As far back as the 1920s, cinema has brought us feminist heroes.
Here’s a bunch of films way ahead of their time…
This article comes fromDen of Geek UK.
I never realised until lately that women were supposed to be the inferior sex.
Katharine Hepburn
Feminism, equality of the sexes.
Often when watching old movies, the sexism of the time can catch you off guard.
There are many great classic films with impressive female characters, too many to list here.
This article is about the characters that have inspired me personally.
Classic feminist films way ahead of their time.
To make me suffer, the Devil has sent you… and you… and you… and you.
Films today are rarely as evocative as this.
She is unwavering, she is terrified by the idea of death, but she will not surrender.
Im going to live through this and when its all over, Ill never be hungry again.
Just to be clear,Gone With The Windhas elements that are really racist and dated.
Scarlett OHara, one of the most iconic female characters of all time, is what Im discussing here.
Scarlett is selfish, greedy, heartless, and cold, but she is a survivor.
Every move she makes is pure self-preservation.
Scarlett is often considered a bitch (a word I hate) but she is not.
She is cold, selfish and tough, but she loves and feels deeply.
The Women (1939)
Ive had two years to grow claws mother.
This is a wonderful film that everyone should watch.
Not one man is ever seen, but the entire film revolves around them.
In the films opening we are introduced to each character by being shown what animal they are most like.
The second film in our Rosalind Russell trilogy isHis Girl Friday.
However, the goddess that is Rosalind Russell just blows him off the screen.
She is just as funny, clever, sharp, driven, and wily as he is.
She is also a woman not only working in a mans world but dominating it.
Why would she leave it?
Russells character feels that its time she be a real woman and settle down to have children.
Hildy will never be happy in a conventional role because she is not a conventional woman.
You forget youll need them again when you get back to being a woman.
Thats one career all females have in common, whether we like it or not: being a woman.
All About Eveis one of the greatest films of all time.
I truly love this film and make everyone I know watch it.
As yet, Ive had a 100% success rate; everyone has agreed that it is something special.
It is a film that encapsulates the problems of being a woman with, wanting and wielding power.
Margo is the long-reigning Queen of Broadway, she is a born star and all that comes with it.
Eve is a young, seemingly naive girl who worships Margo and the theatre.
You must choose, whether you are conscious of it or not.
Eve is a threat because she is fresh, new, everyone wants her, but time is inescapable.
Margo and Eve are women who are successful, but they suffer because of it.
Gypsy (1962)
Nobody laughs at me!
Because I laugh first.
Me, from Seattle!
Me, with no education.
Me, with no talent, as you kept reminding me my whole life!
Well, Mama look at me now.
I cant get enough of Ms. Russell.
Starring Natalie Wood in the eponymous role, Russell plays the original stage mother from hell, Mama Rose.
After three husbands and two children, Rose struggles to make ends meet by pushing her children into Vaudeville.
Gypsy discovers that her sexuality gives her power and she likes it.
Jealous of her success, Rose tries to diminish Gypsys achievements, but Gypsy refuses to feel shame.
Gypsyis a fantastic film with two iconic leads in Wood and Russell.
It is a film known for its modern and open approach to inter-race relationships.
It is the jewel in Sidney Poitiers crown.
It is beautifully written, masterfully directed and is, oddly, timeless.
Along with all of this,Guess Whos Coming To Dinneris truly feminist.
Four men, four women.
Perhaps this is naive, but I rather see it as brave.
Yet Joey doesnt care.
She loves this man and she will marry him, as she would if they were the same race.
To not marry him would be wrong, cowardly, illogical.
Much to the horror of Tilly, the familys long standing, much loved, black, housekeeper.
These are two intelligent, well rounded women who know what they want and what they believe.
Joeys mother Chris is played by (in my opinion) the greatest actress in history, Katherine Hepburn.
Chris is the first character to learn of the young lovers decision to marry.
She is initially shocked but supportive, her only concern being her husbands reaction to the news.
The crisis for Chris is that in this situation, her husband might let her down.
Finally there is Johns mother, Mrs. Prentice.
Yet it is her that changes everything.
Traceys final speech is one of the greatest in film history.
Give me a girl at an impressionable age and she is mine for life.
She wants her girls to be worldly, exceptional women and they worship her for it.
This is such a meaty film for actresses to sink their teeth into.
Finally she goes too far and unintentionally causes the death of a student.
To me the film is more about Sandy becoming a woman than Miss Brodies prime.
And as is so often the case, Sandys journey from girlhood, is a difficult and scary one.
Rosalind Russell
These are movies full of such moments, and those moments belong to women.
Thank you Scarlett, Hildy, and Jean for being decades ahead of your time.
