For my presentation on the Marxist vs Hegemonic film theories, I chose to represent the Hegemonic theory with a scene from “La La Land.” The scene, “Someone in the Crowd,” is a musical number where the main character, Mia, is being convinced by her friends to go to a lavish party in in Hollywood in order to hopefully attract the attention of a special someone in the crowd and hopefully being swept into fame and recognition. This scene exemplifies the hegemonic theory as it glorifies the wealthy party scene of Hollywood with champagne and mansions as well as having the powerful figures in the film industry being portrayed as men.
This scene included hegemonic characteristics such as the idealization of the upper class as well as the male gaze. This scene taught me how the male gaze could contribute to the narrative of the story rather than just being a way of appealing to the masses. The male gaze was used by putting all the women in the scene in short skimpy dresses and having them being swept off their feet by the men as they danced in a very sensual manner. This is relevant as the song “Someone in the Crowd” suggest that getting the attention of a powerful man was the main goal of the aspiring actresses rather than getting fame on their own.
Jennifer Huynh Film 