How to Write Strong Female Characters

[@Vivifyre]

A KZbinr once tried to test me... I left a comment 👇 with some fava beans 🙂 and a nice chianti 🍷 I hope you do the same! 😄

[@kurtvanluven9351]

When writing strong female characters, I have found including their building, bunk and inmate # lets them get faster mail delivery.

[@darrensmith3418]

As someone who’s considering getting back into writing, I find having strong female characters to be very important. Physical abilities help and is great but is way too easy. You look at Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor and Sigourney Weaver in the first couple Alien films. It’s wasn’t weapons, muscle, nor position of power that made them strong. I hope you know and can find more and other topics to help.

[@darrensmith3418]

@jennasiidethat’s beautiful

[@theraven6836]

I love the fear Foster portrays when Clarice pulls out her revolver and shouts FBI. There’s no bluff or bluster, no boss-girl, Schwarzenegger or Stallone in her acting. There’s only one 5’3” young woman terrified about what she’s experiencing but having the nerve and strength to overcome her fear and do her duty. That’s a strong woman character.

[@wanderingseth]

This is why I loved Disney's live action Cinderella. Lily James embodied a strength that came from something gentle, kind, and compassionate. She was vulnerable and naive sometimes, but the strength of her heart was indomitable.

[@missdragonfire]

I was 14 years old when "Silence of the Lambs" came out. I remember watching it and feeling very concerned for Clarice when she entered the lock-up and then Bill's house. I was also angry at her for not getting back up because I was so invested in her as a character/person. I managed to endure 4 episodes (eventually) of "RoP" and can honestly say I hate the character of Galadriel. She does not represent me as a woman at all.

[@enricolopespavani3069]

Dana Scully ( X-Files) is another character that is so well written that hurts good,one of my fave characters ever

[@renzokukenleneyoyo522]

She was the original BAMF! (At least to me... I did remember Ripley but I was a kid then) She was magnificently written and portrayed.

[@markthompson180]

I can't believe that Rings of Power even had Galadriel steal words from Kate Blanchet's Queen Elizabeth - "There is a tempest in me ..." Huge eye-roll moment here. What were the writers thinking -- that nobody would notice that they so blatantly stole the line? . . . and then they ruined it! lol

[@Vivifyre]

@@markthompson180 haha! I actually didn't catch that so they got one on me 😅. Maybe I was too worn down by them stealing all the Peter Jackson lotr lines 🤷‍♂️

[@cgsweat]

Pure laziness. And unfortunately most people won't notice. Don't be surprised as it continues to happen.

[@lucinae8512]

I haven't seen that scene, yet felt like the writers plagiarised it from someone else's work and planned it into a context and world where it felt out of place!

[@Bucky_Winchester]

Female Filmmaker here! I am so sick of our film and TV landscape nowadays... producers and whatnot are pushing so hard for us to only make "relevant" movies and shows and it directly translates to inauthentic bs for the sake of pandering - which also doesn't work. I was literally told that I should focus on "empowering FMCs" in my work, but they didn't like nuanced and complex characters. They had to be "perfect" and better than the male counterparts. We have the issue of the pendulum where we had bad female representation the years before, very hard only into one direction and now it's swinging back into a whole different awful direction, as we can see. They tried to write "strong FMCs" as if they were men or objectified them, it didn't work - now they are trying to make them as perfect as they can and it also doesn't work. These characters have no depth, no faults, they aren't relatable in any way. They're not fun to watch, no one is rooting for them. When it comes to strong FMCs I always have to think of Courtney Summers - a writer who got told that her FMCs were too unlikable and she should tone them down for the reader, but they are flawed in the best way. Each one of them feels like an actual human. They aren't good at everything they do, they can be awful people but you get what makes them tick, you witness their struggles, you can empathize with them as they grow and make achievements. It can be done. It's just very hard when the writers are so hyperfocused on the wrong parts that make a FMC a good and strong one. It's so frustrating. P.S. Another thing that's bothering me immensely is that many things that were deemed problematic about male characters in the past now get a free pass when it comes to female characters. But that's another can of worms T_T

[@Vivifyre]

@@Bucky_Winchester couldn't agree more with the last part! Like I said in the video, I think they're championing female Biff Tannens as paragons of virtue lol 😂. Interesting to hear about the pressure you've encountered but can't say I'm surprised unfortunately 😔. There seems to be a quasi-religious censoriousness creeping into the industry... If it makes you feel any better, all the great artists of the past encountered similar pressures from the authorities about what they had to include in their work 😂

[@hollybums89]

This was such a fantastic video, I adore that you chose and focused on Clarice Starling as she's such a underrated but fantastic character. She isn't physically stronger, or instantly the most intelligent in the room purely because 'girl-boss'. She's a real human, she has weaknesses but still puts herself in danger regaurdless. Thats true courage and something we can feel ourselves, its palpable because there are real stakes at hand. Her vulnerabilities as a woman helps progress the plot, she's strong because she has to work around her adversity and physical limitations, no one pandered to her she had to work for everything. People like to see characters grow and push through struggles and trials that first seem impossible and come out the end. Showing all the losses and set backs along the way, its what makes good story telling. It makes the victory at the end mean something because of the journey we took with the characters to get there. Not just something being handed to us on a silver platter with a cheap joke because she-hulk can't lose. We have lost sincerity.

