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FREUD SUCKS: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fre...
academic paper on it:
journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/1...
NYT article: www.nytimes.com/1984/01/24/sc...
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Sources:
The “Bad Girl” Turned Feminist: The Femme Fatale and the Performance of Theory by Michelle Mercure
The Emergence of the Feminist Fatale in American Film Noir by Anne Dennon
Fatal Woman, Revisited: Understanding Female Stereotypes in Film Noir by Danielle L. Barnes-Smith
Film Noir's Progressive Portrayal of Women by John and Stephanie Blaser
"Vicious Womanhood": Genre, The "Femme Fatale" and Postwar America by Marc Jancovich
Cultural Constructions of the Femme Fatale: From Pandora’s Box to Amanda Knox by Stevie Simkin
Challenging the stereotype: the femme fatale in fin-de-siecle art and early cinema by Jess Sully
The Big Seduction: Feminist Film Criticism and the Femme Fatale by Helen Hanson
Star Gazing: Hollywood Cinema and Female Spectatorship by Jackie Stacey
Woman's Place: The Absent Family of Film Noir ****by Sylvia Harvey
Women in Film Noir by Janey Place
"Gilda Didn't Do Any of Those Things You've Been Losing Sleep Over!": The Central Woman of 40s Films Noirs by Angela Martin
The Beauty and Horror of Medusa, an Enduring Symbol of Women’s Power by Allison Meier
“More good women have been lost to marriage than to war, famine, disease, and disaster.”-Cruella de Vil, 101 Dalmatians (1996)
The best Cruella De Vil ever ♥♥♥♥♥
i still think it's weird of disney to give that line to a hecking puppy killer?
@@alien9839 Even a broken clock is right twice a day
I found myself actually hating the dynamic between Anita and her husband, especially after he blurted out that she was pregnant when Anita was not ready to share that information yet
I love that quote so much lol
We should really bully Freud more
Yeeessss
honestly
Even in the mid 20th century people made the Sigmund Fraud joke, lol.
YES
y e s
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: The negativity of the fem fatal is "men are weak, blame women".
the new femme fetales are onlyfans models. look at how red pill guys talk about them. its your exact comment!
@@Belihoney or really any women that they feel entitled to....
What?
@@TehMomo_ honestly
@@andrewleo1521 huh
“most of the women get punished by death, jail time, or worse MARRIAGE” that’s honestly a mood
Reminds me of the Cruella DeVil quote. It was something like “more good women have been lost to marriage than any war or famine ...” or something like that
@Erwin Lii the ones from the early 1930’s got away with that because it was before the stupid Hayes Code was established. It was a “morality “ code that meant that women who were loose or femme fatales had to be punished, no sexual scenes (everything had to be subtle innuendo), and , weirdly, no showing toilets on screen. There was a bunch of other stuff too but it basically ruined a lot of movies!
kind of off topic but this just reminds of "we could have all been killed, or worse, EXPELLED"
@faith Reader Depends on who you marry lol.
Especially when people are forced to marry their r*pist
I’ve always been particularly fond of the femme fatale, it’s the first female character I ever saw depicted as multidimensional her existence is more than the pursuit for love or to serve the men in her life. Plus I do love a good “good for her” moment 👀
"Good for her" is kinda like one of my favorite genres of films, I love the combination of pretty sexy people who are dishonest and shady
I remember as a teen being referred to as a femme fatale. Whether or not it was meant in a good or bad way I always took it as a compliment. We love a man eater
when I was younger I would gobble up the idea of a femme fatale because that was the only time a woman wasn't a sexual object for the male gaze and the protagonist. she lived outside of what was expected from her- all this hits hard when you're a young girl surrounded by many many images of constantly sexualized women. growing up I did ofc understand how the femme fatale isn't always good, but hey
You worded that perfectly!!! Completely agree 100%, definitely feel the exact same way. I can neverrrr get tired of a “good for her” moment! Also the fact the character is always absolutely beautiful can help lol
Yeah, no one mentions it but I think Megara from Hercules is an example of one with a good ending, but she’s clearly coded as a femme fatale and she was always my favorite. We love complex women in film!
I would also love to see a follow up on the femme Fatale in the late 20th and early 21st century from you!
oh absolutely!
@@gremlita omg I'm so excited!!!!!!!!!!
If you want to see another opinion about this trope, I recommend Tee noir’s vídeo about the femme fatale. She talks more about it in the modern day, so go check it out if you want
Yes, please, that would be a treat!
@@nina5drioli thanks! I've loved some of Tee Noir's other videos so I'll definitely check it out.
I think it's so pretty interesting how we have recently been reclaiming the femme fatale and bimbo as aspirational archetypes (as seen with how we talk about Marilyn Monroe, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and any other powerfully independent women), instead of the negative reaction to these women with the bad press they got from older people. I read a published girl's diary from the 20s that had an entry about seeing a Mary Pickford film, and the writer had only distaste for her, saying that her ringlets were childish and Pickford was a boring actress. I wonder if girls had always liked the more independent and powerful women, and it was only the critics in media that gave them their bad reputation.
That's an incredibly interesting point.
I love everything that you said just now, because I’ve always thought about that. I remember that ofc we’re still living in, and have lived in a patriarchal society that was determined as shit to pit women against each other, especially in media. They’d always find little ways to do so back then (women’s magazines even & mansplaining) it always came at us in little ways that we never really thought about. It’s not hard to believe that they would take their oh-so-precious time to sit their on their asses, and create content and projects that beat at women, telling them to hate each other, dog on each other, truthfully villanizing strong women in any way they could. I always found the femme fatal trope to be interesting especially when it challenges everything that’s been shoved down our throats for the last millennia. I love it!
I'm pretty sure, I mean when have people ever asked women what we think?
Not to be mean but those women aren’t really independent or am I missing something?
@@baileymura7810 you're clearly missing something
No but the fact that the serpent in the garden isnt seen as the villain for manipulating Eve, whose innocence was like a child's, and instead Eve was thus labeled as a temptress and gave evangelicals an excuse to treat women as second class citizens is my villain origin story.
Same
The serpent is seen as the villain. It’s satan and the bible very much blames him for all the destruction. However both Adam and Eve were also at fault for knowing that they weren’t supposed to eat it and doing it anyway.
@Hristianna Koleva no. It isn't.
That’s not how this story goes. The serpent is treated as the evil tempter and is also a literal representation of the devil, not a metaphorical one, the snake is the devil in snake form that has come to lead humanity astray. Adam and Eve aren’t called evil, but victims.
