Stereotypes In Action Movies

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Introduction
Action films have been a staple in the cinematic industry, providing pop culture icons that save the day in incredible heroic ways. These heroes are often depicted as being muscular males or lean females who have extremely well improvised decision making and combat skills. These unrealistic characters are looked up to by fans and children and present an idea of a hero that is unlikely to be accomplished by the individuals who look up to them. Media gravely under represents individuals who have bodies that don’t reflect the image of a “strong” person. While females are featured in many action movies, they are often portrayed as the “damsel in distress” or as a secondary character; in contrast, males are often the main characters …show more content…

166). The action genre is typically aimed at men and almost exclusively feature male leads, with many female characters are present for entertainment of men (Kartal, 2014). In an attempt to possibly attract a female audience to these male dominated films, “these mainstream films traditionally incorporate female characters and romance subplots into the mix” (Kartal, 2014, p. 167). There is a trend of having female’s roles in action movies to be the love interest who do not help save day, conforming to the stereotype that males are the heroes and females are the …show more content…

With action movies focusing on hyper masculine men engaging in unrealistic acts of heroism, men are presented with this increasing pressure to conform to these expectations that these movies portray a man should be (Galbreath, 2014). Burlew & Shurt (2013) point out that the ideal body image for men is being muscular, toned, lean, physically fit, masculine, young, powerful, self-confident, and sexually desirable; therefor, men also experience issues related to body image such as insecurities about their weight, body shape, and appearance. The image of masculine men “saving the day” reinforce the stereotypes of tradition masculinity which has the potential for men who watch action movies or view images, such as posters, to feel more pressure about their body image (Galbreath,

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