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Sexism and the City

What's up with this vicious bashing of the 'Sex and the City' movie?

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  • Posted By: Caryn X @ 06/04/2008 11:19:47 AM

    I don't understand the comments below, for example "I agree with many of these posts that say this article's logic doesn't pan out. The author's "evidence" of men's "sexist" reaction is weak." Really? I'd say that men who have said they don't want to see a movie yet were "...voting early and often..." on IMDB "...so that the movie would have a low rating of 3 out of 10 among users before Friday..." show sexism. You don't want to see a movie? Don't. And don't vote on it. I think that men who went out of their way to vote on a movie they wouldn't see and to have such nasty comments about it (without having seen it) shows how bad sexism is in this country.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/20/2008 3:52:53 AM

      Seriously...pre-emptive strike against a movie? ridiculous...I bet the men "voting early and often" are republicans...

  • Posted By: alankent64 @ 06/11/2008 11:35:33 AM

    nothing more than PORN for conservative women.......my wife loves it yet i find the show and the series totally inane and not even close to reality ...my wife feels the same about peter norths north pole series hahahaha
    yet i tell her things like that really DO happen... she looks at me with a glare ....we men have our fantasies of cluadia schiffer and giselle and adriana lima ...
    the women drean of shoes lunches and mr big .....seroiusly i think we have the better end of the deal.
    samantha has a GUT!!!!!.. unacceptable however for a fifty yr old man its expected ...the men win HA

    • Posted By: hisarahx3 @ 06/11/2008 8:34:35 PM

      I find it disgusting how many men go out of their way to critize this movie just because they think anything to do with fashion and relationships are "superfifical". What about the porn, cars, violence, and video games most men's lives revolve around? All people have their little bits of superficial interests, and a wmovie like this, though it may not be enormously profound or groundbreaking, still stands it's own. After all it's not meant to be a Babel or a Fight Club, it's a chick flick with a bit more plot and a focus on friendship. Stop taking it so seriously, because it's purpose is the exact opposite. People ranting about how stupid and insubstantial this movie is, and the horrible values it presents need to understand this movie is NOT meant to be a folk tale teaching some traditional lessons of love and modesty. IT'S REAL LIFE, and not everyone is like Mother Theresa in the modern day

      • Posted By: rif2422 @ 06/13/2008 12:04:31 AM

        50 yr old skanks complaining about why they haven't gotten married??? It's pretty simple to a guy, don't be a skank. And, skanks complaining why they haven't gotten married? Simple don't worry about 500 dollar pumps and worry about being a better human being, c'mon..... You're joking right? Don't whine when you're easy, it's annoying.

        • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:22:09 PM

          Are you the kind of "better human being" that women should aspire to be? YOU are the reason women would rather buy pumps than settle down with a guy like yourself.

        • Posted By: hisarahx3 @ 06/17/2008 10:03:11 PM

          No one asked you to answer fictional chracters problems. And buying five hundred dollars doesn't mean you DON'T worry about being a better human being. Your view is completely ignorant, and sterotypical. Buying expensive things doesn't mean you don't care about humanity. I myself would never buy five hundred dollar shoes, but I'm sure there are other people who would never buy fifty dollar sneakers like I do. Does that make mea a horrible, superfificial evil doer?

          • Posted By: hisarahx3 @ 06/17/2008 10:04:31 PM

            And also, having an active sexual life doesn't make you a "skank" as termed in your colorful vocabulary. Take your mideival views to some backwards country where it will be appreciated.

      • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 3:22:56 AM

        Well said, hisarahx3! The men who trash Sex and the City are the real reason many women are single these days...men worth marrying are few and far between. And the jerk up there that said "Samantha has a GUT!!!!" probably looks like a troll. I find it interesting how many sloppy jerks will loudly criticize a woman's physical appearance, while somehow thinking he deserves a supermodel, then have the audacity to call a woman shallow for blowing her own money on something like shoes, which bring her more satisfaction and less grievance than most any man.

    • Posted By: dllydggr @ 06/12/2008 7:14:50 PM

      You'll still 'kick the bucket' WAAAY sooner. Have a great day!

  • Posted By: parrotflower@yahoo.com @ 06/18/2008 12:48:10 PM

    (Con't)
    Just fodder for the plot machine, or is the secret message of "Sex" you can't get what you want? What you want isn't what

    you really want? I'm tired of that patronizing old line.

    Men have good reason to be wary of this movie. How many women proclaiming that they're "a Carrie" or a "Samantha"

    have used it as a reason to behave poorly, like relationship kamakazes on their path to fulfill a new stereotype of glamor

    that parades around in equally emotionally crippling chains as the old stereotypes? Young women who have never even

    dated are spouting negative images of men and relationships as though they were bitter divorcee's.