[@Vivifyre]

@@hollybums89 agree 100% 👍. There's a lot of values we're missing currently and sincerity is definitely one of them.

[@captainhowlerwilson508]

Clarice Starling is such an overlooked character when it comes to strong heroines. She risked her life taking down Buffalo Bill and confronted Hannibal Lecter on multiple occasions standing her ground mentally.

[@Raisin_Girl]

As a 46 year old woman, I am cheering even on the rewatch. I do hope people see this soon. We have to restore balance. Thank you for making these

[@Vivifyre]

@@Raisin_Girl thank you for commenting! I've been happy to see the amount of positive feedback on this video from female viewers - I'm glad I'm hitting the mark 🎯😄

[@edcliffe2988]

Sansa Stark is an example of a strong character. Started off being so easy to boss around, handled herself so very well by the end. Excellent character growth.

[@Vivifyre]

Good character arc but I was a little disappointed with some of the pacing - but that's a problem for all of game of thrones as the series proceeds! Thanks for commenting 😀

[@acratone8300]

Also, Arya Stark paid her dues. She was really bad at sword training for years early on, while training under Syrio Forel who was a master sword-fighter and her instructor. She is so awful in those scenes in the TV series that she was almost comical. But slowly she was learning. Knocked around and humiliated for years while studying under Jaqen H'ghar the faceless man, trying to learn how to become an invisible, if blind, assassin. She quits that Braavos group after she has learned enough. She had no interest in the guild, only in it's skills. Nobody in the series bowed and scraped so long and hard to achieve something useful, the skill of a silent invisible assassin. And thus prepared, she saves the world. Brava!

[@Vivifyre]

@@acratone8300 Absolutely! The start of Arya's arc was fantastic, but she had the same problem as Sansa later on when the writing got rushed and sloppy and nonsensical. So she gets half a good story... Which is still more than we get now 😂

[@mikametcalf3783]

How can current movie makers not understand that viewers love a character that is flawed, fearful and can be redeemed because we see ourselves in them?

[@Vivifyre]

@@mikametcalf3783 they're too hung up on trying to make a point, rather than trying to express something that's true 😅 it's a shame. Thanks for commenting!

[@alien777]

Realy where are These males characters? No

[@1dorz]

@@alien777 Back To The Future? Star Wars? Rocky? Enemy Of The State? The Godfather? To name but a short few

[@alien777]

@@1dorz where are they now? And they where fearful? Marty mcfly? You kidding? You saw yoursrlf in the godfather?

[@1dorz]

@@alien777 You didn't see they were afraid? You weren't paying attention

[@MathiaArkoniel]

I agree with every point you made here. Hollywood is suffering from terrible writing lately. I really want to see more female heroines, but ones I can relate to (as a woman myself). One thing that stood out most from your video is that Rings of Power Galadriel (and other similar 'empowered' female characters) all have the characteristics of a Villain. The arrogance, the superiority complex, the stubbornness and narcissism. When male characters have these characteristics in movies, they are always the villains or the aholes. Why would these character traits be good for main female heroines? Do writers really hate their female characters so much?

[@Vivifyre]

@@MathiaArkoniel yeah there's some really bizarre psychology going on 😬 it's not pleasant to watch them give us villains and insist we call them heroes

[@charissawilkinson9270]

More of a self-insert. The writers are creating mary-sues instead of strong women.

[@queenberuthiel5469]

Funny because ONE proof to what you said is the character of Feanor. ROP's Galadriel is nothing like canon Galadriel but more like Feanor. Only difference is that Feanor is the real deal. The most important character in the Silmarillion, the most talented craftsman, the one who made the three Silmarils. He developed a whole-ass writing system, he's a linguist and a great orator. Gandalf said that maybe he made the Palantiri too. From what I've mentioned, he seem to be one massive Gary Stu right? But not really. He have flaws like his superiority complex, his inability to empathize, his prideful nature, his insecurity, his pettyness and his gigantic ego. Because of this, even though he's the crown prince, some Noldor elves chose to follow his younger brother instead. He broke his wife's heart, dragged his children into an unbreakable oath, threatened to harm his half-brother and ordered the slaying of his fellow elves just because he lost his shit. He also single-handedly cause the Doom of the Noldor and the doom of his own bloodline lol. What a dude. Such a massive a-hole. I strongly dislike his character but I'd say that even he is way more complex and way more interesting than ROP's Galadriel. 🥴

[@thekataphraktoi2197]

Ted Levine’s performance as Buffalo Bill gets overlooked, but his acting was first class.

