Dr. No - The Male Gaze

 Since my project is about the male gaze, the James Bond franchise was the first that came to mind. The whole franchise likes to show off women's bodies in a sexual manner. Since I wanted to do my project on the male gaze, I decided to watch the very first James Bond Film, Dr. No. You can tell that the movie has some things in there that wouldn't get away with todays standards (meaning we wouldn't find it acceptable and rightfully so), the male gaze example probably being the biggest one.

I was watching it with a couple family members and they can agree with the fact that the male gaze was a problem. It's showing that exaggerated masculinity vs. femininity was a thing in films. This means that the men who showed masculinity were tough, brave, and charming. The women were often seen as weak, vulnerable, and seen as objects. From my mother's and sister's perspective on this, I can see why they were the ones that pointed this issue out.

Overall, it doesn't mean that the film didn't have any positives. I personally always like James Bond because I used to play the video games with my siblings and cousins when I was younger, and that's what introduced me into the franchise. The film itself had some nice action packed scenes that you would want to see out of a James Bond Film. For me, I always focused on the action and adventures that go along with the films, and that's why they still have an impact today in that way. I can see why it would be easy for me to overlook the main issue at hand, though. Besides the glaring male gaze issue, Dr. No is a film that people should start out with to see how far the James Bond franchise has come.