outlaws and landscapes in Thelma and Louise and Set It Off
How is outlaw status justified?
In "Thelma and Louise" the women are outlaws becuase they defended themselves. In defending themselves they committed murder and were given outlaw status by society as opposed to by their own choice. In "Set it Off" the women choose their outlaw status. This choice is justified by the fact that "the system" has taken something from all of them, whether it's a job, a brother, or a child. They know their actions condemn them to outlaw status and they take time to decide and plan what they will do as opposed to the women in "Thelma and Louise" who became outlaws because of a split second, self-defense decision.
How are the landscapes different?
"Thelma and Louise" is set out in the country mostly with rolling hillsides and big open spaces seeming to represent freedom. "Set it Off" however is set in the big city and the scenes are quite often in doors seeming to represent being trapped and stuck. The women in "Thelma and Louise" begin to feel free because of their outlaw status and because they are around very few people and those people they do see don't know them. The women in "Set it Off" are trapped and wary because they are in the city where lots of people know them and they have few escape routes.