The femme fatale isn't dead

Contributor for Obit magazine Kevin Nance wrote an article regarding the death of the femme fatale we used to know in the black-and-white noir films of the 1950s. Recalling the glory days of Barbara Stanwyck and Rita Hayworth in roles of deadly sexuality, feminine sleuth and unmistakable empowerment within the archetype.

He wrote, “Among her many singular contributions, the femme fatale enabled a cut-the-crap directness between men and women that’s virtually extinct in contemporary American cinema, not only in romantic comedies but in dramas as well.”

Sadie Stein of feminist blog Jezebel elaborated on this topic. “We like our heroines kooky and somewhat incompetent and our villains uncomplicated,” she wrote.  

And so, stumbling across this cluster of internet opinions, this is my cue to say, “Are you kidding me?”

Not only does the role of the femme fatale still exist to this day in Hollywood, but it has been reinvented, three-dimensionalized, tweaked and revamped into a greater female protagonist with each coming actress. The undaunted heroine (or antiheroine, be it that) has thrived and remains prevalent with a stunning face and claws drawn, conquering men just as directly as she did back then.

Those dedicated to the golden years of Tinseltown refute change and by no means will admit that anything will ever prove as great as what was in the cinemas 60 years ago, but this one-track mindedness would have left the femme fatale repeating her same old routine over and over again.

Regarding Oscar nominations this year, Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit” is a wonderful reconstruction, proving to an audience that you don’t need sex appeal to get men to do what you want. She is armed with a gun and an argumentative gusto that just won’t quit, and she proves 14 years old is surely not too young for her to be a femme fatale.

Furthermore, Mila Kunis of “Black Swan” holds a character that seduces, of all unspeakable things, another woman in order to get what she wants. This is a twist on the archetype that triumphs in only this day and age. And though my opinions on “Inception” are somewhat unfavorable, Marion Cotillard’s character completely overthrows the course of the movie by simply interfering with a man’s dreams.  

There’s Angelina Jolie of “Salt,” Scarlett Johansson of “Iron Man 2,” Helen Mirren of “The Tempest,” and by god, if Hermione Granger isn’t a femme fatale, then I don’t know who is.

The strong female protagonists are alive and flourishing, and what’s more important is that they don’t have to be sex-pumped, knife-wielding dark queens to fulfill their fatale role. To say otherwise would be an insult to how far the female actress has come when kicking butt on the big screen.


E-mail: ftirado@indiana.edu