Title: Candy Jar
Released: April 27th, 2018
Directed by: Ben Shelton
Access on: Netflix
Netflix Summary: Dueling high school debate champs who are at odds on just about everything forge ahead with ambitious plans to get into the colleges of their dreams.
Gaze Theory: This film does not utilize gaze theory. The majority of the film is centered around Lona and Bennet’s dreams of getting into college. Although they eventually become each other’s love interest, Lona is never sexualized or objectified. The only instance where we begin to see gaze theory is when Lona is walking out of the house in her prom dress. The video becomes slow motion and Bennet’s jaw drops while he watches her walk down the stairs. But even in this scene, Lona is wearing a dress and the camera never focuses on a singular part of her body. It shows her face the entire time.
Sex Role Theory: This film challenges a lot of stereotypes normally seen for different genders in films. First, Lona is depicted as a forward and strong-voiced leader despite her being a girl. She is co-president of the debate team alongside Bennet and is a three time state qualifier for the debate team. In addition, despite Lona being a teenage girl, her main focus at the beginning of the film is her career and getting into college. However, this does eventually change when she falls for Bennet. At the beginning of the film it seems promising but it eventually becomes about love. Secondly, both Bennet and Lona are raised by single mothers. Bennet’s mother is a state senator placing both mother’s as authoritative figures. Another influential woman is the guidance counselor that both Bennet and Lona go to see. Overall, the film does a great job of portraying women as leaders who are not entirely focused around finding love.
Shared by: Olivia Smidel
Image Credit: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6744044/