Gender Politics of Magic Mike XXL

In the article “The Gender Politics of Magic Mike XX” I think that the author with the best argument was Sophie Gilbert. I like how she viewed the movie as “refreshing” and “free of nuance,” she doesn’t take the movie too seriously and realizes that it can be a good movie and wants the best for all of the characters. Gilbert realizes that the movie is more aimed for women, but that doesn’t mean that it objectifies men in any way. The men in the movie are strippers, but they are seen as “objects” like most movies portray strippers to be. She mentions that the movie “[is] simply making people smile. If the film were just about greased-up Adonises showing off their abs, it wouldn’t be half as affirming, but the sense throughout that female contentment and pleasure is the ultimate goal makes it infinitely more engaging.” The author made a very good point by saying even though this movie is about male strippers, it’s a movie that everyone can enjoy and laugh about. Gilbert makes a point so that the audience knows this movie is for both men and women. Even though it is an empowering movie for women, it is a movie where all of the characters are considered, and not objectified by either sex.

The author with the weakest argument to me was Megan Garber because she made the movie seem like it was making fun of women even though the movie is clearly about attending to women. I feel like Garber took some of the things too seriously and tried to make the smallest thing into a argument. She says the men in the movie make fun of women wanting to be called “queens” and “getting grinded upon” but I didn’t think it was being passive towards women or making them feel objectified at all. After all the movie is a comedy and aren’t most comedies dramatic in some way? I feel like if anything the movie does a good job to balance out the roles of women and men, while switching things up a bit and creating a movie that isn’t as prominent as the rest.