Considering that (1) god placed the tree there in the first place and (2) created Adam and Eve without (moral and/or general) knowledge, such that they could not meaningfully follow his instructions UNTIL they ate from the forbidden fruit---especially with the complicating presence of the snake, who god would have known about given his omniscience---I place the blame squarely on god. Not even on the snake. It was a trap.
we love your deadpan/ annoyed tone while talking about Freud, he terrible!
Agreed Freud is such an overrated theorist, in my opinion!
@@trinaq yeah, that opinion isnt really unique man lol
century of the self on youtube has some pretty interesting observations on freud in our society!! 💀💀💀
So overrated that therapy literally wouldn't exist as we know it today. The world was a little different around 1900.
@@odorutori There are more than two psychologists / psycho analysts. Therapy was formed over time by the efforts of many cognitive therapy analysts and developers, neuroscientists, etc.
Mina: the first femme fatale was Eve. Lilith: I'll show myself out
I actually thought she was gonna say Lilith 😭
@@SabrinaFairchild yes same
Yes! True
Lillith never actually had any biblical support, just like Lucifer being a sexy fallen angel snake man 😢
Not me thinking she was gonna talk about Delilah lmao
someone once told me that eve symbolizes free will and i was like “so we’re being punished for wanting free will?”
I had a similar revelation recently. Like, so she decided to obtain the knowledge by eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge and got punished. So that means knowledge is by default wrong and should be forbidden (by strictly religious understanding). And that means that we're not supposed to have free will or knowledge? We're supposed to be mindless zombies? And I'm saying "zombies" on purpose here, because that's life without knowledge or will - it's just existence, not life
In the world we live in, women are not allowed to want. If we do express want, then we become a villain. But if a man wants, he will start a war to get it.
@@sorcellerie It's actually commonly understood that the fruit symbolised the right to choose what is right and wrong - or the "knowledge of good and bad"
@@ayo2015 yes, i know, it just kind of hit me harder recently(?) lol
A religious person told me something similar: she said that the fruit was just "the fruit", it didn't really mean anything. God was just testing their obedience.
We should normalise bullying and excluding Freud. The psychology world needs to start recognising there are so many other better people out there who did better work than he ever did
We do though, it’s only pop culture and mainstream lay-man psychology consumers that give any credence to Freud.
Its embarrassing to even utter his name in an even slightly positive tone.
i can already hear all my psychology profs rolling their eyes at the mention of freud, one them told us that they have to teach freud in introduction to psychology because we need to know how bonkers some early psychologists and psychological theories were
There have been arguably better philosophers than Aristotle too, and it's safe to assume he was a misogynist with some fucked up views too, I mean Ancient Greece? Should we then normalize excluding him from philosophy? It scares me when I see people erasing historical figures because they don't fit our worldview and values anymore. If you disagree with Freud, show where you disagree with him and what his shortcomings are. That's called critical thinking and that's how we develop and grow as a culture and civilization. What you advocate for is censorship and authoritarianism, and we have just about enough of that in the world already.
I mean yeah some of his work was pretty sexist and questionable but not everything he wrote was THAT bad
Okie but can we talk about how cute Mina’s hair, makeup and outfit are??😌✋
Seconded, Mina never fails to look effortlessly gorgeous! 😍
Yes!!!
She’s always looking like a cute snack. Makes me want to powder up my eyebrows and do the 1930s thing too. So cute.
Love her lipstick color
ffrr she be slaying her outfits every single time 😍
Especially when you consider that (according to Ovid) Medusa was cursed because Poseidon forced himself on her on Athena's temple, and she was blamed and punished for it. EDIT: After being schooled sufficiently, I'm adding "according to Ovid" to my sentence.
As a fellow Greek mythology nerd, I like to go with the more modern interpretation/version (which some ppl don’t agree with, which I understand). In it, Athena actually turns Medusa into a gorgon to protect her against men that would harm her, and so that she’d be able to defend herself. I’m not sure if this next part is true or not, but apparently the symbol of Medusa’s head was painted on houses and stuff to show that women in need could take refuge there
I never got why he wasn't punished. It's dumb
@@BlueHydrangeaRedPeonie When it comes to mythology there are always like 3 or 4 versions. In one version Athena punishes Medusa,in another she does this so she can protect herself and in another one Medusa was born a gorgon along with her other 2 gorgon sisters.
the oldest version of medusa was always a gorgon, that version of the myth was written by a guy with an agenda of ragging on the gods, portraying them as even worse than they already were. he essentially made all of them as bad as zeus, even though most werent quite that awful. ive heard 3 different versions of that myth, one where it was consensual sex in athena's temple, she went 'ew' and cursed them, one where it was r*pe, and the oldest recorded one, where the myth didnt even happen because the gorgons are their own species of monster and not made with any sort of curse. i think mythology is interesting, and i also find how this myth in particular was twisted to fit this one dudes political agenda very interesting.
@@BlueHydrangeaRedPeonie In most mythological stories, the gods and goddesses tend to be quite petty and mean in general, not to mention that victims getting blamed is still common to this day and age... but I really like that modern Athena version of things, really interesting!
I've always found the femme fatale to be a symbol of power and an intelligent woman who use her beauty to get what she wants as a way to take back the control over her body. And Gilda will always be my fav🖤
People in the 21st Century came up with this backwards idea that for a woman, in order to be "empowered", was for her to act like a man. You can see that in several sexist apologist videos were they argue that they like Ellen Ripley because she was written like a male character instead of a female one. I find that argument totally ridiculous and just plain rubbish, having a woman using attributes attached to her feminity to overcome her problems is far more interesting than: "yeah, I know karate and military shit because my dad taught me to".
I tend to separate the Femme Fatale from the Vamp Seductress (the former is complicated, the latter is rotten to the core).
@@sammyvictors2603 I won't say that
@@lillytalesandwonders780 what would you say then? just out of curiosity
@@sammyvictors2603 I am not a pro in these genras but you are too harsh in my opinion. That's it. And at the end of the day, they are just characters.
Note: in french "femme fatale" was mostly used (it becamme a little dated with time) to describe real women with a strong charisma that make them so attractive that they could turn men in a way it could possibly lead them (men) against their own benefit and potentially up to their death but still can't avoid even if their are aware of the risk. However a better translation would be "fateful women" in the way we mean it. To be a "femme fatale" was a compliment, ambiguous but still a compliment.
I would say same in Eastern Europe, it's a compliment to be called la femme fatale, women hate you but secretly want to be like you, men love you but at the same time hate what you do to them aka how can she manipulate me!😄 maybe it's a little outdated the concept, but usually the worse the situation, the better she looks.
it’s such pretty words
Femme fatale is very much a compliment amongst people who speak french!
