Thelma & Louise It’s been twenty years since the film Thelma & Louise swept up the ‘best original screenplay’ award from the 1991 Oscars, leaving in its tracks many inspired and encouraged women. Though we as a society of progressive minded individuals are far ahead of the days where burning bras and shaving heads seemed to be the only way to get recognition for the feminist movement, in the past twenty years have we progressed from where the movie led us to believe the women’s movement had left off? Today I’ve asked to interview both ‘Thelma’ and ‘Louise’ to see what their thought on this matter are.
What do you have to say to people who still believe this to be an anti-male movie?
Louise: It would surprise and amaze me to think that people still believe Thelma & Louise had an anti-male statement after twenty years. I think a lot has been learned and put to use in the past years about what a healthy relationship looks like and the importance of self-esteem in a young woman’s life. If that is an anti-male idea then we regressed far past the days of bra burning, even past the days of woman’s suffrage back to the middle ages where women were traded for cattle.
Well what about the people that see it as a revenge movie as opposed to a feminist story?
Louise: I don’t think it is either. The movie shed light on a sensitive subject and the idea that some women are afraid to go to the authorities because they don’t see any justice there. Yes these women took the law into their own hands, and yes it seemed to them at the end that there was no other option then suicide but it also empowered them to see justice given to a criminal. I would hope that this feeling of vindication that Thelma and Louise felt would be replicated in other women’s ability to trust in the police.
Do you think the character of Thelma is as relatable to today as she was 20 years ago?
Thelma: The character of Thelma I think will always be relatable. Unfortunately I think being a woman means being held back and made unable to succeed more then their husbands, brothers, bosses, friends. It will always be a problem. To watch a woman on screen come into herself and find her own voice is a completely original and inspiring story each time you see it. It will always speak to the neglected woman in all of us
Do you think the location of the film helps make the story more authentic?
Louise: There is a negative connotation about Middle America that the people are less sympathetic to the needs of women or the problems that they face. Rape becomes a touchy subject in any place or time. For instance a few weeks ago there was a ‘slut walk’ in Detroit of all places because of an insensitive remark made by one of the police officers. So while I feel like there was and still is this idea that middle America doesn’t deal with the problems of women like they would in more progressive places like New York City or L.A., I truly believe that regardless of where the story took place it would feel very real to anyone.
What about timing? If this movie was released in 2011 do you think it would have been as successful as it was in 1991?
Louise: Yes and no, I think the film would have gotten a similar response that it did in 1991, but the times have changed. Because of the advancements in society towards women I don’t think as many people watching would think it was an anti-male movie as there was in 1991. Timing in film is everything, in today’s time we don’t see the typical “road movies” anymore so adding a movie like Thelma & Louise to the box office could be a great thing or a terrible thing. I’m exceptionally happy with the success we had in 1991, I wouldn’t ask for anything more. Do you think that due to the sensitive nature of the attempted rape scene it was unfair to be over sexualized? Did it make you uncomfortable that it was over sexualized?
Louise: I don’t really know how to answer this. It was obviously a very important scene to build the plot so I don’t think it was unnecessary. However there is a problem growing in Hollywood. There are hundreds of movies, ours included that over sexualize rape scenes. It leaves the viewer feeling uncomfortable and confused. If we are trying to teach men that rape is wrong and that they can prevent it over sexualizing rape scenes is sending a mixed signal. It’s unfair to both sides.
I’ve read a lot of film reviews that suggest you killing yourself at the end signify you giving up and surrendering, do you agree?
Thelma: Well suicide is the ultimate surrender. Both characters knew the entire movie that what they had done was wrong. There was justice in their decision and it was self-defense but they still felt like they needed to run from the police. They believe at the end there is no other solution. Where would there be justice? Rotting in jail? Pleading innocence in front of a jury that couldn’t understand? Suicide isn’t really an option I would suggest to a young woman looking for a solution, but at the end of this story death was the culmination of both women finding themselves. In discovering who they were, they were unwilling to go back to what they used to be, for the first time they were taking their own destiny and doing what they pleased with it.
The story of Thelma & Louise empowers the woman in all of us. Taking one’s own life in their hands is a universal idea that anyone regardless of gender can relate to. Progression will always happen, it’s human nature; what this article was trying to relay was a cautionary voice to all to remember that while change and equality may at times feel very far away, every year we in fact do move closer and closer closing the gender gap.
