Film Analysis Essay

Posted: January 4th, 2023

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Film Analysis Essay

Penny Marshall’s League of Their Own (1992) shows how women save baseball from losing its fame, thanks to the effort of two sisters who work hard to help the national team transit to a higher level. And by using suitable cinematographic aspects, the film drives in the message even more effectively. During WWII when nearly all men are participating in the War, women fill most of the positions that remain vacant. The film shows how the owners of baseball clubs choose to create a team of women in a bid to save the game from being dormant (Marshall). A team owner sends a scout to identify talented women in the countryside and as he passes through Oregon he comes along a woman called  Dottie Hinson whose skills in the game appears to be prolific. Dottie does not appear interested to join the team but her sister (Kit) is yearning to get out of the boring life in Oregon (Marshall). The scout only agrees to take her along if she accepts to convince Dottie to join the team which she does. They join Jimmy Dugan who trains them at the camp, and upon realizing that the team is not making any considerable progress because of the trainer’s persistent alcoholism, the two sisters choose to put their differences by working so hard to see the team to the next level. The film illustrates how contrary to the perception of many people and societies, girls and women have the capacity to perform equally well as their male counterparts. The importance of League of Their Own in the world is it calls for equal representation of women to achieve a society where both men and women have similar opportunities of excelling. The film implies that both men and women have equal chances of achieving the best results, and that it is wrong to deny anyone the chance to try because of their gender.

Scholars in the U.S. and other parts of the globe strive to come up with information on gender inequality as well as how to combat the practice that held women captives for so many decades. Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski (1226) describe gender inequality to be the discrimination in achievement or provision of opportunities and distribution of resources and reach to service for men or equality. Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski (1226) further assert that in most of the Western countries the rate of female employment is considerably lower than those of females to show how men take the higher position in socioeconomic affairs. Despite the attempts put it place to lower the gap between men and women, the underrepresentation of the latter group is still high in higher positions or areas perceived to be a field where only males should practice. The evaluation by Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski (1226) show that in the U.S. an employed woman gets 77 cents for each dollar men get, whilst in the EU women get an average 16% less than male employees. The depiction by Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski illustrates a situation that started many decades ago when many viewed the role of women to be at home where they perform house chores and tend for the children. Gender disparity in the U.S. has been depreciating throughout history and substantial progress has been put in place to achieve equality, especially from the early 1900s. Nonetheless, despite the advancement, gender inequality in the U.S continues to persist in several ways, particularly in women’s engagement in political affairs, certain areas of work, particular sports such as safari rally, and other crucial areas. The falling disparity between men and women is attributed to the campaigns from various groups, including filmmakers.

The League of Their Own shows that it is essential to work towards promoting the capacity of females and strive to improve gender equality because of the advantages that come with a society where men and women have similar chances of being successful and representation, and the use of cinematography helps to reinstate the point. The changing times create a scenario where many nations acknowledge that equal opportunities and rights should prevail between males and females. Gender balance is essential in the economic, political, and social sectors of the society or state (Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski 1230). Achieving a state of similar reach to opportunities and rights should prevail between men and women because this offers the chance to achieve to equity and equality (Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski 1230). Gender balance makes it possible to develop community policies that reflect the needs of every person regardless of their gender. Developing a society where people have the same chances of being prosperous will create harmony amongst people, and the society will experience the fall of gender based conflicts, gender biases and discrimination. The film through the use of cinematography reiterates the importance of gender balance by choosing to show mostly women participating in the team. The prolonged show of women appears to be intentional to first show how the film seeks to empower women, and to illustrate the need to achieve gender balance. The selective presentation of both genders, therefore, serves as an appropriate way of using cinematography to drive the message.

The film and the use of appropriate cinematographic methods affirm that building a society where women have same chances to engage in practices as males as it happens in League of Their Own presents several other merits, which should encourage various groups, including sporting clubs. Kouta, Parmaxi and Smoleski (1226) write that offering equal opportunities to both genders to express their desires and voice without being discriminated upon makes it easier to acquire varying views and options which can be utilized to help achieving particular objectives. Offering both genders equal chances provide the opportunity to engage everyone in the decision-making process in the community to improve peace and unity. Considering females as having the capacity to perform in the same manner as men may help to prevent the occurrence of violence against girls and women thereby making the society healthier and safer. The film pays considerable attention to the women training and taking part in various games to illustrate how women have the capacity to perform well as their male counterparts. Showing how the women dress in the sport attire, and prolonging the time the women appear to be playing is an important cinematographic aspect showing how women have the capacity to deliver. Working hard to formulate a society where gender balance prevails will significantly help in the suppression of the feminization of poverty, which refers to the growing gap between men and women constrained by scarcity and deprivation of economic resources.

The idea that offering women the chance to take more active roles in the society has several benefits requires the adoption of more effective measures to achieve a situation similar to what the League of Their Own presents. Other than drafting regulations that only support the inclusion of women in all areas, League of Their Own illustrates the importance of taking bold actions by engaging them in various areas, and nurturing their talents and capabilities until they succeed. The cinematographic aspects in the film help to reiterate the point by showing how the team manager and the coach are relentlessly working to equip the team members with the necessary skills they require to perform well. In addition, the audience gets to see how the team leaders encourage the ladies that they can perform well, and should not feel subdued because of their gender. The film shows the importance of increasing women’s participation in sports that are dominated by men such as soccer, cricket, baseball, and American football.

