Whenever someone asks me what kind of movies I like, I usually reply "girls with guns". Most of the time the reaction to this is that I'm a pervert, which frustrates and puzzles me. When done correctly, the girls with guns genre empowers women with more strength, intelligence, independence, attitude, and assertiveness (some would say "girl power") than any other genre, and prominently features women in strong lead roles while relegating men to secondary and demeaning roles. What's so perverse about that? It really surprises me that more women don't appreciate the genre, and that many tend to view it as adolescent sexploitation or only consider the Freudian implications of pistol-packing beauties. Now, Freud was a pervert and had his own set of problems, but that's not the point of this essay. The point of this essay is to explain why I like girls with guns films and to explore the merits of the genre. It's kind of a free-form rant, so please excuse the lack of coherent structure.

First of all, let me just say that I generally hate the way women are portrayed in the media - as weak, stupid, helpless, emotionally fragile sex objects whose existence tends to be justified by manipulative and overbearing men. And the ones that break out of that mold tend to be villains who end up being brought to justice by idiotic and self-righteous males. Is this how the media wants women to be perceived, and do women want to be perceived like this? I can't tell you how often I am offended by the treatment and presentation of female characters on TV and in movies, and this has been a major driving force for me to find alternative forms of entertainment media. Girls with guns films, or in more general terms "female action cinema", places both men and women on a level playing field where they can compete and interact with each other on equal terms. And the women usually win because they are the heroic leads in these films. This is how I like to see women portrayed - as strong spirited, intelligent, and independent people who don't take any shit from anyone and can hold their own in a fight. Also, being a male and not having a lot of love and respect for my gender, I like seeing men portrayed as idiotic losers and pathetic weasels who are ultimately taken out by the women in the film.

It's something different. We see women portrayed in many different ways. All too many times we've seen Woman the Maiden, Woman the Nurturer, Woman the Mother, Woman the Divine, Woman the Temptress, Woman the Slave, and Woman the Victim, but we rarely get to see that most powerful and terrifying feminine attribute, Woman the Destroyer. Female action cinema is the perfect vehicle to present Woman the Destroyer. Women who are given the means to reach their goals through violence and destruction, just like our heroes of traditional male-oriented action cinema. Women just tend to do it with much more flair. In a male dominated society, it's also nice to see women "getting back at The Man" by defeating their sexist oppressors at their own game for a change. A similar theme is seen in the blaxploitation genre as well.

A girl with a gun is a powerful image indeed. It combines all of the traditional feminine attributes along with an instrument of destruction, creating a character demanding the highest level admiration, respect, and fear. This all equates to power, and it's this power that's a major driving force in female action cinema. Women have a strong and enviable power, and I like seeing women taking charge. Female action cinema is one of the few genres where men play secondary and submissive roles, and this too is a refreshing change from typical male dominated cinema.

Unfortunately, this powerful imagery is used to sell a lot of crap. I don't know how many times I've rented a movie with impressive girls with guns box art, only to have it turn out to be a male dominated get naked sex romp. Quite often the girl on the cover isn't even in the movie at all, let alone with a gun. It's really frustrating how these films are marketed for girls with guns fans, and never deliver any girls with guns action. In fact, they often deliver exactly the opposite of what I'm looking for, to the point now where I don't even bother with domestic films anymore. Fortunately, the Asian market takes the role of the female warrior much more seriously, and most of the time if you see a women with a gun on the cover of an Asian film, you can bet they're going to use it - a lot. Sadly, though, the Japanese film industry is now starting to follow this same American marketing trend with a new wave of erotic thrillers, and the girls with guns genre is a dying breed in Hong Kong cinema.

It's not about sex. One of my biggest complaints about American media is the emphasis on sex, and sex has no place in action cinema. Traditional action films and action hero icons are almost completely sex-free, in order to keep the focus on the action. How often do we see Schwarzenegger, Stallone, Eastwood, Van Damme, or any of our other action heroes get it on in the sack? Hardly ever (with the prime exception of James Bond), and so should it be with female action cinema. Unfortunately, this is where so many potential girls with guns action films turn into sleazy softcore erotic thrillers. The introduction of sex destroys the purity and power of an action persona, male or female. It makes them lose their focus, takes the edge away from their actions, and introduces vulnerability. It's even worse for female characters, because they usually take a submissive role with the men that compromise them, which utterly destroys their credibility. Additionally, the nature of cinematic sex almost exclusively focuses on female exploitation, which tends to undermine any attempts to create a strong and respectable female action persona. The point of female action cinema is to see women in car chases, blowing up buildings, pumping villains full of lead, and beating people up, not to see them writhing around naked or losing their tops and inhibitions for every man they see. That's what porno films and teenage comedies are for...

And yet, I'd be lying if it weren't about aesthetics. Female action cinema is sexy without being sexual. Let's face it, women are more attractive than men, and most of the women I know would agree with that. The question I often pose to people is "why watch a couple of attractive guys shoot at each other and beat people up when you could watch a couple of attractive women do the same thing?" A woman with a gun in her hand or martial arts training is just as deadly and dangerous as a man with the same, but the woman is far more interesting to watch. There's also a certain amount of physical grace that women tend to have more of than men. Male action heroes tend to look awkward and clumsy - like how most guys dance. Women action heroes tend to move more quickly and fluidly, and with more grace and cinematic flair. This adds tremendously to the impact of a cinematic experience.

Now that's not saying that I like watching girls fight for real, because real fights (both male and female) are just ugly and uninteresting. But that brings up another point, which is the difference in attitude between male and female action heroes. I get so tired of macho male posturing and bullshit. There's a lot of ego associated with male action heroes (and men in general), and they'll do anything to protect or promote it, which often results in a couple of guys hurling insults at each other before rolling around on the ground with each other to protect their honor, or some other such crap. Female action heroes don't suffer the same ego problems that their male counterparts do, and they only fight when they absolutely have to. They also fight with the sole purpose of defeating their adversary using any means at their disposal, and don't necessarily play by the bizarre and unwritten rules of "a fair fight" as defined by male culture. This gives a much more serious and intense atmosphere to action scenes that women are in, because they're in it all the way.

A rather sexist reason why female action cinema works for me is that in a male dominated society, women aren't expected to be tough adversaries, which ultimately makes them perfect candidates for undercover action roles. Women make ideal assassins. Since men don't consider women to pose a physical threat, they can manipulate situations easier than their male counterparts and get closer to their targets. Women also make good fighters. Their generally smaller frames promote increased speed and agility, while their lower center of gravity offers better balance. It's technique and skill that wins fights more often than brute force. I've even witnessed this in real life with my own martial arts training. I always found sparring with women to be much more enjoyable and educational because of their attitude about fighting. With the guys I would train with, there was always that ego thing in the way which would often lead to masculine tests of brute strength and meaningless exchanges of who could hit who the hardest. The women I would train with were far more serious about forms, tactics, and execution (not to mention safety), and weren't out to prove anything or bruise my ego. They never had that "I'm gonna kick your ass" attitude - they would just take out their opponents quickly and efficiently. And that's where female action heroes succeed so well. They're cool without even trying.

But what do I know? These are just the observations I've made about the films I really enjoy. Maybe Freud was right and maybe I'm a pervert after all. Ultimately, that's for everyone else to decide.