[@Vivifyre]

Good actor, always different every time I see him, despite this really memorable role as buffalo bill 👌

[@DarkErrant]

Writers nowadays forgot that nuance is what makes characters great, whether they be woman or man or whateverelse. I've watching Shogun, and while the female are not really main protagonist, they show a lot of this as well. It's such a well written show, it almost made me forgot all the crappy writting in the last years in hollywood or gaming.

[@Vivifyre]

Absolutely! I'd really like to know how a lot of them end up in such prominent writing positions 🤔 so many of them just clearly don't have the experience (or skill) required. Shogun is on my to-watch list - I read the book years ago but I can't remember much apart from the start so looking forward to it! Thanks for the comment and sub man, very much appreciated! 👍

[@Maccaboy1984]

@@Vivifyrewatch it, and get others to also. We need to show that quality, nuanced content can attract an audience

[@johnwolf2829]

The writers of trash like The wRongs of Power and The Acolyte not only hate the source material (and us too) but they are belittled by the accomplishments of those that came before them. They know they can never match them, so instead they try to defile them and call it..... well, who cares? As JRR hismself said; "Evil people cannot be creative, they can only corrupt what already exists." Or, as Marcus Aurelius said; "All cruelty comes from weakness."

[@Yutah1981]

strength is overcoming your weaknesses. if there's no weaknesses, there's no strength.

[@Vivifyre]

@@Yutah1981 absolutely! And a story is a combination of sequences depicting the move from one state of being into another. When characters are already "perfect" there's no story to tell.

[@Janeway1269]

I always loved the character of Clarice, and the actor Jodie Foster! Jodie represents strong women characters (please don't say "female"..it is considered rather Ferengi today), so often for the very reasons you describe. And while I was reluctant to her a man discuss strong women, I think you did a decent job. We've had vulnerable male heroes for awhile; the ground there was broken thought not always followed and it would be wonderful to see more of it. I think people write women as invulnerable as if to make up for something, while also limiting their humanity as if it's bad to show human limits. Working despite those limits is what makes us ALL strong. So please, keep giving examples of well written women characters in your view. I like where you are going with this, and it's never redundant. It doesn't come up nearly often enough.

[@janayhu]

I watched this whole video because it got recommended to me without realizing this isn‘t a big production, your style of narration is really good!! I have this very elaborate theory that the downfall of female character writing started with Game of Thrones (seriously, the writers couldn‘t handle a single female in that show after they diverted from the source material)

[@Vivifyre]

Wow, that's a great compliment, thanks so much! Yeah Game of Thrones later seasons definitely got a big dose of that when it started going around 🤔 pretty unfortunate considering what they needed to do with Daenerys. Thanks for the comment! 🙂

[@alien777]

They could not hadle a Single male too.

[@scottmari]

The Biff Tannen School of Personal Empowerment and Character Development! This could be the best joke on the internet about Rings of Power-which is saying something. This person would normally be a villain-Yes! When in the opening scene where Galadriel is willing to abandon a team member to stay on her quest through the ice and snow - that is a villain trope - you would write that to get people to HATE a character - imagine in real life, if I abandoned you to hypothermia and you lived, you would find me later and kill me! Not hero-type stuff, not something that would inspire loyalty. You would inspire lifelong hatred-Villain to the core.

[@Vivifyre]

Haha! Thank you very much 😆 Yeah it's insane what they think is good behaviour 🤔 even just the little things - there's so many times watching this show where I'd think "why on earth are you showing me this?" when the characters do something petty or ugly or downright cruel.

[@JoelAdamson]

The filmmakers on Silence of the Lambs had a huge head start: Clarice in Thomas Harris's book is even better as a well-rounded, believable character who is interesting and engaging. She's even more human I'd say, because we see more of her personal life. In the book she goes out with the entomologist and tries to have a personal life, to keep herself "real" away from hunting down psychopathic murderers.

[@emilie_j817]

Galadriel was even more "human" in the movies than in R.O.P. It was small since she didn't have much screen time throughout the trilogy, but the segment where she's tempted by the ring. It showed her being vulnerable. Hell, even in The Hobbit movies she collapses after using so much power to banish Sauran. Even though that was obviously fan service, it didn't show her being god-like in a way R.O.P. seems determined to.