I’ve always wanted to look like the femme fatale, but have absolutely nothing to do with men.
dont let that stop you. you dont need men in order to wear over-the-elbow gloves or shimmering evening gowns!
@Eleanore's Luminals oh you don't want that
the problem is to see femme fatale as something that implies men is involved or important with it
@@lemonjules1990 You can emulate any style you want without adopting the character traits that come with the title: Hippie, Pinup,Punk,Gibson girl, Milk maid. Those are all titles that come with a specific look and list of characteristics and people often just embarace the look part.
@@lemonjules1990 when I think of a femme fatale I don’t see it as negative. And people who do take it too literal and if they want to be hurt, they can.
I believe Theda Bara once said that she thinks the reason why she had more women fans was because of their “desire for revenge.” This is how I personally feel and why I feel empowered when I see femme fatales in old Hollywood films. With the trauma that I and most women have experienced that has been perpetrated by men, the thought of using my sexuality and independence to cause some sort of distress in a man’s life sounds pretty damn cool to me.
Love your username babe
You made me think of the “baby demon of the Hull House”. Basically there was a rumor going around about these baby that was a demon that lived in the Hull House, women of all the neighborhood wanted to see it and where excited and happy about it. They considered it the universe a punishing the father form mistreating his wife. Actually Jane Addams interviewed them and some of the stories they told are incredible, I highly recommend looking it up!
That's really bad, don't cause distress to a man because another man did something to you
Why do bitches like you insist on punishing innocent men for what other men did to you? All you said is you want to be a good man's villain origin story.
@@imjustbetter2010 no one said it’s fair or just lmao- that’s kinda the whole point…
I think a big part of what makes the femme fetale “not feminist” lies in the fact that a lot of her power is derived from her conventional beauty. She’s able to get what she wants by exploiting the male gaze. This idea is not empowering for women who do not fulfill this standard. All that in mind, I do love a good femme fatale.
Ultimately she uses her beauty as bate to lure men into her trap, so I see it more as punishing men for objectifying women and underestimatimg them. Attracting men with her beauty isn't really the end goal so I don't find it to be insulting.
@@lilypond5158 but women who don’t fall into conventional beauty standards don’t have this power. In fact we are treated badly by men.
@@sheridanfrancis4814 I don't know, it feels strange to criticize someone for using their advantages just because other people don't have it. I mean we all have to acknowledge that pretty privilege exists, and it's something you're born with. Femme fatales would be naive to not weponize their unfair advantage. Being beautiful also doesn't work in all situations, in some cases it makes you look unaproachable and threatening and in others it attracts unwanted attention and jealousy. You either ride the wave or drown.
@@lilypond5158 I’m not criticizing them for having pretty privilege. It’s simply that, from a feminist perspective, this trope isn’t empowering to those whole lack it. In the famous ancient trial of Phryne, she bared her breasts in court to prove she was blessed by Aphrodite in order to gain an acquittal. A lot of people would say this was an inspiring tale of a woman utilizing her beauty in order to trick men. On the flip side, without her beauty, Phryne would’ve been found guilty and sentenced to death. So while there’s an argument to be made for all of this as empowering there’s also an argument to be made that it isn’t. All women are not empowered by the upholding of beauty standards. Many of us are directly oppressed by this system. So while aspects of this trope have a lot of great qualities, the weaponization of beauty can also be seen as not feminist at all.
@@sheridanfrancis4814 and does absolutely everything need to be empowering for everyone? I thought the idea was to let people do whatever they want to feel empowered.
It's always about men, that's my biggest issue. Women as "seductresses" or "temptresses" like men can't control themselves and that women must be punished for owning their own bodies. It's why I hate the movies where the husband cheats and we're supposed to be mad at the other woman, like uh, SHE didn't make a vow, he did. Punish him for cheating. I'm gay, I've never been so overcome with my lust for women that I've leered, harassed, or abused women, despite being attracted to them. I've also never blamed them when I get distracted by their looks, it's not THEIR fault they're hot... :/ I just hate this idea that the femme fatale was BAD because she was sexy towards men. Like, duh, she knew that and used that. If I was hot, I'd also be a bad bitch who gets what I want.
And let me guess if a man used his charms and looks to use women for his own greed and desires, it wouldn’t have the same “Power move” effect
@Disa Pointmont Preach!
@@monkeyming5545 let me guess: mommy issues?
@@monkeyming5545 Well, of course not. Men do not need a power movement. They already had power. The one that needed empowerment was the woman.
yeah but that advantage is only there if you’re HOT. what does the femme fatale trope say about how society treats “ugly” women? seriously, i don’t see the empowerment
mina: a popular way of murdering for women was poisoning me, whispering: *_aqua tofana_*
Yess!! murder mystery makeup monday
Bailey!!!
✨A q u a t o f a n a ✨
Lmfaooo i love this reference !
Baileyyy 🤍
Lady Macbeth is one of the best OG Femme Fatale.
Hell yeah dude, she's the one character that gets the story going, without her nothing would've happened. The three witches were also pretty dope.
SAY IT LOUDER FOR THE GIRLS IN THE BACK. 👁️👄👁️
As my classmate once said, “ Lady MacBeth totally pegged her husband”
when my class read macbeth i got to read for lady macbeth a couple of times it was such a vibe. and yes, i agree. she definitely pegged her husband
@@Catsby83 this comment made me laugh so hard
the femme fatale figure is an icon. whoever she is, she takes control of a world built against her. She is a woman who sees how little worth is given to her by men. She uses what they value most (her sexuality and beauty) against them through the use of her undervalued traits, almost always traits that are prized in the male leads. Often with her combined superior intellect, street smarts, and sexuality, this woman can bend the world of men to her will. The woman becomes villainous because she (intentionally or unintentionally) manipulates the manipulator, and the male ego finds that terrifying.
Perfect! 👏🏻👏🏻
As a psych student, I HATE learning about Freud. My professors always apologise for teaching his theories because they know he’s just talking out of his ass Side note: Mina you look stunning
I highly concur! Freud is the one theorist that most people have commonly heard of, but I find other theorists more compelling, such as Skinner, Piaget or Bandura.
I hate frued too, but some of his theories do add up and help us comprehend some of these tropes like the uncanny and such. He starts somewhere that I can get towards, and then he has to relate it to sex and castration of some sorry and I am always like get your freaking head out of the gutter.
Can you believe in Argentina phycology (career) is only reduce to Freud? Phycologists can later choose to learn different phycological theories in courses, but the career is 100% Freud.
