ManerMovieAnalysis

Jane Gaines’s essay “White Privilege and Looking Relations: Race and Gender in Feminist Film Theory” examined the erasure of black women in cinema by white male filmmakers. To fully understand this point, Gaines relies on the history of this topic. Specifically, she states, “If, as feminists have argued, women’s sexuality evokes an unconscious terror in men, then black women’s sexuality represents a special threat to white patriarchy; the possibility of its eruption stands for the aspirations of the black race as a whole” (p. 303). In the film, Strange Days (1995),there is a strong representation of black female empowerment shown in the character of Mace. Initially playing the role of a bodyguard, Mace transforms into a powerful action hero who is constantly saving Lenny from dire situations. In one particular scene, Mace is shown cocking a gun in her holster between her thighs, held under her little black dress. The purpose of this shot is to give Mace a masculine role while still keeping her femininity intact. Tying back to Gaines’s argument, the role of a black female in this film is not to be overlooked, but rather, shown as an independent, kick-ass character. Between the love that Mace has for Lenny and her desire to keep him safe, she is represented in all different lights.  

Jane Gaines believes that when most film discusses female sexuality the attention is on white women. She goes even further to assert that the gaze is only on white female heterosexual women. This isolates a large portion of the audience who is not white nor heterosexual. By withholding characters that society can universally identify with a film narrows its reach. Gaines states “black women’s sexuality represents a special threat to white patriarchy; the possibility of its eruption stands for the aspirations of the black race as a whole” (p. 303) she is claiming that black women’s underrepresentation in film is due to the looming threat of their powerful presence and filmmakers resistance toward giving them a fair share of screen time. In Strange Days(1995)  Mace’s character was not seen as a romantic love interest until the very last scene. Lenny was preoccupied with Faith and was not able to realize his feelings for Mace. The final scene shows Mace as a strong character and refrains from hypersexualization by giving her a heroic role that a man would normally take on. The image of the police officers beaten Mace shows that she gets no advantage for being a woman and is seen as an equal. In the end Lenny and Mace end up together which is unusual according to Gaines’ essay.