[@Vivifyre]

@@emilie_j817 Absolutely! Cate Blanchett's Galadriel was far more memorable with so much less screentime

[@ChrisTopher-1599]

Wow! For years now when I have this same discussion with people about modern "strong" female writing, I've always used Clarice Starling as my example of how it is supposed to be done. Love that now I can just show them this video :)

[@Vivifyre]

@@ChrisTopher-1599 Brilliant! Glad to hear it 🙂

[@daisyvd369]

I love this and agree wholeheartedly! Female characters nowadays feel so disingenuous and are just too much, I get so easily put off and it's so rare to come across vulnerability and genuine emotion. Please keep making great content

[@Vivifyre]

@@daisyvd369 thank you! 🙂

[@gardener68]

The character of Naru in 2022's Prey was a refreshing change of pace, and she quickly became one of my favorite characters in any movie. While initially portrayed as somewhat skilled but highly intelligent, she clearly lacks experience. Her mistakes and missteps are shown as learning moments for her character, making her final triumph so satisfying. Naru is right up there with classic characters like Ellen Ripley and Clarice Starling. I hope more writers see this as both inspiration and an incentive to create better characters in film.

[@michelangelo_6933]

Nah not so sure about that one 😅

[@PuppyKhan]

I loved that movie. They were portraying Naru as a modern feminist boss girl type, but instead did it far better than other shows attempting that trope by showing her grow into it with all the learning and vulnerability along the way, and still needing to use her wits instead of magically becoming unrealistically super strong.

[@almitrahopkins1873]

It seems strangely appropriate to take an example from Star Wars that actually works, since they have given us so many that haven’t in recent years. Of course I’m talking about Princess Leia in the ‘77 original. Everyone remembers the ships coming into the screen from over the top, but they always forget that the first line of dialogue is C-3PO saying he doesn’t know how the princess will get out of it “this time”. That creates a mystery that you should carry with you, even when the narrative tries to steer you away from it. You get a little snippet of a scene that shows her straightening up after recording the message before C-3PO interrupts her and R2D2. That tells you that C-3PO couldn’t even be trusted with the message that R2D2 is carrying. The next scene is her firing a shot at a stormtrooper that drops him before turning to run. That’s a guerrilla fighting in a contained area. If the Stormtroopers weren’t using that stun setting, she would have gotten away to do it again. The next scene, she lies to Darth Vader without the slightest bit of fear. She even throws some snark behind it for good measure. This is immediately followed by a junior officer telling Vader “holding her could be dangerous”, which doesn’t include the why it could be dangerous. It could be her political clout or the fact that she has escaped before. Vader saying “you are part of the Rebel Alliance and a spy” should have pointed you to the latter reason for the danger. The next scene where she is mentioned is when Luke is cleaning up the droids. Luke mentions the carbon scoring on R2D2 and asks if they’ve seen much action. That tells you R2D2 has been shot up before. After the message plays, C-3PO says “she must have been a passenger on our last voyage”, lying blatantly to Luke about knowing who she is. The scene when Ben is first introduced he says “I don’t remember ever owning a droid” but he most certainly does recognize his former apprentice’s droids. If you think not, remember that Panaka read R2D2’s designation off a nameplate in the Phantom Menace. That’s the reason she sent R2D2 to find Obi-wan, aside from knowing that an escape pod with a lifeform on it wouldn’t reach the planet. The second part of that comes into play later. It wasn’t an accident that Leia’s ship went to Tattooine. She knew she was going to get caught. That’s why she slipped the plans onto R2D2 and went to play hide & seek with the stormtroopers. She was buying R2D2 time to get away. If you remember at the end of Revenge of the Sith, R2D2 