He is talking out of his ass, that's why movies, stories and even real-life media narratives are utilized and replete with Freud's ideas to this day while you don't even notice. Think about what freaks us out about horror movies - no matter what kind - and how you can trace those fears to Freudian ideas. Meanwhile, lots of what I see psych students do in Europe is just statistics, so for my part, I hate that human mind is becoming reduced to data to be crunched.
@@odorutori The reason his theories are so overused in media is because they’re so bizarre - storytellers can come up with interesting and outlandish themes using his theories (doesn’t correlate to the validity of his theories though). Psychology majors and students are usually data oriented because we need data to back up our theories, we need tangible evidence - which Freud doesn’t provide, his research was mostly qualitative/case studies.
femme fatales are iconic and always have been
Actually historians have found Medusa's head carved in temples that were exclusively for priestesses and have concluded that it was a sign for victims of (domestic) abuse that this temple is a safe place for them. Based on this historians think that Athena didn't turn medusa into a "monster " as a curse but rather to protect her from Poseidon and men in general. Turns out Medusa is a feminist heroine and not a monster.
Do you have a source? I’d like to read about it.
The "feminist" version of this myth was literally made on Tumblr xD source or didn't happen
@@operacz_9327 and the "medusa was once a priestress" one was made by a guy in ancient greece that liked to write fanfic of the miths. In the original, Medusa was always a gorgon.
Wait a minute. Just because she isn’t a monster doesn’t mean she’s a heroine.
Also this isn’t true
When you mentioned that in the victorian age crime committed by women was considered even worse and unthinkable, I immediately thought of Lizzie Borden. Allegedly during the trial she was told to look frail, weak and a "proper"lady, so that the jury couldn't possibly think she was guilty.
Women are still coached on that if their lawyer is any good. I've known several people who have lost cases in both directions simply because of appearances. Makes my blood boil.
Women get lesser sentences and less severe punishments for crimes because society is more sympathetic towards her and “It’s not as bad when a woman does it”
The prosecution used some sexist arguments against her too. She was seen taking rags down to the cellar to wash them (I cannot quite remember if blood was seen on them or not) and they said this was her washing bloody clothing. No one at all considered that she might have been on her period. She went down with her friend too. I do think she did it, but the entire trial was horribly sexist. I'm so glad we have women in law now.
I find it interesting how the punishing endings of the femme fatales (jail, death, MARRIAGE) mirror film noir's pessimism as a whole. I think film noir is a genre so well tailored for women because it seems to say "despite the world being dangerous and unfair, for the moment i will stay strong and survive, even though i may have to face punishment in the end". Survival and grit are important messages for young women who might have been stuck in undesirable situations. Film noir is about daring to be dangerous in a world that's against you, and fighting tooth and nail for what you want. Both its male and female characters do so, but it is more significant gor the ladies as they had MORE TO FIGHT AGAINST.
What did they have more to fight against? The characters of film noir had to deal with death, gangs, etc, I don’t exactly think marriage is on the same level
@@monkeyming5545 Marriage was different then
Men have it more difficult, literally men are alone, you as a woman, if you talk about your problems they will help you, consent etc. if a man does it, tease, loser etc men do not talk about their problems because no one is going to help them, not even listen
@@carplays9740 Why don't yall help each other then? Why are men's issues always blamed on women? Stop whining and go help your fellow men if you wanna see change.
@@carplays9740 awe, gonna cry about it? Poor little baby boy.
i was raised christian so i obviously got that whole thing taught “eve ate apple and women bad and need to submit to husband” shit. as i grew older i realized how fucked up it was. i’m not a raging feminist and it makes me so mad how women are constantly punished in society for no reason other than our own existence.
***now instead of not. i didn’t realize until a month later lol that makes it sound bad. i am actually a raging feminist
@@ellabella2805 I guess you must have grown up in a Bible Belt Protestant household or something. I am Catholic myself, our church sees this in a much more nuanced way and does not consider women bad or dangerous.
@@ilikepancakes2368 people do not exist to submit to others. Relationships (platonic, romantic or s e xual) should be built on equality(for lack of a better word) and communication.
@@ilikepancakes2368 are you dumb or smt ? That's absolutely not how functional families or just relationships work it's 2022 and i can't believe we still have to explain why
@An I was talking about the official position of the Catholic Church, not some bit in the Bible taken out of context and flaunted by religion haters.
I can be tripping but..... the way you described femme fatales as characters that are (too) having fun made me remember the way queer theory sometimes explains why gay audience likes the disney villans as queercoded. Even if the villans were supose to send a bad message about lgbt comunnity a lot of gay views love how the villans are (usually) the characters that have more fun in the movie. The heroes (usually) are suforring, sad and want freedom to be themselfs and the villans already have all of that
Ah yes, “Queer coding”, the practice of throwing gay stereotypes onto a character and saying “SEE! HES GAY BECAUSE HE WEARS EYELINER!” Homophobia has never looked so cute 😍
@@monkeyming5545 A..... i just said what queertheory has discuted for some time... but you can think differently 💜 thats good even for the evolution of the theory and the academia in general. There is something more that you think? (Sorry for the english not my first language. And i'm really wanting to talk. )
@@monkeyming5545 someone will rescue a wounded puppy and take it home and you'll claim they did it for selfish reasons, because they wanted to take the dog home...
@@monkeyming5545 why can't we embrace those theatrical stereotypes about ourselves? I love being that way, and so many other queer people do too. Being flamboyant is a strength. If you make enough noise and have enough fun, conservatives can never control the narrative about you.
@@monkeyming5545 wow you're so bitter lol
Personally, even when I was younger and used to identify as a woman, I always saw femme fatale as incredibly empowering women. They used their intelligence, beauty, and acting skills to get what they wanted and didn't take anyone sh*t, especially the male protagonist. I always admired that, especially since most depictions of women at the time were that they were dumb, or at least not as intelligent as the male character. Instead, they use the weakness in men, se*xual attraction, as their downfall. It shows emotional maturity to be able to recognize that you are not an object for a man, at a time where everyone was saying the exact opposite. My only problem with femme fatales comes from the fact that sadly, dark-skinned women were not allowed to play these roles. I understand that at the rise of femme fatale, they definitely wouldn't put black women in the role. But I feel like a black femme fatale would be extremely powerful since society is always trying to drag them down or say they are only useful for white men.
Weren’t black women already being depicted super s3xually? Why would you want black women to be depicted as manipulative seductresses, wouldn’t that just add to the stereotype?
@@monkeyming5545 I never thought if it that way, yeah it possibly could. As much as I think it would be incredible to see a black woman in the role, it sadly probably would have been used against them. I think it could go either way. Black women could see the role and feel inspired and powerful or it could be used as a weapon. Thanks for mentioning that point.
