It was also interesting to me about the stereotypes that are given in this film on Rain Mans sexuality. At one scene in the movie at the casino when Rain Man is at the bar a prostitute approaches him to try to get business out of him, at first she doesn't know of his disability then she soon catches on and uses this to try to take advantage of him. I also noticed this in another movie that I watched before that deals with another main character having a disability: I am Sam (2001). In this movie a similar event takes place where a prostitute takes advantage of him and actually gets pregnant by him, then later runs off leaving him to raise a child on his own. To me there seems to be a certain theme in Western films where people with disabilities get taken advantage of.
I couldn't find any real masculinity themes in either movies, but in the movie I am Sam he holds a job and raises a daughter. In society this is mostly seen as feminine but can also be seen as both feminine or masculine. A guy raising a family and working is looked upon as a masculine trait. In the movie we watched in class, Murder Ball, that seems to be the only movie out of the three that shows actually masculinity. I think it's mainly noticeable because in Murder Ball they are playing a tough sport that is viewed as very masculine. In the movie Murder Ball the main characters are quadriplegic, this is physical disorder where as in the other movies they deal with mental disorders. In society people with physical disorders are still seen as needing help, but they are in a physical battle with themselves to be more masculine because being seen as you need help isn't very masculine. In the other 2 movies they didn't tend to focus on masculinity but more of the disability itself and how the characters were affected by it.
Image: http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20070925/465_rainman.jpg
I believe that you made a significant acknowledgement in recognizing the American film motif of disabled peoples being taken advantage of by able bodied people. I believe the two films that you examined and analyzed exhibit this concept clearly in a variety of ways and situations. Not only is an autistic man taken advantage of by his money motivated brother, but also subjected to sexual manipulation by the opposite sex. I believe that TAB(temporarily able bodied) people manipulating or taking advantage of those disabled is and has been a reoccurring theme throughout Hollywood that has for the most part gone unrecognized. Good Job!
ReplyDeleteNice job Zue. I agree this is a common theme. I think it's worth noting that both films show women using their sexuality to manipulate and take advantage. It almost says, these poor men with developmental disabilities are so helpless, even a prostitute can outwit them (not very respectful of these "bad girls").
ReplyDeleteI don't agree that masculinity was absent from "Rain Man" or "I Am Sam." I haven't seen the latter movie, but masculinity is present in every film with men (and some without men!). In "Rain Man," for example, Tom Cruise's character is very masculine. He is domineering, competitive, and somewhat aggressive. Could it be that his disdain for his brother in the beginning of the film stems from his belief that Raymond is not as masculine as he should be? As Tom Cruise grows to value and even love his brother, he himself becomes less traditionally masculine.