remembered who Obi-wan was and more importantly, where he was. In the next scene, Leia is a hologram. He knows exactly who she is. He also knows the Star Destroyer in orbit has Vader on board. That’s why Ben makes plans to get Luke off the planet as quickly as possible. Ben can feel Vader, but Vader’s painful memories hide Ben & Luke from Vader for the time being. The next scene, Leia lies to Tarkin and Vader while throwing shade at both of them. She knows they are both afraid of her, which is why she is not afraid of them right then. She makes the comment about Alderaan being peaceful and not having weapons, which is an allusion to the Quakers, which becomes relevant later. Her reaction to her home planet being blown up is a tight shot and you can just barely make out that there are two guards standing behind her, holding her shoulders to keep her from attacking Tarkin. The next scene where she is mentioned is when R2D2 finds out she is alive. C-3PO says “he just keeps saying ‘she’s alive’ and ‘she’s here’”, noting the obvious emotional response to finding out she is still alive. That’s also the scene where Lucas uses Luke & Han to convince the audience that the helpless princess needs to be rescued. The next scene with her, she throws shade at her guard saying “aren’t you a little short for a stormtrooper?” Her homeworld just got blown up and she’s calmly and coolly trying to pick a fight with her guard while the door is open. As soon as Luke takes off the helmet and mentions Obi-wan, she on her feet and ready to take the fight to the stormtroopers. The next scene looks like it contains a continuity error. Leia suddenly has a blaster that she picks up from a dead stormtrooper out of scene. This is a callback to Dick Winters on D-Day who had to grab a German rifle because he lost his in the jump into Normandy. Winters was a Quaker, hence the comment earlier about Alderaan being peaceful. That real-world history tells you what to expect from then on. Her first words to Han Solo were “did you have a plan for getting out of here?”, just before deciding the garbage chute was “anywhere but here”, which was a good plan. She then goes first into unknown danger, like a good leader does. I’m skipping over the trash compactor scene, but there is some question there because the dialogue from Luke and Leia sounds similar. The “walking carpet” scene is supposed to make you think she’s a bossy princess, but she was taking point and putting the squad support weapon behind her in case of ambush. When Han runs off down a passageway, she makes the comment about him being reckless. When they’re stuck at the bridge, she steps out to fire at one point but doesn’t. That’s fire discipline. She didn’t have a clear shot so she didn’t fire. When they get to the hangar, she says, “you came in that? I am impressed.” That can be taken as the snooty princess, used to brand-new luxury spacecraft or the battle-hardened lieutenant used to military assault craft. During the fight with the TIE fighters, she stands behind Chewbacca instead of jumping into the pilot’s seat. You know from the later movies that she is a capable pilot, but she stays in the command position instead of taking over from Chewbacca. This repeats itself in the control room during the battle of Yavin. After the TIE fighters, she says,”that was too easy”, meaning she is familiar with military and security protocols. When they pull the blasted R2D2 out of Luke’s X-wing, she doesn’t react to it because it has happened before. She knows they’ll put him back together and he’ll be right as rain. She has owned that droid since birth, remember? If you watch R2D2 and Leia, they fight the same. They both convince you they are harmless. R2D2 is the Obi-wan for Princess Leia. He’s the one who taught her how to fight and be a perfect spy. R2D2 didn’t have his memory wiped at the end of Revenge of the Sith, remember? Princess Leia is the “hidden badass” trope. She comes into the story already trained to fight, unlike Luke. Lucas didn’t give her a backstory, so you would only notice her if you paid attention to little details. That’s why the Disney writers can’t make a compelling heroine. They already had the best one possible.

