Friday, 24 April 2015

Lost Boys - Theoretical Perspectives

Feminist Perspective:

  • Only 2 female characters - predominantly male
  • Mother dependent on males - becomes single mother and has to rely on living with her father and having her children to look after eachother
  • Her storyline revolves around finding a male companion and being a mother
  • Caring persona - gives money to teenagers looking for food in bins, helps child looking for mother
  • Perceived as weak - chased by dog and relies on her son to help/save her, plays no role in helping fight vampires at end of film - male characters have to protect her
  • Relies on males throughout the entire film
  • Star also dependent on males - returns to vampires when they call her away from Michael
  • Male Gaze 
  • 'The Lost Boys' - no mention of girls or focus on missing females
  • Plight of females is neglected
  • Mother is loser in divorce, finds a man  to solve her problems
  • Sons need male role model - mother's fault sons weren't under control due to them not being given a male role model
  • Star has to be saved and looked after by Michael and plays no part in fighting vampires
  • Both females' only purpose in film is to find romance - Star doesn't kill Michael because she loves him
Post-Modern:
 
  • Blurred genres
  • Challenges generic conventions of vampires - mode of address/discourse
  • Teenagers as vampires - identity
  • Signifies the breakdown of marriage
  • Entertainment as surveillance
  • Troublemaker image
  • Negative representation by the adults - represent the adult audience - mother allows them
  • Shop owner/grandad/security guard dislike the teenagers
  • Portrayed as 'cool' - aspirational image - role models to teenagers watching the film - media
  • Amplification spiral / moral panic
  • Generation gap - fighting eachother not the bourgeoisie
  • False construct
  • Lost boy represents fear of teenagers
Marxist:
 
  • Zizek - police officer 'I told you, not on the boardwalk'
  • Suggests not in public - amplification spiral
  • Do not affect the tourist dollars - effect on the tourist industry - choosing profit over people
  • Teenagers a threat to capitalism
  • Capitalism needs a scapegoat - teenagers in this film
  • The other is a fear used to create scapegoats for capitalism
  • Lost Boys represents lost in society/lost in capitalism
  • Bourgeoisie vs Proletariat

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