    Why are we talking about this instead of the fact that women still make 76 cents on the dollar for the same job as men

    and one presential candidate had gone on record not supporting a bill that would make it easier for us to sue for

    discrimination that we find out about after it's occured? What about Title X's blatant misuse, and the fact that young

    women are becoming pregnant or infected at higher rates than before the AIDs scare because of a sexual policy

    counter-revolution?

    They are real battles for feminism right now. Harping shrilly on platforms with shaky bases, especially ones that even on

    the surface seem superficial, is giving anti-feminists lots of examples of their stereotypes of feminists and women: illogical,

    shrewish, over-emotional with no real complaints.

  • Posted By: parrotflower@yahoo.com @ 06/18/2008 12:47:51 PM

    I guess it's difficult for the writer of this article to think outside the stereotypes that litter the emotional landscape of "Sex in

    the City" more than pairs of expensive shoes, and realize that many men have ideological or personal experiences that

    would make them reject the movie, just as many women have. "Sex in the City" the TV show vacillated between a

    sexed-up version of "Girl Power" and a damaging game of gender politics. "Independence" is cast as sexual cynicism

    paired with emotional defensiveness, or a starry-eyed idealism that continually leads characters into unworkable

    relationships that damage both partners.

    Even the feminist ideology of the show is dubious. While the "we're fabulous and single" mantra definitely has a place in

    our society to liberate those of us who don't need to fit the marriage cookie cutter, it's underlaid by a constant striving in

    the show for just that--the traditional romantic plot that motivates the overarching plot of the television show, and takes

    over with a vengeance in the movie. A movie whose trailer, by the way, showed me that the smooth pacing and witty

    dialogue that redeemed the negative parts of the tv show had been replaced with traditional hollywood romantic comedy

    schmaltz.

    All of the women want something, they are powerful and dedicated to getting it. And yet over the course of the show, all

    of them are frustrated at every turn. Charlotte can't concieve, Carrie can't find a meaningful relationship, Samantha keeps

    getting tricked into them, and the one true new-wave style protagonist, Miranda, gets knocked up.
    (Con't)

  • Posted By: Jeff in CLT @ 06/03/2008 7:06:46 PM

    Yes, we men are tired of being bashed, made fun of in commercials, hit by women (V8 commercial) and just generally talked down to by women. Get over yourself. It seems the self esteem of women has more than been corrected. If it's that good, go home and lick it yourself.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:38:07 AM

      Waaaaahhhhhh....I'd rather masturbate with a cheese grater than to let you lick me....

  • Posted By: crandiva @ 06/03/2008 7:09:02 PM

    We're bashing it because we don't want to pay to see 45 year old cougars having sex and talking about their feelings. Why bother when we can see hot younger women having sex on the internet for free and no talking afterward.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:36:23 AM

      I hope you enjoy your online voyeurism, because you certainly don't deserve any real live sex...

  • Posted By: 4tillfriday @ 06/03/2008 9:25:55 PM

    I really don't get it, my husband rants about this movie claiming these women are whores on parade, but yet he has no issue with American Pie, Porky's, 40 year old virgin, or Wedding Crashers. It's ok for men to chase tail and try to get as many women as possible in the sack on the big screen - but when 4 women do it it's horrible and they are whores. Women are sexual beings, period, always have been. Sex in the City is just the first time that a show or movie has come along that puts it out there the same way we have been seeing men portrayed for years. When 4 men try to have sex with alot of women it's called a comedy, when 4 women have sex with alot of men they are sluts. It makes me laugh. I am also amazed that so many people just don't get two very important details, the stories portrayed in this series and this movie are real stories that have happened to real women. Rather than having 1.5 million lead female characters on this show, they divided the stories and issues up between 4 main characters, so yes, they all got alot of action. Second, the real story is the friendship these women share, through thick and thin they stand together, they will always be friends no matter what man comes along and that is the true story. I love my girlfriends, they were there before my husband, and if it ever came to be that he was no longer in my life, my girlfriends would be there after. That is what the show and this movie are about - the bon and friendship shared by these women.

    • Posted By: Kiron @ 06/03/2008 9:55:04 PM

      Women are sluts because you can have sex when you want too, its called a comedy when guys do it because about every man except Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp can not have sex when we want to and have to work very hard to do so, so the lengths we got through are made into over the top antics. Thats why women who sleep around are whores and guys are not.

      • Posted By: Rock Storm @ 06/04/2008 3:24:16 AM

        Wow Kiron, you sound like the kind of guy that will rape a woman and then say it's because she was "asking for it" because she dared to appear in public without a birka. You're a pathetic example of the male gender.

