Grown Men's Overreaction to All-Female WONDER WOMAN Screenings Nevertheless Highlights Potential Issue Surrounding "selective equality"

https://www.yahoo.com/news/grown-men-upset-movie-theater-180710371.html

I think it's fairly obvious that these guys' objections are much ado about nothing. Even if this is a case of "selective equality," it's hardly the most significant one. Besides, the Alamo is a PRIVATE BUSINESS with the same right to these kinds of events as the golf courses and clubhouses that sought to defend their all-men status in years' past. The only caveat may be that since it is for-profit and not associated with a specific religion or cause, the law might apply the same as it does to these Christian business owners wanting to deny service to homosexuals. Frankly, though, I think the law nowadays just does whatever it wants, especially with all of the activist mayors, governors, and judges we've seen lately on both sides of the political aisle.

That said, even if more good than bad comes of this, anyone who says this alleged example of equality is not "selective" is deluding themselves, regardless of whether or not people think it favors a sector of society that may be owed such favors. I think that with the law having basically done all or almost everything it Constitutionally can to at least try to ensure, protect, and defend equal rights and access (at least on a federal level), we're seeing people frustrated that their most "progressive" ideas are not yet fully embraced and are thus settling for opportunities to turn the tables... then, when confronted, perhaps, say, "Damn straight!" Though I'm a huge DC fan that cannot wait to see the WONDER WOMAN movie, myself, I worry that it might be a situation similar to that of a child that has no interest in something until he or she sees that one or more other kids have it. Then, that kid has to have it, too. While this might be changing or being allowed to change for any number of reasons, women and young girls have never really been the primary or most reliable audience for ANY superhero movie. Just from a business and marketing perspective, I don't think "girl power" is going to guarantee these films' long-term profitability. If they are profitable, it will be for the same reasons as movies with male superheroes, namely that they're just plain good. Period (no pun intended). The bigger danger is that Hollywood will get even more preachy and overindulge its obsession with rebelling against Trump and his so-called populist movement by putting political and social considerations over everything else, mismatching material with female and minority talent BECAUSE they are females and minorities and because there are such few in supply and hiring a man is suddenly out of the question. Shortly before the Oscars, I heard a film commentator on public radio say that he hoped a certain movie won Best Picture or something solely because he favored the message it might send.

Granting that there will always be a real subjectivity to the accepted quality of movies, if something like that happens, I suspect there will be a point at which audiences begin taking those considerations for granted and stop giving the otherwise bad or mediocre movies passes for those reasons. The eventual backlash could make women-made and women-centered movies look less profitable and potentially unfeasible to studios best equipped to make and promote them, particularly in genres previously dominated by male characters appealing to male audiences. It could defeat the original social and political purposes NOT because these were female-centered movies made by women, but because they simply put the wrong material with the wrong talent for the wrong reasons.
Thankfully, I don't see that as happening right this minute. Also, there has been more precedent of late, with women successfully directing movies in traditionally male-targeted genres ranging from the more recent ZERO DARK THIRTY back to the one-and-only PUNISHER sequel/reboot, which wasn't a huge hit but got a good deal of credit for being better than the man-directed original. One thing that I think activists pushing for more women in film tend to forget is that, in the industry's early, silent days, women were not only making the dialogue cards for silent films, but often writing the screenplays and serving as production managers. This, after all, is how Alfred Hitchcock met his beloved wife Alma.