Dr. Strange, Spiderman: Homecoming: MCU Mini Feminist Reviews

As an action movie lover and feminist, I feel strongly about the representation of feminist themes in big box-office narratives. Feminist themes make better, fresher narratives and incorporate emotional intelligence (the part that makes viewers actually think and feel). Not only is it important to represent progressive themes, but box-office hits have a bigger responsibility to do so. Their impact on social culture is huge.

Just to be clear: These two movies are not grouped together because they are alike. Their moods, characters, feminism, and overall quality are very different as far as the MCU goes. However, these are both single-film characters (so far) and somewhat linear timeline of film releases. Yes, Black Panther was in-between them…but let’s be honest, it deserves its own post.

Dr. Strange

Dr. Strange is one of my favorite Marvel characters, especially after seeing him in Avengers: Infinity War. He’s a mystical badass.

This movie, itself, is good. I enjoyed Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance and the mystical arts at play. But it falls woefully short of being feminist.

Dr. Strange is a toxic masculine character (especially in the beginning). Though he appears to respect his coworker, played by Rachel McAdams, he treats her horribly. He’s emotionally unavailable and extremely conceited about his own skills as a doctor.

As if it wasn’t enough that he said some cruel words to her after she spent time and emotional energy helping him recover from a crippling car wreck, he comes BACK for her help in patching himself up, and later to patch up Tilda Swinton, who doesn’t make it. How unappreciated is she? She’s treated like crap, revisited by Strange (and his out-of-body spirit), and expected to quickly save his life before he disappears again.

The high point is Tilda Swinton as “the ancient one.” She teaches the rest of the magicians how to use their power, and is a formidable threat herself.

BUT, she dies partway through, leaving the big battle to Dr. Strange and the other (male) magicians. And this isn’t to mention the white-washing going on with this character, which I don’t want to get into right now, but it’s problematic.

There is at least one woman bad-guy, which is nice, but I didn’t notice her with any speaking parts.

In all, it’s a sausage-fest, only kept at bay by the ancient one who conveniently dies right before Strange’s big moment.

Feminist Rating: 3/10

Spiderman: Homecoming

I expressed a lot of thoughts already on this film after it came out, but I’ll give a shortened version, plus a few more thoughts.

Firstly, this movie dispenses with the backstory, which is a good move. We don’t hear anything about Uncle Ben, and that’s great because Peter can just be a kid, juggling high school and trying to figure out how to be a superhero.

And that story is an important one. It teaches audiences (kids, especially) that even their heroes can struggle to figure things out. They have emotions and more nuanced responsibilities than just beating up bad guys.

We have a short list of main female characters, but good ones. Peter’s love interest, Liz, leads their high school’s academic decathlon team and appears to be very involved with school activities. Suffice it to say she’s intelligent and admired by her peers (and not just for her looks).

The same goes for Michelle (played by Zendaya), who takes Liz’s place when she leaves. Michelle steals the spotlight several times with unexpected humor and perception.

And of course, Marissa Tomei is amazing as Peter’s Aunt May, and we finally have a family member who is active and supportive in Peter’s life, instead of just someone helpless to protect.

Peter’s best friend, Ned, is another emotionally supportive character who keeps Peter’s secret and even aids him with his tech skills. Ned is important because he shows audiences what healthy male friendships look like.

This is an important part of feminism often overlooked. Men need to be able to communicate with loved ones, instead of playing the stoic hero who wants to “protect” them with silence. We’ve seen other friendships in superhero movies, but they rarely feel as genuine, nor as supportive, as Ned and Peter are together.

There are a few negatives here. Liz plays the damsel in distress when a bomb goes off in an elevator she and the rest of the decathlon team are in, and said elevator appears likely to fall. Though she shows bravery and determination at this moment (admirable), she still needs to be rescued by Spiderman.

I’d definitely like to see more women in the spotlight here, but at least they are well-developed characters who seem to have their own agency. There is also a good amount of diversity among the students, which is also a big plus.

Feminist rating: 7/10

Next week: Black Panther