It's Not a "Chick Flick"

In the book “America On Film,” femininity and masculinity are studied in the context of Hollywood filmmaking. Throughout history, Hollywood has tended to uphold traditional patriarchal society. However, this is not a thing of the past. Men and women still fulfill largely stereotypical roles both as characters in film and as consumers.

The following clip from FunnyorDie.com features three of the male stars of the film “He’s Just Not That Into You” (Bradley Cooper, Kevin Connolly, Justin Long). This short video features the three men making fun of the “chick-flick” genre by acting out clichés commonly associated with them. The premise of the video is to convince guys that it is okay to see their movie (which would be seen as fitting the “chick-flick” genre) by providing evidence that it is “just a movie,” not a “chick flick.”



This clip brings up many points about gender when it comes to film audiences. First of all, the video assumes that the only reason guy will be going to see this movie is because their girlfriends will drag them to it. The reason that men do not plan to see this movie on their own or are reluctant to go is because of its “chick flick” status. “Chick Flicks” create stories that supposedly attract female audiences. Though this video tries to downplay the film’s “chick flick” status by pointing out clichés that were not used, “He’s Just Not That Into You” still fits the textbook’s definition of a “chick flick” (the plot is “centered on a lead female character’s romantic trials and tribulations”).

Since the female demographic had already been hit, part of the purpose of this video was to attract the male demographic as well, through sarcasm and humor. The male actors were trying to convince a male audience that they wouldn’t be jeopardizing their masculinity by seeing this movie. The fact that these three funny, sufficiently masculine actors weren’t ashamed to suggest that it was a good film made the pitch more credible to men than if three of the female stars had made the same argument.

This clip also walks a fine line between homosocial and homosexual relationships between men. In their short skits, the men played versions of typical “chick flick” characters. However, they portrayed all of these characters as male (though many were particularly effeminate males). However, the understanding that the scenes were parodies of “chick flicks” made this behavior acceptable. The humor comes from the fact that the men were – in acting like women – effeminate, which is viewed as abnormal or inconsistent with traditional masculinity.

This video was rated 88% “funny” on a scale of “Die – Funny.” The fact that many people saw this as funny suggests that they probably understood that the men were masculine and heterosexual and that is why their effeminate and homosocial/homosexual behavior was humorous. It also suggests that people agreed with this list of “chick flick” clichés, and recognized them from past experiences with the genre.

To end this post, it can also be noted that many of these “chick flick” clichés are also present in television dramas. They actually make use of them quite liberally. For example, these scenes from the 2003-2007 show, “The OC” using the character Seth Cohen:


Seth falls backwards into view onto a bed (there is no pillow involved, but close enough).


Seth runs through the airport to catch Anna before she moves away.


Seth tells Summer the reasons he has had a crush on her since elementary school.


Seth announces his relationship with Summer at school in front of many of their classmates.

These clichés are used time after time in various contexts throughout seasons of the show. This shows that these clichés appear not only in “chick flicks,” but on television as well. However, the audience of “The OC” was probably mostly female, so this does remain consistent with the types of narratives intended for and popular with female audiences.