lenas of Annihilation, Lorraine Broughtons of Atomic Blonde and Dianas of Wonder Women. All these female narratives simmer with originality and specificity, whose individual histories, passions and decisions carve an idiosyncratic plot, not a plot tainted by a male predecessor.
As thoroughly enjoyable as reboot and remade female-led movies can be, these figures endure the insurmountable task of constantly being measured against their iconic male counterparts. There must be a move to portray more female characters who are just as incomparable as so many male characters have become, so incomparable that it would be unimaginable for a male to play.
Strike Out,
Writer: Mae Brennan
Editors: Katie Sharp, Natalie Daskal
Notre Dame