If you're looking for Black femme fatale characters, check out 'Carmen Jones" (1954), and check out the film, 'Devil in A Blue Dress." (1995)
Well then why are men criticized by feminists for using their power, beauty and acting skills to get what they want? /g
I disagree that the femme fatale trope is empowering. I understand that in some situations it can be viewed as empowering when compared to being a submissive housewife who does whatever she’s told and doesn’t question her husband. HOWEVER in general, it is not an empowering trope for women. Yes the femme fatale figure is intelligent and manipulative, however the core characteristic of the femme fatale is being able to take advantage of being sexually desirable to men and therefore being objectified. A conventionally unattractive woman who is just as, if not more, intelligent than a femme fatale character would still not be able to get as far as her, so the femme fatale character is not really a true celebration of women’s minds and intelligence. I still like the femme fatale figure as I find her interesting if she is written well, however the femme fatale trope is definitely not feminist lmfao.
The femme fatale is LITERALLY one of my favorite "tropes" when it comes to female characters. I'll sign everyday for a movie where a woman kills a man, i regret nothing. Loved this video😍❣️
Same. I dont fucking care, I'm all for it (in fiction of course😆)
I want a femme fatale movie about a woman live in era where women's right still doesn't exist and she goes around seducing men and pulling strings in the politics to become the most powerful woman at the end.
I’ll sign everyday for a movie where a man kills a woman, I regret nothing 😍
@@monkeyming5545 k whatever floots ur boat
@@monkeyming5545 You can always watch any movie about serial killers or true crimes movies because almost of their victims are women😁 ( yes, men can be targeted as well )
I had a boyfriend who’s very religious Christian mother used to called me “Delilah” 😒 I didn’t read the bible and so I didn’t really know what that meant until recently…
I’d take that as a compliment tbh
@@lightlessmoons lool. The problem is she blamed me for the downfall of her son instead of realising that he was just a loser 🤷🏾♀️
@@themermaidjade Sounds like the religious zealot mother was a self-misogynist, a real life Serena Joy.
@@themermaidjade because of course she didn't raise her son poorly, it must be you.
@@LangkeeLongkee he got kicked out of school and I graduated with straight A's yet of course I was the problem, nothing to do with her son or her parenting......
I would think the roots of femme fatale regarding greek mythology would actually be Pandora, the 'first' woman. She was created by Zeus to seek revenge on Prometheus, and gifted by the gods in her making, she is stunning, mischievous, curious, and cunning. Zeus then gifted her a box full of the world's evilest things, and because her curiosity caught up to her, she ended up betraying Zeus who told her never to open the box. In that regard, she is also a lot like Eve.
I agree with you but I think about an other version of the mythos where Pandora opens it purposefully (the youtube channel Overly sarcastic videos tackles with this if you are curious about it )
@@yueliadragonflavour731 Yeah! I like that one too, I tried searching for it because I remembered Pandora actually being pretty menacing but everything was pointed to Hera's gift to Pandora of curiosity. I guess I got the idea from that channel you mentioned.
Why are y’all talking about any of this like it’s real plz 😵💫
@@annie-yy1gf huh
@@liv-uu1fi those stories, they're fiction. written by men to oppress women.
Also, another misconception about the Adam and eve story is that Adam wasn't there when Eve spoke to the serpent. But in reality he was actually right there and completely silent throughout the conversation and willingly ate the fruit with her.
Ok but I need more info on this, cause damnnnnnn was I taught wrong. Also I can't find anything abt it.
@@rach9064 Genesis 3:6 ESV: So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
It’s not like literally any of this story is real though so who cares
Adam was a brainless dude.
@@annie-yy1gf A lot of people. If a lot of people deem something as real and true we ought to treat it as though it is.
I loved the femme fatale ever since I was a girl, because these characters were the only ones I could relate to. If embracing my sexuality and independence meant I'm a danger to men, well good luck to them, I figured. So in my early years I actually tried to imitate the femme fatale (avoiding murder as much as possible)), seeing that as a pathway to freedom and power. Only later did I realize that it is possible to define myself outside of patriarchal virgin/whore stereotypes. So while I agree it's not as bad a trope as people make it sound, it can still be harmful.
How would being seductive be dangerous? They’d just see you as a piece of coochie, get what they came for then go on with their day
This one tweet i read that said like "Men lie so much i wouldn't be surprised if adam ate the apple and blamed it on eve, thats why he got the adam's apple"
I always loved femme fatales and was so confused when they usually had bad endings. I'm like these beautiful badass women are so smart, brave, funny and interesting the "moral clauses" in film really has a lot to explain for.
she’s the blueprint of gaslight gatekeeper girlboss
Because gaslighting and manipulation is cool when a woman does it, so what if she ruins lives and hurts people in the process? She’s a woman, so we’ll allow it 🥰
@@monkeyming5545 Oh, because it’s only a problem when women do it, but praise men when they do it
@@monkeyming5545 Say goo goo gaa gaa for mommy
I think what makes the femme fatale “not feminist” is the fact that one could argue that all the power that she receives comes from men. The problem with this narrative is that in the time period a woman’s power came from her husband and the males around her. An unmarried woman without children was seen as unvaluable. I think what makes women like femme fatale is the thought that they could for once use their husbands and the males around them as a tool for their ambition. Honestly good for her, and good luck to all my femme fatales.
I think it depends. Do you manipulate men so they can fall into their own ruin or do you manipulate men to give YOU power. An example of this is illustrated in the anime series, "Fujiko Mine", she's a femme fatale character who does both and she's shown to be able to get what she wants by herself at the same time. However, I think, specifically in media, what makes a femme fatale "not feminist, is that it plays into male fantasies and objectification of women. That women are beautiful and powerful, as long as they're not portrayed in a manner that is as depraved, ugly, intimidating as the man. Personally, I'd be someone who would adopt a personality, seduce males, lead them to ruin for the fun of it. If I were to try to be a femme fatale, I'd probably be a charismatic bitch who target males males ruin their lives just to appease my misandristic feelings, not to please a male.
@@qwmx why not both? Ruin them AND get power? Your plan is beautiful tho 😌 and the points you made were valid. I think I’m gonna check out the anime you listed.
@@qwmxThe second half of your comment gave me a character idea, thx:)
I love that you acknowledged that women also loved the femme fatale. Like, there's a reason why femme fatale film noirs were so popular during the war years when mostly women were watching movies.
Genuinely not sure if I love the analysis of film noir or the annoyance with Mr. Sigmund Freud more. FREUD SUCKS should be the title of all intro to psychology courses.
