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Girl on a Motorcycle

This film had potential of being very liberating for women, but it fell short of this female freedom with the ever present male gaze and phallocentrism. From the very being of the film, Rebecca is made to be a sexual object to be enjoyed by men. Starting with her dream where her clothes are ripped off, and continuing with her repeated sexual harassment by men throughout the movie (such as the men at the borderline) she becomes an object rather than a woman. The "liberating road" loses all of its potential freedom since it is simply a means of carrying her from one man to another, more dominant, man. Daniel is the personification of the male gaze and phallocentrism. When his character is introduced, he is watching Rebecca from across the room with his eyes obscured by darkness. He has no respect for her, and treats her as his inferior. It is this powerful male figure that takes away Rebecca's liberation and makes this film just another movie which objectifies women.

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