[@Vivifyre]

@@almitrahopkins1873 wow great breakdown! Thanks for sharing 😀

[@almitrahopkins1873]

@@Vivifyre It was good writing on Lucas’ part. It was “show, don’t tell”. Rather than telling you Leia was a capable Republic fighter and super spy, he showed you and told you she wasn’t. There are other little bits that are missing context in the film. You probably missed them entirely, unless you were the sort of person they were intended for. The scene when Obi-wan introduces Chewbacca to Luke before going to meet Han is replayed in Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket when Cowboy introduces Joker to the guys in his squad. That tells you that Obi-wan knew Chewbacca and that’s why they went to Mos Eisley instead of a larger, more regulated spaceport where getting a ship off-world would be easier and far cheaper. The scene where Chewbacca is calmly playing a game with the droids while Luke plays around with the lightsaber reinforces this. Han is uncomfortable while the lightsaber is being used, but for Chewbacca, it’s no big deal. Chewbacca has seen lightsabers used before. The scene with the presentation of medals further reinforces it. Chewbacca is on the dais to receive one, but he doesn’t. If you have a military background, you know that means he is getting his second presentation of that medal. He is getting the clusters to go with the one he already received, even though he isn’t wearing the original medal. That tells you Chewbacca fought in the Clone Wars too without actually saying it. Unless I am mistaken, the back Yoda climbs onto after order 66 on Kashyyk in Revenge of the Sith is wearing Chewbacca’s bandolier. It was a little detail that you might miss unless you were paying really close attention. That would mean Chewbacca knew Yoda, because he helped him escape order 66. Those little details make you look at the relationship between Chewbacca & Han, R2D2 & Leia and Obi-wan & Luke in a similar light. Chewbacca and R2D2 are the “mentor” figure for Han and Leia, respectively, at the start. In Empire, the mentors switch as Chewbacca & R2D2 help Leia escape from Bespin after Han is taken by the bounty hunter, who conveniently wears a helmet and a face that Vader trusts. Lucas couldn’t write dialogue to save his life, but his visual storytelling is master’s work. Look at the way R2D2 uses things like the fire extinguishers to cover the escape of the remaining heroes when the fight to get back to the Falcon starts. It’s a replay of Leia covering for R2D2 in A New Hope. And Chewbacca carrying C-3PO was the same as carrying Yoda to escape the clones in Revenge of the Sith. Disney fails in their “girl boss” nonsense because they don’t actually know how to script one and they don’t know how to block it either. Leia works because they only hinted at how she got to where she is. Rey failed because they told you how she got there and it didn’t match what she did. Han Solo should have been scripted into the Obi-wan role in The Force Awakens, letting him tell Rey & Finn about the force. He should have told them that his luck was the force all along. He should have had a lightsaber hanging from his belt that he ignored when pulling his blaster. That sets him up as the perfect mentor for Po, as he tried to get Rey & Finn to Leia. The Starkiller base could have been cut from the story altogether. The Last Jedi should have focused entirely on Rey’s training by Luke and her second confrontation with Kylo Ren and the Knights of Ren. Leia’s “Mary Poppins” scene should have ended with her handing off her lightsaber to Finn, like handing off the torch to a new generation. Po’s grousing about being stuck with Han on the falcon instead of zipping around in a star fighter would mirror Yoda’s training of Luke on Dagobah. That’s when they should have stuck Han jumping out of hyperspace into a planet’s atmosphere into the canon, because only a trained force-user could pull that off. That gets you to the jailbreak to free Finn & Leia (who is already dead by this point). Kylo kills Snoke, because he is a spoiled brat, lusting for power and Rey fails to beat him, for a second time, escaping with the others. Luke’s farewell to Leia is purely within the force, showing how powerful she really was. Luke giving her the dice from the Falcon foreshadows it being destroyed in the next movie. The Rise of Skywalker is when you finally get to see the three apprentices working together, under the leadership of Han & Luke, with R2D2 and Chewbacca as well. Han tries to repeat the hyperspace into orbit trick, crashing the Falcon in the process, because of his feelings about the loss of Leia. R2D2 & C-3PO sneak into the base’s control room and start playing merry hob, locking doors, turning on force fields and otherwise making it a nightmare for the stormtroopers trying to fight off the infiltration by the rest. Han gets cut down by one of the Knights of Ren and he tells Chewie to go save Luke, much like in Empire Strikes Back when he says to protect Leia. R2D2 is channeling the three apprentices to where Luke is, the entire time, so they arrive just when Kylo finally cuts down the last remaining Jedi. The three apprentices then attack as one, the soldier, the pilot and the sorcerer, killing Kylo quickly as Chewbacca tries to keep Luke alive and get him out of there. The last scene with Luke is him telling the three apprentices “teach what you have learned”, just like Yoda told Luke, before Luke dies. That ends the Skywalker family saga and sets up the Knights of Skywalker fighting the Knights of Ren in future sequels, without having to resurrect a cloned emperor Palpatine. The Jedi are extinct, as were the Sith, at this point. That’s how you write a sequel trilogy that works. That’s how you make characters that are as loved as the original trio. Any fan could have written it. It opens endless possibilities for the sequel trio and lets you add an apprentice for each of them. It end one story and begins countless more. I would keep the kid with the broom from Canto Bight, but scrap most of the rest of that. That shows you that the galaxy is full of people who can use the force if they had someone to teach them.

[@Critical_Mass_a5s]

I was going to skip past your comments, almitra, because of their length but I'm sooo glad I took the time. Great breakdown of Leia and wonderful ideas for how the sequel trilogy should/could have worked. Thanks!

[@GuacamoleKun]

I'd really love to see more good breakdowns of strong female characters from the era before we decided that love and kindness and politeness and respect for authority and all of that stuff were weaknesses. And before we forgot that making characters able to feel fear and doubt made them more relatable, and made their triumphs much, MUCH more impactful. Seeing Clarice terrified in the dark basement didn't make her look weak, it made her look brave and authoritative for going down there despite the very real danger because she knew there was someone who needed help, and she was the only one there who could do the job. Please keep reminding people about what makes great characters great!

[@Vivifyre]

@@GuacamoleKun Clarice feels the fear but rises above it to save Catherine - that's true bravery 👌. Absolutely everyone would be scared in that situation, so if they didn't show that then her courage wouldn't land with the audience.