The League of Their Own is an example to other filmmakers who understand the importance of developing more films that advocate for the presentation of women as having the capacity to achieve similar results as males, as well as the benefits of using cinematographic approaches that help to drive the message even further. So far, filmmakers have developed various works to illustrate how women have equal potential to perform as men, which makes it necessary to give everyone equal chance to try or excel. Other than Marshall’s League of Their Own that gained much fame for its portrayal of women as being able to achieve equal results as men when offered the chance, Jon Avnet’s Fried Green Tomatoes of 1991 tells the story of three women who manage to overcome abusive marriages. Although critics feel that the film mostly targets the LGBT population through some of its representations, it is apparent that the ladies depicted in the film such as Ninny Threadgoode and Evelyn Couch take bold decisions that they think empower their lives and help them get away from the pressure of abusive husbands (Avnet). Avnent creates a similar impression as League of Their Own in the way it incorporates women as the leading characters, and in the way it brings out the woman as a being able to make independent decisions, and not having to depend on men for guidance and maintenance. Avnent uses cinematography effectively in the way he switches the use of sound and color to emphasize certain points, and in the way these features help to empathize with the characters. Even though Borogogna, McDermott, Aita and Kridel (54) feel that gender and sexual minorities experience relatively poorer results on mental performance, the leading characters in Fried Green Tomatoes defy the claim by exhibiting prolific thinking capabilities. Rick Famuyiwa’s Confirmation, which is an American TV political film released in 2016, is another media production that emphasizes on the women’s ability to achieve good results in same way as men. The film that focuses on the daily operations of Anta Hill shows how women have the ability to serve as a professor as a renowned institution of higher learning. Hill who works at Oklahoma University presents herself as an independent woman who takes decisions that suit her (Famuyiwa). The trend already set by the many filmmakers who depict women as having the capacity to achieving outstanding performance and elevated social status should encourage others to come up with similar productions to continue advancing the position of women in the society.

The League of Their Own is important to the world because it shows how people have to prepare to overcome the constraints that could hamper the realization of the common goal. Dottie and Kit, for example, are sisters but they do not appear to share similar views. They clash on various issues, and even differ when a scout invite both of them to join the baseball training camp. The film creator even included melancholic background music when the two are together in the house to show the division between the blood sisters. The sisters, however, put their differences aside when they realize that their unity is what it requires to see the team to the next level. The way the sisters overcome their differences is the way people need to address the obstacles that make it hard to achieve gender equality such as unsupported beliefs and ideologies surrounding men’s superiority to women. A suitable way to deal with the perception that men are superior to women and can achieve better results is to enhance training at various capacities to illustrate that everyone is the same. Instructors should use creative ways to show how gender balance and inequality impact on the society such as the use of films, which attract viewers and pass essential lessons at the same. Creating stringent and effective policies may also help to achieve a society where both men and women have equal chances of advancing in life. Adhering to the perception that men are superior and deserve better chances, however, affect the attempts to create a society where gender equality prevails where women showcase their ability to perform well. Different teams should come together to champion for women’s empowerment, and should not relent in the fight that started several decades ago.

The study focuses on the attempts by League of Their Own to illustrate how women have the capacity to achieve equally good results as men, and through the use of appropriate cinematographic approaches the film shows how it necessary to give females equal chance to prosper and participate in nation building. Dottie and Kit demonstrate the power and ability in women to excel when offered the opportunity in the way they help the baseball team achieve outstanding performance despite the inability of their coach to deliver the impressive results that everyone wants to see. The film reawakens the tremendous effort inserted during the early 1900s to suppress the perception that women ought to stay at home and attend to house chores. It displays women as having the capacity to make decisions that have major influence on others, and its characters create the urge to take bolder steps towards empowering women. The production reiterates the importance of engaging women in various areas rather than creating regulations that do not really have a major impact. The film teaches the importance of creating more movies that capture the ability women have to perform in the same way as men. The League of Their Own seemed to have set a trend for the many films that have since been produced to show how men and women are equal and can all achieve impressive results if offered the chance and resources.

Works Cited

Avnet, Jon. Fried Green Tomatoes. USA: Universal Pictures, 1991.

Borogogna, Nicholas, McDermott Ryon, Aita Stephen and Kridel Matthew. “Anxiety and Depression Across Gender and Sexual Minorities:Implications for Transgender, Gender Nonconforming, Pansexual, Demisexual, Asexual, Queer, and Questioning Individuals.” Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, vol. 6, no. 1, 2019, pp. 54-63.

Famuyiwa, Rick. Confirmation. USA: ABC Signature Studios, 2016.

Kouta, Christiana, Parmaxi Antigoni and Smoleski Irene. “Gender Equality in Academia, Business, Technology and Health Care: A WomEnPower view in Cyprus.” International Journal of Caring Sciences, vol. 10, no. 3, 2017, pp. 1224-1231.

Marshall, Penny. League of Their Own. USA: Columbia Pictures, 1992.