On one aimless scroll through YouTube, I came across the trailer for Ana de Armas’ new action/thriller movie Ballerina. The film follows de Armas’ character, Eve Macarro, on a vengeance quest in the world of John Wick. One particular line in this trailer sent me down the rabbit hole that is the hitwoman movie genre. During her assassin training, Eve Macarro’s tutor tells her, “you will always be smaller, you will always be weaker” at which point de Armas delivers a swift kick to her (male) sparring partner’s crotch.
Whilst such a statement may be true for a character played by 5’6’’ Ana de Armas, the comment echoes a sentiment often portrayed in female lead action movies, especially those depicting assassins or spies. What specifically caught my interest was the notion that women will always be physically inferior to men and therefore must utilise other resources (most commonly sexuality) in order to triumph over others. Deeply rooted in gender essentialism, Ballerina neatly exhibits this ideology through Eve Macarro’s testicular abuse.
Small, Slender and Uncontroversially Beautiful
Now, I am completely aware that action/thriller movies like John Wick are fantasies aimed at allowing audiences to escape their realities and indulge in the thrill of violence, charisma and sexuality. However, that doesn’t mean such movies do not impart ideals upon their audiences. The most preeminent of these goals seems to be the validation of gender standards. When it comes to the hitwoman, she is often cast as small, slender and uncontroversially beautiful; from Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence and Charlize Theron to Ana de Armas.
Admitting these movies are fantastical indulgences is all well and good, but the gender and beauty standards exhibited impart an ideal that, upon failing to conform, suggest we are no longer “men” and no longer “women”. This harmful ideology is well-documented in sports. I don’t doubt many readers will remember the public “debate” over Imane Khelif, the Olympic boxer who was accused of being “biologically male” and therefore should be disqualified from competing in women’s boxing. Such “transvestigations” or accusations of steroid use are far from uncommon in women’s sports. In the same 2024 Olympics two other athletes, rugby player Ilona Maher and another boxer Lin Yu-Ting, were both accused of either steroid use or being “biologically male”. These accusations very rarely target white women; previous victims have included American tennis player Serena Williams, South African runner Caster Semenya and Indian sprinter Dutee Chand. The victims of these “debates” are often defeminised and therefore dehumanised as a result. Not to mention the effect it must have on young women discovering that the way they look suggests they cannot possibly be skilled at something but must be using some “unnatural” and unfair advantage instead.
The Inevitable Gender Hierarchy
Body image and the consistency of “womanly wiles” are crucial elements in the hitwoman’s genre tool belt. Whether it’s depicted or interpreted as a more positive association of postfeminist sexuality or as a grim necessity of living as a woman, it is very commonly depicted. Whilst it may involve more, much more agency than your traditional Bond girl, who exists only to have sex with or be held hostage by the villain, it still deeply interconnects the fantasy of the action/thriller with sexuality and therefore the association of certain ‘attractive’ body types.
Another article you may enjoy: Mickey 17: Sci-fi Blockbuster Turned Screwball Comedy
So the real question is; how best do you deconstruct patriarchy in the hitwoman genre? Even the films that “aren’t political” cannot help but interact, in some way, with gender hierarchy. It would make sense that women are the best equipped to answer that question, even if two different women make movies that say entirely oppositional things on the subject. So perhaps then, the real area that needs more women in positions of power are the producing and directorial roles that dictate hitwoman movies or TV shows in the first place.