[@mckayhatch6723]

It goes a long way when a character is likable and cool. We learn to like the characters when we see them triumph. But we also psychologically relate to the character because we see them go through struggles. That’s what gets us as an audience invested in the character. so much of Hollywood these days is devoid of that. And I really want to get back to it. Whether they are a man or a woman, give them flaws and give them strengths. Let’s see them change and grow. Let’s have an actual character arc. Let’s make stories great again.

[@Asankeket]

Good observations. I call the "girl boss syndrome" the desire to imbue female characters with qualities that would be seen as toxic were they to appear in a man. So why the heck do these writers think they're ok for a woman? A female character like that can certainly exist legitimately in a story, but she will not be perceived as a positive figure, just as man with those qualitites won't be.

[@kelleyceccato7025]

I do love Clarice. It feels good to see a serial killer who targets women get taken down by a woman for a change. I think well-written female characters are still out there, but we're more likely to find them if we look beyond the big-budget movie and TV blockbusters. Consider Evelyn from "Everything Everywhere All at Once," Sandra from "Anatomy of a Fall," Nora from "Past Lives," Billi from "The Farewell," Rose and Edith from "Wicked Little Letters," and, for the younger crowd, the title character of "Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret." The girls and women listed here come across as real people rather than walking, talking tropes. Still, I think the point of the absence of a female equivalent of Sam from LOTR is well-taken, and it goes further than unwillingness to show female characters being vulnerable. Outside of comedies like "Bridesmaids" and "Girls Trip," Hollywood screenwriters don't seem keen to emphasize the importance of friendship in their female characters' lives. We don't just lack a female Sam; we lack a female Frodo-and-Sam. I would love to see more interesting and sincere depictions of female friendship in more serious genres. After all, friendship, like any strong relationship between humans, opens the characters up to vulnerability. Other great examples of female characters done right can be found in most of the work of Cartoon Saloon: "The Secret of Kells," "Song of the Sea," "The Breadwinner," and "Wolfwalkers" -- some of the best animated films of the millennium.

[@Vivifyre]

@@kelleyceccato7025 That's a really good point about them not showing (real) female friendship - it seems like the "strong independent woman" hangup isn't just limited to relationships with men 🤔 Lots of good recommendations there, I'll have to check some of those out 👌

[@candide1065]

cringe

[@phoebexxlouise]

Absolutely. Female friendship is where it's at. Stranger Things has it for Max and El, Sailor Moon, Heartbreak High. It's the most enjoyable kind of relationship to see on screen for me. And it's rare. It's more likely to see Sisterhood actually. It's why I enjoy Clueless, Bridgerton, Jane Austen stories, and it's why Frozen was so successful. It's the most relatable kind of relationship in most women's lives. The joys and tensions of friendship are real and there's endless potential for nuance.

[@Vivifyre]

@@phoebexxlouise I really liked the shopping mall friendship montage for max and elven 👍 very sweet. A different writer would have tried a romance angle for them because for some reason they don't seem to be able to show legitimate friendship and affection anymore, which is so unbelievably sad. Stranger Things is a rare gift 👌

[@markthompson180]

Silence of the Lambs is an amazing movie, Clarice is an amazing character ... and Jodie Foster is one of the best actors to come along in modern times. You can't get much better than her.

[@Vivifyre]

@@markthompson180 I agree, she's good in everything I've seen her in - think she's quite underrated! No offence to Julianne Moore but I just couldn't get behind her as Clarice 🫤

[@whiteshadow8520]

She’s good in Panic Room, too

[@AB2B]

I'm so glad I found this, because you are so right. Women shouldn't be apologetic for being female; there is no shame in being a woman, but it seems writers don't feel that way. Strip everything that is classically feminine and female, and make them obnoxious men. It's sad. I feel we're losing examples for girls to look up to, examples which show flawed women overcoming, learning, and growing, and even steering others to see a more well rounded perspective without lectures and/or arguments (like when Starling pointed out her boss was an example to the other men, and he realized she was right). You're right, Starling didn't fight to bend the world to her will, she actually worked within it to carefully mold a place for herself, and with her strengths mold the people around her into seeing her for who she was, warts and all. That is so much more inspiring than a one dimensional, paper thin character who essentially uses "don't you know who I am" paired with righteous indignation to show she's "strong" and with no real imperfections.

