“The Ugly Truth” or The Ugly Stereotype?

20th July 2009

“The Ugly Truth” or The Ugly Stereotype?

posted in Advertisements, Feminist Topics, Pop Culture |

I saw a commercial for the new film “The Ugly Truth” yesterday. Starring Katherine Heigl and the dreamy Gerard Butler,” the film seems to be of of the “Men are bumbling idiots who think only with the head in their pants” genre — just check out the poster for it.

The Ugly Truth

Yeah, yeah, I know… men have up to 20 times more testosterone than women which leads to differences in sex drives, yadda, yadda, but unbelievably, there are men who do have healthy levels of testosterone and yet have still managed to avoid devolving into cousin-humping rabbits. It’s important to remember that sexism, in all its forms, hurts us all, men included.

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1 On July 20th, 2009, Jackie said:

This is why I don’t see romantic comedies, usually somewhere they fall into stereotyping genders. With this film, they’re not even trying to hide that’s exactly what they’re doing.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 9:58 am

2 On July 20th, 2009, Bree said:

Romantic comedies rely and depend on gender stereotypes because without them, writers would actually have to get creative and original, and as we’ve seen with the bulk of what comes from Hollywood these days, originality has flown the coop.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 10:59 am

3 On July 20th, 2009, Geogrrl said:

I enjoy a romantic comedy if they’ve got a fresh angle or put a little imagination into it. The trailers for this film irritate me so much that I have no interest in seeing the movie.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 11:55 am

4 On July 20th, 2009, Melissa said:

We (myself is highly included in that “we”) often don’t see how this type of thinking is also damaging for men.
It’s something I never really thought of until I started reading Carl Jung and archetypes and all about the feminine/masculine in each human being.
It’s so imbedded in us that we do it unconsciously- and men don’t get to be themselves truly because they are taught to live up to the stereotype.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 12:33 pm

5 On July 20th, 2009, Charlotte said:

This is one of the reasons why I don’t like romantic comedies/”chick flicks”. They perpetuate gender stereotypes, and tend to be unrealistic.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 1:03 pm

6 On July 20th, 2009, Sandra said:

One time I watched “Bridget Jones” on Tv and really could not believe how so many women were fascinated by a character with a so shallow personality, worried only about her looks (everyday a tedious count of calories) and obsessioned with the idea of finding “Mr. Right” with the help of manuals such as “men come from Mars…”. I really can’t understand the success of this stuff, and the chick flick in general. It is almost insulting for women, and for men as well.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 2:06 pm

7 On July 20th, 2009, susan said:

I could never really put my finger on why I rarely like chick flicks. Perhaps this is an example of why!

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 3:25 pm

8 On July 20th, 2009, Twistie said:

Yes, I consider this film entirely demeaning to everybody with a brain.

No, I don’t intend to waste my money on seeing it.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 3:28 pm

9 On July 20th, 2009, Melissa said:

Susan said: “I could never really put my finger on why I rarely like chick flicks. Perhaps this is an example of why!”

Yessss! I could never watch these types of movies either and I never really thought about it until this post, but I think it’s because I subconsciously couldn’t stand the stereotype because I never identified with it.
Obviously a large percent of people do, unfortunately.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 3:33 pm

10 On July 20th, 2009, JupiterPluvius said:

We (myself is highly included in that “we”) often don’t see how this type of thinking is also damaging for men.

I do. But I also see that it’s being perpetuated by men.

When people complain about sexism against men in movies and TV and TV commercials and what-not, they seem to miss that that sexism is being perpetuated by a disproportionately male, disproportionately white, disproportionately middle-class workforce.

Hollywood is one of the least gender-integrated industries in the US.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 3:50 pm

11 On July 20th, 2009, jen said:

JupiterPluvius, the fact that it’s usually men imposing these “men behave like apes, women behave like angels” stereotypes doesn’t change the fact that it does hurt men as well as angels. Not least because it tells young boys that don’t fit the mold that they won’t be a “real man” until they act in a specific way.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 3:59 pm

12 On July 20th, 2009, Lucy said:

I’m practically allergic to romantic comedies. I’ll watch them, but I could honestly not tell you if they were good or not, or anything constructive. It’s really weird. I get the same way during action movies.

