SEND
ME
NO
FLOWERS
rita hayworth
mae west
in full brightness. This »HALO EFFECT« was preferably used to let actresses appear radiant and, thus, more attractive (to the male characters and audience). They got even more objectified with the so-called »MALE GAZE«, a technique by which the camera became the eye of the male actor and lets us see the woman through them. Both techniques are subject to a fetishisation and cultural superelevation of the female, white appearance. The glamorous robes and the styling of the divas are also beneficial for that. The film »GILDA« with Rita Hayworth in the leading role is a prime example for these techniques.
However, be
the
and
this
tragedy,
as
might well
as a mirror of society of that
time,
cineastic
the
portrayed
superelevation
and perfectionism, as well as women's sexual overpresence, meant divas were so far from everyday life and characterised as »eccentric« that they couldn’t get back to a »normal« life – neither on screen nor in reality. A paradox that was only lessened during the women’s movement but still isn’t fully abolished today.
23
SISTERMAG 37 | 05 / 2018