Literally we didn’t even learn about him in the intro to psych class I took in college. Like they told us about freud during one class only and then told us about how discredited it is and immediately moved on
growing up i watched a LOT of old movies my mom has them on all the time, she is also a lesbian and a businesses owner and a very strong woman, my grandma who is even more of a firecracker got married young and had 6 kids and yet started a very sucsessful businesses in the 60s who is renound for telling men who called and asked for the man who ran the place “I am the man, your talking to him”. she loved these movies even more, and never has anything else on.I myself saw them in these femme fatales who i also saw in me that ii could be beautiful, glamorous, and smart, have true ambitions despite of what the men in my life thought. to me thhey are the best form of empowerment and ruited in real life strong women with their own kind of glamor.
1:30 the thing is, in this particular case, in Islam (Qur’an) Adam and Eve BOTH ate from the tree (it wasn’t specified what kind of fruit) at the same time. God told them that their real enemy is the devil and they will fight his temptation until the end of time so it never made sense to me why females are being punished for that. I know not everyone wants/will/care about hearing about Islam and how women are treated, but originally God speaks to men and women alike in their responsibilities to him in every aspect of life/religion. Also I was waiting for you to call me a dove 😔.
This. I think Mina was trying to tell the biblical story here. But that’s true. Growing up Muslim I heard the biblical version and my mom said “this is not what’s told In Quran. Here , the main Enemy was The devil and not Eve. Eve was fact tempted by Devil .” I never understood why people made Eve the bad guy here tbh.
@Dr.Sawbones Lilith isn't even in some Christian bibles...i didn't learn about Lilith until i saw a thing on bible history on either the history channel or PBS....
It's the same in Christianity. Christians are not supposed to believe that Eve was the bad guy. We (I'm from a Christian country) are taught that devil is evil, not her. It's just a stereotype, NOT the official version (at least now, in the 21st century, cause I don't know what it was like before).
@Dr.Sawbones I deadass didn’t know who Lilith was until I read shadow hunters and some random girl in class I knew say she “identifies with Lilith cause she’s a baddie and is the Devil’s right hand man 🤪”
The term “femme fatale” has a double meaning in French, and the whole point of the term is that both meanings are embodied in the character. Yes, it means “fatal woman”: i.e. a woman who kills (or in some other way destroys men: financial ruin or reputational ruin imo can also count depending on the setting). It also, however, means “woman of fate”. That is, a femme fatale, is the inevitable result of patriarchal restriction of women. Women don’t stop having ambitions just because men don’t like it. If the only way to get what they want is to seduce men, then that’s what they are going to do. If she’s a cautionary tale it isn’t to women: but to men. Let women have power, or don’t complain when they take it for themselves with the means available to them.
The main problem I've always had with the femme fatale archetype is assigning the blame for a man's downfall to a temptress, rather than himself, as we would if the gender was reversed. That said, femme fatales are often characters I enjoy following - I just hate how their decription centers around their affect on men, rather than their rebellion and duplicitous nature.
Since when are men NOT blamed for women's downfalls, sweetheart?
i was 19 when I got "femme fatale" tattooed on my arm, after I had done extensive research on the word... I feel many who villianize the man-eater tend to forget that as women (in my culture especially, and many others) we are already born into subordination of our male counterparts. the femme fatale is simply a woman who uses the gifts that were meant for the pleasing of men to her own advantage... it's something I've grown into. if I want to pay my bills and I'm only working as a waitress, of course I'm going to use my feminine wiles for a higher tip :))
While women that doesn't have feminine wiles will simply not have the job and stay poor, at best, get the job and have very small tips :((
@@mississipi1103 that's the difference ofc
Speaking of Femme Fatales. My favorites are the movies with Bogart and Bacall because they end up working together for a common goal thus becoming equals than just being pitted against each other. The movies either end up with them together or ambiguous but they never feel contrived or forced and the duo always feel like equals. My most fave of their 4 films is (imo) the most underrated "Dark Passage". Bacall is not a femme fatale or anything, but in that movie Bogie's character is super helpless from the get go and Bacall's character from the start is the reason for him being alive and safe throughout the movie. Highly recommend to anyone just going through their movies but that one especially!
Same here! I feel their movies really portrayed the most alluring aspects of the femme fatale, namely, she’s just a woman who won’t be bossed around or has no wil whatsoever. And because we are SO not used to it, she might look “bad” at first, but she isn’t evil
I love them as a pair too.
Oo thank you! Will definitely give it a watch
I love them too. She was a lot younger than him ( they met when she 19 and he was in his 30s then both were adult ) but They were one of my favourite screen couple 💕
I’d really love film recommendations from the 40’s-70’s that are catered more towards women or that I could interpret as a good for her movie lol
the heiress (1949), leave her to heaven (1945), caged (1950) and la otra (1946) are some of my faves!
@@elizabeth-bs3ox I love you 😭 thank you!! I didnt want to sit through a bunch of racism and misogyny
@@sagakolbrun7714 of course, if you get around to them i hope you like them! also recommend checking out "women's pictures" of the 30s-50s and olivia de havilland's 1940s movies, she is thee blueprint
If u like musicals there’s gentlemen prefer blondes
Foxy brown
i am so glad you left out the ridiculous “athena cursed medusa to protect her from men” retelling. i see where it would have played more into your points, but it’s not accurate. it got passed around on tumblr and people take it as fact when it’s simply not true
This makes sense. In another myth athena helps hercule(perseus?) Kill her
@@victoria4671 in a lot of tellings perseus actually got asked for Medusa's head by Athena as a present
Well it is a myth. So it’s not real, and myths have like 10 versions anyway most of the time
@@a.blackwater3076 it’s just a pet peeve of mine. this isnt in any myth, and it’s derived from one particular retelling by ovid which does have a slant against the gods, but there’s no historical basis in this being a telling that was told in ancient greece.
@@emma-bg3zb yeah i understand that it got traction because of a more feminist aproach, but it literally was created in tumblr a few years ago and people will attack you if you present the older one .-. also i dont get why mina didnt mention helena like she is THE greek femme fatale
I don’t get why there’s people that sees the femme fatales as a misogynist character. I’ve always interpreted those characters as female empowering and feminist icons. I love femme fatale characters and love movies with those characters. Femme fatale are just females taking advantage of men weakness, surviving in a world made for men. Intelligent woman using seduction and their intelligence to get what they want. I don’t get why people think these are misogynist, for me they’re inspirational and very intelligent women
You can get what you want without manipulating others
@@queenofhorror29 they’re fictional characters not real people
@@kab00m_ femme fatales do exist in real life. My aunts are femme fatales
@@queenofhorror29 umm…
@@queenofhorror29 good for them then
what i love about the femme fatale is that *you dont know* . most of the time, when you see a character that is a trope, you already have a generally good idea of who they are-& where they are on the spectrumof trying to be “good”/“bad”. but with femme fatales…it could go either way! is she misunderstood bc Patriarchy? is she literally just Evil? is she doing Evil things but for kind of understandable reasons? i dont KNOW but bc shes so misunderstood, you can know you’re seeing a trope and still be suprised at every turn. LOVE
"Eve was the first femme fatale" Lilith: Am I a joke to you?!?
Who’s Lilith?
As a big noir film fan, a lot of scholars and critics seem to ignore that some of these movies have ‘Homme fatales.’ In ‘The Two Mrs. Carroll’s,’ Barbara Stanwyck plays our hero and Humphrey Bogart plays the evil man who seduces her. In ‘Desert Fury’ we have two homme fatales, but Lizabeth Scott and Mary Astor are protagonists. Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Stage Fright’ is a great one to watch, as Marlene Dietrich plays a femme fatale, only for it to be revealed that a young, sexy homme fatale is the actual criminal. In ‘The Dammed Dont Cry’, Joan Crawford becomes entangled with two immoral men. I also agree with you that Gene Tierney’s character in ‘Laura’ does not fit any criteria for a femme fatale. However, her iconic, Academy-Award nominated turn in ‘Leave Her to Heaven’ does feature her as an evil, sociopathic femme fatale and perhaps that is why a general audience projects that label onto her in the former film. These movies are great examples of how not all femme fatales were symbols of the insecurities over women having jobs. Laura, who is good, has a job and independence, while Gene’s character in ‘Leave Her to Heaven’ is evil, but a rich heiress of wealth and leisure. :)
Oh god, how could I forget Jack Palance in ‘Sudden Fear.’ He is young, handsome, and seduces Joan Crawford to kill her.
I would argue too that JD in "Heathers" is a homme fatale as well. He tricks Veronica into killing Heather Chandler and Kurt and Ram
Great observation! Btw, it's written in French as "homme fatal", plural "hommes fatals".
I am playing a dnd character which is a famme fatale, exactly because what you said in the outro- It is a very complex architype which means a lot of things to different people. I try to show this complexity why I am playing my charater and sometimes I feel very empowered by playing her. Thank you so much for this video! It was such an inspiration
Oooh that sounds like such a fun character to play. What is their backstory like, what class r they? rogue or warlock/ sorcerer would fit the archetype but part of me hopes they’re a barbarian or something :~)
@@k80_ She is Collage of glamour tiefling bard :) Grew up in a refugee camp with her two loving mothers, but has been bulied harsly at school. She discoverd her love for music and became an aspiring musician but also the deep great sadness inside of her especially when she felt as a singer she always has to be perfect. She met her love of her life and moved with her to the spring court, leraning from her how to became a bard, but left her too soon bacause of her fear she won't love her as the flawed person she is, with all of her sadness, and because she herself felt like her lover needs someone better then her- because she think she never good enaugh and that her sadness with make her lover's life harsh and harder. She joined to army as a musician and now is travelling with the party❤
Now we're little serpents? Ooh exciting
The femme fatale in a movies was always a person I liked, because she is a female with a complex character/storyline. She is seductive and persuasive and ambitious and deadly. Such an interesting juxtaposition of beauty and danger to see onscreen. Whether it's feminist or not, I like the complexity a femme fatale character has, especially because men saw woman as soft and unassuming, not potentially violent or threatening. Plot twist.
The reason Femme Fatales meet with terrible ends is because of the Hays Code. It basically made it illegal to have "bad" characters" have good endings.
I'm so disappointed it wasn't mentioned
You should totally do a fashion analysis of the mean girl trio! Movies like Heathers, Jawbreaker and Mean girls
i thought of glee😭😭
The asleep feminist inside of me always wakes up when I watch ur videos 👌
I'm a femme fatale in my own right, I don't "play" with men I just ignore their existence altogether 😌
Good for you queen!
me too!
as a bi girl, there's just something so comforting about the idea of having a femme fatale for a girlfriend.
Prob bc they’d protect you from the men✨💓
Mina rosting freud is what I needed today
Lately I've been getting into old Hollywood films and I love that my fave KZheadrs are also talking about these films
I'm obsessed with you! Your analysis! Your editing style! It's all incredible
I also love Barbara Stanwyck, especially in Baby Face 1933, pre code femme fatale. She falls in love in the end, but all her previous crimes went unpunished. She does what she have to do to survive, but she gets ambitious. Its fantastic!
Yessss I love when she pours the hot coffee on that dude
The best Pre Code Stanwyk!
I will always prefer the femme fatale character over any female lead who has no character development, no arc, and is only there to appease the male lead character.
The inclusion of not only the “good for her” clip but ALSO “oh brother this guy STINKS” really just puts this video over the top 😍😍😍
It’s also interesting to know that a lot of the punishment that femme fatals were subject to were forced by the Hayes Code like in Baby Face. The code stated “Crime and immorality could never be portrayed in a positive light.” So I wonder how many would have been punished if it wasn’t a literal rule.
“Anti-feminist” The Queen’s Gambit: Hey girl hey
What?
@@andy-bw2kj Yeah that’s what feminism Is, gender equality
@@andy-bw2kj almost as if she had to be head above everyone only to be taken seriously from the outset. I don’t see that as equality at all, with everyone questioning her at every turn, the way a man wouldn’t be. Her sex should be boring, irrelevant. Instead people saw her as an exhibit, one way or another, rarely as a person. She succeeded despite of her sex, “allowed” to be on top because of how extraordinary she was.
@@user-mi5xq8zj7u wasn't't it also like the 60s though
@@andy-bw2kj I found it to be very superficially feminist, the writing, filming, everything else seemed to drip with the male gaze and it was incredibly obvious that it was made by men.
Freud was a hack lol. That said, psychoanalysis has been SO influential in Western culture that I do find it pretty compelling as a tool for media analysis (as opposed to actual medical treatment, where theories of the unconscious, the oedipal complex, etc are ineffective and inappropriate.) Because fiction uses and reflects cultural myths and anxieties even when they are not based in empirical or psychological realities, Freudian ideas can absolutely be found and used to productively examine the stories we tell ourselves as a culture about gender, sex, life and death.