Can I also just say that I hate this generalization that men have stronger libidos than women? The past few involvements I’ve had, I’ve been made to feel funny because I out-performed the guys I was with. I thought they were supposed to want that…? Or something…?

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 4:30 pm

13 On July 20th, 2009, Misty said:

[quote]sexism is being perpetuated by a disproportionately male, disproportionately white, disproportionately middle-class workforce.

Hollywood is one of the least gender-integrated industries in the US.[/quote]

This is, of course, completely false. There are two interesting things about Hollywood: 1. Women have become extremely powerful in it, particularly at the producer level (which is where the power really is). 2. As this has happened, the industry has become even MORE intolerant of full-figured women. When men were in charge (ironically), you would much sooner have seen softer-figured, fuller actresses. It is women, as producers, and especially as casting directors (virtually ALL casting directors today are women), who have imposed the underweight standard far more than men ever did. That’s a fact.

But to the original point of this post, bravo to the author for condemning male stereotypes, even as they are being perpetuated by an increasingly female-dominated Hollywood.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 5:37 pm

14 On July 20th, 2009, Alyssa (The 39 year-old) said:

Female executives in Hollywood have to be more “masculine” than men. The things that are said and done at any given moment in the entertainment industry would not be tolerated anywhere else. The way women are treated, bu both men and other women in positions of power, is horrifying.
I left Hollywood 3 years ago, and haven’t set foot in a movie theater since.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 6:14 pm

15 On July 20th, 2009, Bountiful Luv Muffin said:

I guess I’m weird. My idea of the perfect chick flick is anything along the line of Hellboy1&2. Especially 2! Watchmen,also.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 9:28 pm

16 On July 20th, 2009, healthy ashley said:

Thanks for speaking out about this. I knew there was something I didn’t like when I saw the commercials, but you pinpointed it exactly.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 9:34 pm

17 On July 20th, 2009, Blimp said:

History is full of examples of men who governed themselves by reason and for the love of humanity, not by libido or for their own pleasure and comfort. In fact, that is how all men can and should behave. This movie is a shameless assault on civilized morality.

posted on July 20th, 2009 at 9:39 pm

18 On July 21st, 2009, Frances said:

There’s a great post on this movie here: http://nobodyputsbabyinahorner.wordpress.com/2009/07/06/the-final-poster-for-the-ugly-truth-gives-me-a-headache/

posted on July 21st, 2009 at 2:33 am

19 On July 21st, 2009, Rachel said:

@Frances: That blog author went into much more detail than me and encapsulated my thoughts exactly — thanks for posting the link.

posted on July 21st, 2009 at 9:45 am

20 On July 21st, 2009, Laura said:

I am so disturbed by the commercials for this movie. Especially the new one that they have for the week before the release about the “battle of the sexes” and counting their “points.” I have no idea where these points come from and how they correspond to what’s going on in the trailer. It’s so disgustingly stereotypical. Women overthink their love lives and men can only think with their genitals. Wow. It’s sad that this is still the prevailing thought today even when there is so much evidence that it is not true.

I’m glad that you pointed out that this movie also hurts men. I think it is also insulting to men to say that they cannot have a serious relationship because all they care about EVER is getting into a woman’s pants.

I wrote more about this movie over at my blog: http://youngfeministadventures.blogspot.com/2009/07/truth-about-ugly-truth.html

posted on July 21st, 2009 at 10:44 am

21 On July 22nd, 2009, Aimay said:

Weirdly, the trailer ends with a similar illustration to the one pictured here– only the lady figure’s waist is cinched in and the heart has dropped to her nether regions.

posted on July 22nd, 2009 at 11:35 am

22 On July 23rd, 2009, Ben said: