The Codes of Gender
★ 6.5 · 2010 · 73m · Documentary
Arguing that advertising not only sells things, but also ideas about the world, media scholar Sut Jhally offers a blistering analysis of commercial culture's inability to let go of reactionary gender representations. Jhally's starting point is the breakthrough work of the late sociologist Erving Goffman, whose 1959 book The Presentation of the Self in Everyday Life prefigured the growing field of performance studies. Jhally applies Goffman's analysis of the body in print advertising to hundreds of print ads today, uncovering an astonishing pattern of regressive and destructive gender codes. By looking beyond advertising as a medium that simply sells products, and beyond analyses of gender that tend to focus on either biology or objectification, The Codes of Gender offers important insights into the social construction of masculinity and femininity, the relationship between gender and power, and the everyday performance of cultural norms.
More Like This
Is That Black Enough for You?!?
2022 · ★ 6.1
A look at the Black revolution in 1970s cinema, from genre films to social realism, from the making of new superstars to the craft of rising auteurs.
More info →
The Perfumed Garden
2000
THE PERFUMED GARDEN is an exploration of the myths and realities of sensuality and sexuality in Arab society, a world of taboos and of erotic literature. Through interviews with men and women of all ages, classes, and sexual orientation, the film lifts a corner of the veil that usually shrouds discussion of this subject in the Arab world. Made by an Algerian-French woman director, the film begins by looking at the record of a more permissive history, and ends with the experiences of contemporary lovers from mixed backgrounds. It examines the personal issues raised by the desire for pleasure, amidst societal pressures for chastity and virginity. The film discusses pre-marital sex, courtship and marriage, familial pressures, private vs. public spaces, social taboos (and the desire to break them), and issues of language.
More info →
Rise of the Warrior Apes
2017 · ★ 7.8
Filmed over 23 years, Rise of the Warrior Apes tells the epic story of an extraordinary troop of chimpanzees in Ngogo, Uganda – featuring four mighty warriors who rule through moral ambiguity, questionable politics, strategic alliances and destroyed trust.
More info →
"En thérapie" ... et après ?
2025 · ★ 5
Why did the series "In Therapy" on ARTE break audience records? Does it reflect the truth of psychoanalysis? From personal quests to collective traumas, this sensitive documentary explores the reciprocal influences between fiction and reality.
More info →
Perfect Image?
1989 · ★ 9
Two actresses take us through a series of 'raps' and sketches about what it means to be beautiful and black.
More info →
Kate Bornstein Is a Queer & Pleasant Danger
2014 · ★ 3.5
For decades, performance artist and writer Kate Bornstein has been exploding binaries and deconstructing gender. And, her own identity. Trans-dyke. Reluctant polyamorist. Sadomasochist. Recovering Scientologist. Pioneering Gender Outlaw. Kate Bornstein Is a Queer and Pleasant Danger, joins her on her latest tour capturing rollicking public performances and painful personal revelations as it bears witness to Kate as a trailblazing artist theorist activist who inhabits a space between male and female with wit, style, and astonishing candor. By turns meditative and playful, the film invites us on a thought provoking journey through Kate's world to seek answers to some of life's biggest questions.
More info →
Feminino e Barulho
2023
The cinema of Pernambuco is considered one of the most complex components of Brazilian cinema, particularly for its potency and creative style. The presence of women in filmmaking seldom holds the same historical notoriety as that of men, and the Pernambuco scene is no exception. In the context of "Amor, Plástico e Barulho" (Love, Plastic, and Noise), we find a film that serves as a testament to the marginalization of women in the creative industry, intertwining themes of consumption and the production of brega music. Hence, we use "Feminino e Barulho" (Feminine and Noise) as a means to share what we've learned. Renata Pinheiro has inspired us to craft a narrative that gives voice to those who need to be heard. We are here to showcase a glimpse of them and what they represent. "Feminino e Barulho" is a short film about love, femininity, sisterhood, and empowerment.
More info →Beast Wishes: The Fantastic World of Bob and Kathy Burns
2012 · ★ 8
Documentary about Bob and Kathy Burns, the goodwill ambassadors of science fiction film fandom.
More info →
30 Years of Garbage: The Garbage Pail Kids Story
2017 · ★ 6.6
The Garbage Pail Kids are 30 years old. Celebrate their gross-out greatness with artist interviews, superfan collections, and more.
More info →
Four Verses of Self Pleasure
2021
Seven women and one non binary person share their personal experiences with masturbation through short anecdotes and a revolutionary washing machine.
More info →
My Other Me: A Film About Cosplayers
2013 · ★ 4.2
An eye-opening look at the 'costume play' subculture known as cosplay. "My Other Me" chronicles a year in the life of three different cosplayers, following the subjects as they travel the convention circuit, balancing their home lives with their cosplay alter egos, revealing the profound effects the subculture has played in their lives.
More info →