Ahh, yes, being called a serpent makes my inner Slytherin absolutely joyous. Thank you. I’m glad you brought this delightful subject up to the audience. It seems like formidable women are and always will be, well, intimidating. My mom is a femme fatale in some ways, she’s extremely beautiful, intelligent and successful and it definitely didn’t come easy. She’s also always done WHATEVER she’s ever wanted, propriety be damned. She never suffered a failed relationship or a partner (male or female 😉) and all the reasons people criticized her for ironically makes her one of the kindest people I’ve ever witnessed. And a great mother at that. My friends all had the conventional, self sacrificing mothers and devoted wives and they all have some sort of complex and damage and I was made fun of for having my mom being glamorous and fearless. My mom rarely dated bad people and even though we didn’t have a full time father until later, all the men in her life were kind to us and they still take part in our lives. A highlight of my childhood was when all of my stepfathers showed up to ALL of my graduations and always showed up to help my mom or me if we ever needed anything. My mom also helped them find their wives and be better to their women. She’s 60 now and she’s still can get anyone she wants. She’s still one of my closest friends and gives the best advice. And has the best wardrobe. She’s always let me wear anything she’s got or caught my eye her only rule is that I take care of it (and her wardrobe is borderline priceless, full of vintage JPG, Thierry Mugler, Dolce and Moschino she’s scored from consignment or sample sales in the 80s and 90s). She’s extremely educated and yes, she used a lot of men to get a lot of things, but she says it’s overlooked that men use women too. My mom has always attracted respect, awe and envy from people. Mom says the worst thing to be is to be “generic”, to not fear being memorable and give people a reason to look as fashion has therapeutic powers to delight people. Life is too short to be “meek” she says. And I believe she’s right. I rather be Gilda than the girl next door. At least you’re bound to have some good stories to tell to your kids and friends. And my mom certainly has a lot and always has a willing audience. Viva the fearless lady.
I want to be your mum 😭 she sounds glorious!
I wish I had a mother like yours. She sounds absolutely amazing. My mum's awful.
@@lesbiangoddess290 She really is. I'm sorry your mom was not good to you. My grandma was awful to my mom and it made her be who she is. Mom suffered a lot under grandma until she said enough and decided to make joy happen. I know it's not perfect but don't let that stop you from being less than awesome. Make lemonade from those lemons. Be everything you could be and just laugh, find something good in your day to be grateful for and smell the roses. Friends can be family. Just live and take life as it comes, pretend the only rule in life is to just live. Sounds corny, but man does it put things into perspective. I send you lots of hugs, love, kisses and good faith. I hope you're happy and if you're not, make it happen. Whatever it is, but go do it. Be who you want to be.
Your mother sounds like the dream I wish to have as a mother and wish to be as a mother 🤩
god she is everything i aspire to be
Fun fact, when God said to Adam that he couldn't eat from the tree of knowledge Eve had not yet been created. So it's especially unfair to blame Eve for the fall when it was only Adam who was told to not eat.
i absolutely love the amount of shade that's being thrown on freud this whole video
I’m playing rizzo in grease and I learned that she’s very much a fem fatale. This was so informative and gave me a lot of insight and ideas on her motivations and how I want to play her :)
Freud is an absolute embarrassment to the institution of psychology
*to whole of humanity tbh
i nearly cried when you started talking about Gilda because it was a massive comfort movie for me growing up and i've never met anyone in my personal life who had seen it ! Rita's dancing was so joyful and compelling
I just found your channel. I love how deep you go, into the nuances of such complexities. My mind is naturally analytical, and you touched on so much here, in really profound ways. 🙏🏼💕
wow, this gives me a whole new perspective on the whole “women like boring romantic movies and men like action” thing. I love action entertainment as a woman, but usually it’s from manga or something. I thought it was just because i like anime, but i just realized that HOLLYWOOD REFUSED TO MAKE FEMALE ACTION??? Like nowadays they’re trying but before there was only “mission impossible”. Everyone likes to feel cool and liked and badass, but there’s just no place for a feminine feeling person in an action movie usually, so it’s hard to immerse yourself in it. It ends up being boring, and you start to feel like you would much rather watch a woman slap a guy and tell him off, because it’s the only form of “coolness” for women out there.
oooh I can't wait for this!!! I would love more old hollywood/bombshell/starlet analysis videos
I think we can't discount the impact of the hays code on these films as well. Any woman engaging in any 'immoral' activities, such as having an affair had to be punished on-screen.
Living for these video essays, very well done!
This video was great. I wrote my senior thesis on the Victorian murderess and the origins of the femme fatale. It's such a rich topic to study. I really admire the way you create entertaining, light-hearted videos that are also educational and founded on scholarly research.
mina calling us "serpents" has just made my day
i have binge all of your videos like im not even a big lover of fashion or history but you just talk about it in such a way that makes me interested in it, very good work.
KZhead channel, The Take, did a review of the Femme Fatale trope, their opinion was that the FF archetype is both empowering and misogynistic, but can still be done well, even today.
I feel like Megan Fox is a modern age femme fatale. So much of her career has been dismissed b/c of how she approaches womanhood in real life and film. Men only admire her when it fits their gaze, and women admire her when they see characteristics that they wish to embody. Mina, what a wonderfully thought provoking video essay!
mina, i absolutely love watching your videos! it makes me feel like i’m having a casual, deep conversation with my wiser, fashionable friend, haha. thank you for another great video! ♡
i love these video essays so much!!!
I love your videos!! I feel i learn a lot and also its _so refreshing_ to hear your POVs and to know its backed up with academic info!!
God I love how intelligently you word your scripts and how you tie fashion into feminism, creativity, and starting so many amazing discussions. I’m going to binge this whole channel now
Thank you for this! I've always felt empowered by Femme Fatals and so of course also believed this trope was wrongfully given a bad rep. For me, it was more important to reclaim the Femme Fatal rather than condemn her.
I really like the way you speculate, and look through a bigger picture. Fav
super insightful, super thorough, and The Editing what more could I ask forrrrrr
I am a huge fan of the femme fatale's and also not to mention I grew up watching noirs with my mother and she turned to me and said "You don't need a man to teach you how to be a women." She always told me growing up that I was going to be independent and strong as I was very much so when I was young.
The Freud slander...I'm living for it :"D Great video and great fit!
I LOVE your channel! I listen when I'm cleaning, resting, painting etc!!
LOVE IT!! especially the blue bell 🤍 it's so sweet and gentle
we hate freud in this house!!!!! love, a neuroscience major
it’s crazy to me that laura is considered a femme fatale since she’s probably much closer to a manic pixie dream girl, in the sense that she just exists as this funny smart mildly “quirky” likeable woman and then all these men pin all these expectations on her.