        I am a man myself and agree that the root of most of the negativity is the threat that independent women pose to the men of this country. How dare they expect the same level of joy out of life and a relationship as a man does? Much of the criticism is based around one dimensional, promiscuous, materialistic characters.... how about James Bond - he's all of these but mention his foibles and all you get is a wink and a nod from the men.... Tony Stark (Iron Man) is complex and flawed billionaire playboy with Gwyneth Paltrow as his one dimensional girl-friday , but forgive him because he builds a metal suit to save, ulitimately, himself and his company. Wake up fellas and admit you're applying a double standard.

        • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:33:53 AM

          Rock Storm...I think I love you...that was awesome...

  • Posted By: NYCfemale43 @ 06/05/2008 2:35:53 AM

    Please don' t dare compare Hillary to the girls--Carrie, Miranda, Samantha or Charlotte. They would have vehemently voted against the war in Iraq and stood up to the good ole boys. As true New Yorkers and intelligent women, they would have relentlessly pursued and caught the REAL enemy ... in time for cocktails.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:24:54 AM

      You are SO RIGHT! I would have more respect for Hillary if she had spoken directly to the "iron my shirt" guys by offering to iron their shirts, as long as they were wearing them while she did it...(I've been dying to say that for months)...and I'd vote for Samantha over Hillary any day...

  • Posted By: Thtcat @ 06/07/2008 3:29:40 PM

    OK, I'm a man. I'm a flaming hetero-sexual. I enjoy the series. I even enjoyed the movie to some degree, but at the same time, it made me genuinely angry. (Spoiler alert!) It seems to me that if a female character in the movies got cold feet and left the scene of the wedding, only to turn around and return mere minutes later, she would not be so castigated as Mr. Big was. It is, after all, a woman's perogative to change her mind. I suppose it is romantic to have your secretary copy historical love stories on your behalf and send them off into the ether of cyberspace fully expecting them to never be read. It doesn't seem to fit in with the character of Big from the series however. Now that he's finally found Love, he can't live without Carrie? It seems to me that sometime before the 5 months had passed, he probably would have given up on the project (though he really didn't need to devote much energy to it). I get it that he loves her. I get it that he knows he made her justifiably angry. At some point though, wouldn't he shake his head of his besotted haze and see that she might have been over-reacting to cut him out of her life completely? Wouldn't this make him angry in return? He would be expected to be understanding if she needed a few minutes to catch her breath before entering the Public Library for such a life changing event. Is it wrong of me to be angry at Carrie for not being more tolerant of his trepidation? Clearly a wedding is always seen as the bride's day, but let's not accept that notion to the exclusion to the feelings of the groom.

    Oh, well. I guess the women deserve to have a movie that skews things into their perspective. Maybe that's how they feel about one of my fantasy genres... porn.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:15:45 AM

      I find your comment to be refreshingly intelligent. Thanks for not being shallow. I suspect you are a cool guy.

  • Posted By: HungLo @ 06/09/2008 11:43:54 AM

    Lets face it, "Sex and the City" is pure garbage. It teaches 16-24 year old girls to go and sleep around and be promiscuous. Now, being a sexually active guy myself I'm all for it, but how would you like it if this was your daughter or sister or mother, or better yet, your wife, that was going around your city sleeping and f**ing around with douchebags. It's not sexism that makes people hate this show, it's the ideology behind it.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:11:45 AM

      Maybe it's teaching 16-24 year old girls that there's no point to f**king around with douchebags, if they notice how well it's worked out for these women. If the viewers are smart, then they will realize that there are many different levels to relationships, and that men rarely are the prize that fairytales have led them to believe. It's best to cultivate our own happiness rather than expect anyone to be our happiness.

  • Posted By: wehlers @ 06/09/2008 2:17:06 PM

    Seriously, now I have to feel bad about hating this crappy TV show and crappy movie? Is my distaste for the story of four selfish, label obsessed women any different from my wife's, simply because I am a man? Does every preference have to be sexism? Can't I just admire Barak Obama without being a misogynist?

    It scares the bejesus out of me when we get to this level. I have never- not once- bemoaned the fact that most women I know don't understand the appeal of the Three Stooges, cigars and fishing. It has never occured to me for one minute that it was anything more than a preference. This movie is not a cultural milestone- it is a movie that a lot of woman seem to like more than men. Have a good time, but let us see "Ironman" and we will meet you in the lobby.

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 4:06:27 AM

      I get what you are saying, but if you really feel this way, then why even bother to weigh in on the movie at all? If it doesn't interest you, then why did you read this article and its comments? I know I wouldn't bother reading an article about Ironman, cigars, fishing, or the Three Stooges...

  • Posted By: dllydggr @ 06/10/2008 6:55:01 PM

    Well, why is one single film suddenly responsible for representing the entire female species? Are all men represented by the Indiana Jones movie? Or that one with Adam Sandler?

    • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 3:58:56 AM

      Interesting comment...it made me think about men and movies they love...almost every man I know can quote "Airplane" and "Caddyshack" word for word...what does THAT tell you about men? Leslie Neillsen and Rodney Dangerfield are their heroes, so why should we really care what they think of anything we watch?

  • Posted By: calamity jyl @ 06/18/2008 3:47:47 AM

    I hear men and women BOTH criticize Sex and the City...and it just makes me think "either you get it, or you don't". It seems to me that the women who don't like it are somewhat repressed, or in denial of what issues really exist in the "single over 35" crowd (and it IS a crowd) these days. Women have become self-sufficient because it's necessary, based on the way men whine about "women wanting rings and commitment" among other things, yet they believe they are entitled to supermodel-looking women who are subservient to their slovenly egos. Yet, somehow, women still want to believe there are men out there who can love and appreciate them, which I believe is generous, even if it is just natural instinct to preserve the human race. And as for the women who disapprove of the show, well, either they are living in a bubble of repression, or they are bitter about their own guilt for settling for less than these women have. I think Sex and the City is a courageous exploration of the best and worst case scenarios of potential relationship outcomes, with the beauty of unconditional love (in the form of their friendships) always being the payoff for following their heart.

  • Posted By: rif2422 @ 06/13/2008 12:01:41 AM

    Why can't I view all comments? Is Newsweak afraid that the U.S. is about to stabilize Iraq??? Or are they afraid of losing their strident, loudmouth, and inane Left readers??? I would be too after all the trash they talked and proven wrong. Oh yah and hey where are all those folks telling us how wrong the surge was? And how wrong Bush was for "staying the course"? Cowards one and all. Get behind the push and winning team. It's your last chance..... Republicans in '08. How ironic this war is Obama's downfall, not to laugh or anything.

    • Posted By: hisarahx3 @ 06/17/2008 10:06:39 PM

      Your comment has absolutey nothing to do with this topic. Please keep your crazy conspiracy theories to yourself and stop polluting areas where people are trying to have intellectual discussions.

  • Posted By: nesreen @ 06/16/2008 6:14:51 AM

    there is tremendous sexism everywhere, especially hollywood, where market value overrides real values, like treating women like humans. but it was a crappy movie that was sexist itself; utterly dense and one-dimensional women focusing on marriage and material things.

  • Posted By: inspireradavstatyer @ 06/14/2008 8:21:00 PM

    Of course men hate Sex and the City. Men do always, even if they're insinuating the opposite, hate free women who's not letting the patriarchy control them. Especially when it comes to sex, men turn hateful if they can't hold women as slaves. In my country Sweden, where the equality is very strong, we are so over that.

  • Posted By: glimps @ 06/13/2008 5:36:07 PM

    this was my T.V. show on HBO . No i like Big Love .. HBO always has hits !!

  • Posted By: buffangel2000 @ 06/10/2008 2:46:38 PM

    Men can bash this film all they want, but on opening night I was in an auditorium full of 500 women, dressed in their finest duds, and having one of the most fun girls nights in recent memory. I had to wonder ;) "Why are men so afraid of women enjoying themselves for two hours without the influence of testosterone?" Threatened much?

    • Posted By: rif2422 @ 06/13/2008 12:09:17 AM

      of what strong, independant skanks? not much, just laughing at the fact that women look so much up to these type of women. There is no surprise that men don't want these types of women and don't be surprised they don't want to watch a movie glorifying these type of women. It isn't men to blame it's women looking to these type of women (i.e. Paris Hilton) as a source of entertainment.

  • Posted By: rif2422 @ 06/13/2008 12:01:07 AM

    Wow, talk about off mark, just more liberal left garbage spewn at the expense of men. Listen, the reason the men don't like this movie is simple. What the author fails to realize is that the reason why men don't like this movie is that it's a bunch of women sleeping around then whining about why they're single. Sex in the City hahaha don't make me laugh, this is a movie and a t.v. show that was oriented towards women, don't be surprised when men laugh and joke at the expense of the cast. It doesn't help the lead looks like a horse brahhhahhhahhhh. Another reason it appeals to women... and 500$ Prada pumps, don't make me laugh please... unless this movie is a comedy right???? Oh wait sorry was that masogynistic? Probably un-pc too huh? oops. The truth does hurth

  • Posted By: genecassidy @ 06/12/2008 8:46:17 AM

    This article is worse than foolish. It presumes all men think the same way and suggests to those who don't that there must be something wrong with them. Blacks, gays and - golly -women have to put up with the same blockheaded presumptions. But I guess 500 words isn't enough space for real thought, just mindless provocation.

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