Super Bitches and Action Babes: The Female Hero in Popular Cinema, 1970-2006

With actress Pam Grier's breakthrough in <I>Coffy</I> and <I>Foxy Brown</I>, women entered action, science fiction, war, westerns and martial arts films--genres that had previously been considered the domain of male protagonists. This ground-breaking cinema, however, was--and still is--viewed with ambivalence.<BR><BR>While women were cast in new and exciting roles, they did not always arrive with their femininity intact, often functioning both as a sexualized spectacle and as a new female hero rather than female character. This volume contains an in-depth critical analysis and study of the female hero in popular film from 1970 to 2005. It examines five female archetypes: the dominatrix, the Amazon, the daughter, the mother and the rape-avenger. The entrance of the female hero into films written by, produced by and made for men is viewed through the lens of feminism and post-feminism arguments. Analyzed works include films with actors Michelle Yeoh and Meiko Kaji, the <I>Alien</I> films, the <I>Lara Croft</I> franchise, <I>Charlie's Angels,</I> and television productions such as <I>Xena: Warrior Princess</I> and <I>Alias.