It’s Not Women’s Fault! How Hollywood’s Reboot Obsession is Killing Off The Action Heroine
Hollywood reboots are like unexpectedly finding something behind the settee. Sometimes, you discover a crisp tenner. Other times, you find a cockroach.
In the last decade, Hollywood has released a lot of the cockroach type reboots. Unwanted, critically and commercially unsuccessful, these films are scraped into the bin with a look of disgust. Now, with feminism in vogue again, Hollywood is desperate to get down with the kids. Ghostbusters (2016), Ocean’s Eight (2018) and Charlie’s Angels (2019) all attempt to answer the calls for female-led action films. The new Ghostbusters and Ocean’s Eight have a female cast, inverting the male casts from the originals. They all are reboots of successful blockbusters. Unfortunately, the three new films weren’t box-office record breakers or critical darlings. So how is Hollywood getting it all wrong?
Reboots are often met with apathy but are these three films actually worth watching? I think so. Some of these are rather good and even on par with the original. Ghostbusters (2016) is a funny reboot from director Paul Feig. Like the original, we follow a team of four ghostbusters, as they capture ghosts around New York. Unlike the original, Ghostbusters (2016) is thankfully free of Bill Murray’s groping college professor. In 2016, the ghostbusters feel like a real cohesive group of friends who protect New York together. Sometimes it depends too heavily on cameos from the first film, but the continually funny script guarantees an enjoyable summer flick. What was not enjoyable was Elizabeth Banks’ recent attempt at Charlie’s Angels. Originally a pulpy spy TV show first made back in the 70s, Banks’ movie was meant to be a vague continuation of the initial story. My first thought when I saw the trailer was “why?”. The addition of another Charlie’s Angels feels a little superfluous, because the initial film from 2000 was already fun, campy and fabulous. Banks’ version tries too hard and the team of Angels never feel like friends. 2018’s Ocean’s Eight is a reboot of the original Ocean’s trilogy. Sandra Bullock is Debbie Ocean, sister of the initial trilogy’s mastermind, Danny (George Clooney), with a plan to steal a coveted Tiffany necklace from the Met Ball. While Ocean’s Eight is fun, it lacks the suave nature of the first three.
Obviously, these films want to ride the current wave of feminism. That’s one of the reasons these reboots keep getting made; Hollywood is desperate to connect with their young female audience. Charlie’s Angels have always been super spies who work right under the noses of unsuspecting men; the 2019 attempt is schlocky and outdated. In the opening credits, girls from around the world smile and look beautiful. Feminism is used as window dressing and a marketing tool. This is all confirmed when Elena Houghlin (Naomi Scott) is invited into the Angels’ closet. Jewellery, sunglasses, dresses, bags and little bomber jackets line the walls. Elena’s desire to join the Angels increases tremendously when she realises she can borrow all this couture. Who would have thought that the pinnacle of gender equality is a Gucci handbag. The vibe is the same in Ocean’s Eight. Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock) plans to steal priceless Tiffany jewellery, while wearing gorgeous dresses. It seems implausible that women would hijack casino games, like the boys did in the original. The “anything boys can do we can do too!” messaging is undermined by the implication that diamonds really are a girl’s best friend. By trying to be as political as conservative Hollywood would allow, these films don’t successfully resonate with their target audience and appear vain and shallow instead.
But, these are meant to be blockbusters - not political think-pieces. Audiences want feel-good escapism. Both Ghostbusters and Charlie’s Angels bombed spectacularly at the box office, although Ghostbusters was the most well received of the bunch. Ocean’s Eight performed better, but it wasn’t a summer-defining hit. These are not the reboots cinema-goers want to see. To make matters worse, these films are seen as pale imitations of the originals. Unlike the movies they’re based on, these reboots aren’t likely to generate a cult following. That’s the inherent problem with reboots: they might guarantee a quick buck, but they can’t dynamically reshape the cinematic landscape. The originals will always have the most cultural impact. It’s rather shady that these blockbusters have to rely on older movies. The new versions will be forgotten behind the settee, but the originals will be played on repeat. It’s easy to conclude that action is too masculine a genre for women, rather than realising that these films fail because the older franchises don’t resonate with their target audience, and that the audience is growing tired of remakes.
The Hollywood blockbuster formula has been honed to perfection since Star Wars. After the release of George Lucas’ genre-defining classic, Hollywood homed in on its new target audience – teenage boys. The blockbusters on our screens now are still cast in the same mould, although the veneer has slightly cracked to include women. Due to the dependence on reboots, Hollywood bosses are keen to regurgitate whatever worked in the past for today’s audiences. The Ghostbusters’ reception is testament to this. Misogynistic fanboys jumped on the trailer as soon as it was published on YouTube, and now the dislikes total 1.1 million. There were arrogant concerns that a female-led Ghostbusters would ruin the series, and the film lost millions at the box office. Obviously, a large proponent of Ghostbusters’ fanbase are men who had come of age in the 1980s. If mainstream cinema is going to include women, then remakes of films which originally appealed to teenage boys aren’t going to cut it. Women deserve a blockbuster franchise that’s independent of the reboot craze, written for and by women.
Unfortunately, the film industry doesn’t want to listen. Recently, more cast members and directors have complained about their film’s critical reception. Mindy Kaling criticised the preponderance of male critics after Ocean’s Eight received mediocre reviews. In an industry where 80% of reviewers are men, she argued that men are predisposed to dislike films aimed at women. But male critics have written glowing reviews for “women’s films” - just look at the critical consensus for Emma and Little Women. Her argument reduces cinema audiences to stereotypes and masks the real reasons audiences did not connect with these films. The notion that I would only love a film because the cast’s gender is the same as my own is far-fetched. The world needs more diverse film critics. We need different opinions colliding against each other, creating multi-layered discussion, but we don’t need cast and crew condemning critics after their film did not successfully connect with their target audience.
It is absolutely possible to release successful blockbusters with a female lead. Wonder Woman and the original Charlie’s Angels film are a testament to this. Clearly, there is an audience out there. But, amidst the push for blockbusters featuring women in prominent roles, fewer and fewer romantic films have been produced. Love stories no longer seem attractive. Countless pieces have been written about the sexism in rom-coms, but there has been little attempt to produce a 21st century-appropriate romantic film. Women do not want to be seen just as objects of desire, and actresses do not want to be cast as vapid love interests. However, the genre still remains popular. Instead of producing films which challenge sexism, rom-coms are buried with the label “unsalvageable”. Mamma Mia and its sequel were both massive hits, indicating that there is a market for a rom-com-musical hybrid, but these films are a rare event. Netflix is the only studio reliably producing romantic comedies, while Hollywood has been concentrating on action films starring women, it has ignored a genre historically popular with women. Maybe rom-com fans feel deserted by Hollywood. In all reality, Hollywood’s output, in style and in genre, doesn’t cater to women as much as one would hope.
Reboots will probably outlive us all, like the cockroach in WALL-E. I would love to see a well-written action film fronted by a female cast. For women-led blockbusters to make a cultural impact, we need authentic, original action films. Reboots are too often restrained by the public perception of the originals. At the moment, cinema is blinkered by its obsession with them. It’s clear that Hollywood needs to learn to experiment again. Only then will action heroines truly steal the show.
Written by Lucy Clarke
Lucy is a recent graduate in German Studies and an avid film lover. When she’s not watching or writing about film, you can find her trying to befriend all the neighbourhood cats or singing Eurovision hits from 2008. You can find her blog here: lucyatthepictures.com