[@Vivifyre]

@@AB2B Thank you very much! Very well expressed 👌

[@queenberuthiel5469]

You did a good job highlighting the reasons why Clarice Sterling from The Silence of the Lambs is a well written STRONG female character and why Galadriel from Rings of Power is not. However, it is hard to compare the two characters because one is fantasy that requires more suspension of disbelief while the other one is like a horror-thriller kind of movie that tried to be as realistic as possible. Galadriel from the Rings of Power is DIFFERENT from the Galadriel of Tolkien's writings. So what we have here is ROP's Galadriel VS Tolkien's Galadriel. What the ROP series did is they STRIPPED Galadriel all her core characteristics like her wisdom, her ambition to rule, her being a loremaster, being perceptive and her distrust of Annatar. Not only that but they also removed (set aside) her husband, Celeborn and her daughter, Celebrian from the picture.... making her seem like a single bitter lady who only cares about her revenge. She is suppose to be a MOTHER and a WIFE in the timeline of Rings of Power. THIS means that the series is basically making their own protagonist who shares nothing with the original character, except her name and lineage. Let me tell you this, Tolkien's Galadriel is a well written female character. She have a simple and relatable character development/arc. She went from this ambitious, proud, young elf who wanted her own land to rule over TO a wise lady who witnessed hell on (middle) earth over and over again, who lost her relatives and loved ones to a never-ending war and a lady who learned to use her powers to protect and care for others. Her act of refusing the One Ring in the Fellowship of the Ring is the end of her arc, she learned to finally let go of her pride and ambition and decided to finally go home, to her family in Valinor. She's very important in the timeline of Rings of Power because she's the one who sees the noble intention of Celebrimbor. She counsels him against Sauron/Annatar and to hide the three elven rings from him. In return, Celebrimbor entrusted Nenya to Galadriel. Nenya's power is preservation and concealment from evil. Galadriel used the ring to sustain Lothlorien. In short, Rings of Power FAILED Galadriel's character.

[@aine.no23]

I don't understand your point but I don't really know the timeline. Aren't they just putting Tolkien's Young Galadriel in so it lines up with the show's timeline. They're taking the characterisation of Galadriel as impetuous, ambitious and power hungry and showing it through the tv show? So her arc would be her becoming wise through her mistakes and regrets and thus depicting the Tolkien version? It feels odd that this video is arguing that Galadriel is presented as flawless when she: trusts the wrong person, loses a major battle and her impatience and need for revenge helps Sauron. She's presented as physically strong and badass (because she's an elf warrior and doesn't have human limitations) but also as morally weak and has poor judgement. This is intentional by the writers. This is the intended arc and we're only at the beginning of it, the show can't depict her as her mature self because then she wouldn't have a story in the show.

[@queenberuthiel5469]

@@aine.no23 And you're point is? The Galadriel in the Rings of Power is NOT TOLKIEN's version of the young Galadriel LOL. They're not the same at all. They don't even share the same experiences, relationships and wisdom. They're not even the same character. 🤣

[@DrR0BERT]

I remember my creative writing professor ask us to list each major and minor character and to come up with a flaw to incorporate into the story, better if it's contradictory. He even said that don't worry about making your character unlikable in doing so. I haven't done that will all my characters I have written, but the major ones. When I write these characters come alive for me.

[@rottensquid]

Now write a video essay on strong male characters.

[@Vivifyre]

I've got an idea for unusual male heroes, so I think you'll get your wish! 😆

[@alien777]

​@@Vivifyre no your just creep

[@queenberuthiel5469]

​@@Vivifyre Speaking of strong male characters, maybe the guy wanted a video essay about the male characters in Lord of the Rings lol

[@alien777]

@@moon-moth1 wheele of time, Star trek strange new worlds, agatha all along, the last of us, Fallout, ginny & Georgia, house of dragon Are they not exactly what you are looking for?

[@almitrahopkins1873]

@@moon-moth1 You’re mistaken. Strong male characters usually fall to their own hubris. It’s only in the last hundred years or so that male characters are displayed lacking serious character flaws.

[@ericmatthews9894]

The Fifth Element, the scene where Corbin gets Lilu out of the ceiling, and she is crying. That was a powerful scene to me. It made the rest of the movie seem B rated.

[@PuppyKhan]

That was such a bizarre movie but what made the characters so memorable - ALL the characters - was that they had their highs and lows during the course of the movie. No matter how tough and badass, they all had moments of weakness and fumbles. Choose any character with more than one scene of dialogue (except maybe the first mate) and you can find some sort of range to their portrayal, and all the leads had some semblance of growth even if just a little.

[@ForcefighterX2]

The core of the problem is as mentioned here in the video: The story writers do not themselves understand what makes a strong character. In fact, they themselves are of very weak character, looking at people insanely superficial, thus judging them simply by visible traits like color of skin or gender. In order to then make some one "strong", they literally think "strength is the absence of weakness", which is absurd, because it is often our weaknesses who give us our biggest strength in the time of need (fear of losing loved ones, fear of death, fear of pain, etc...). Thus, writing a "strong" character who has no weaknesses in fact voids the character of any incentives he/she may have to be strong, leaving behind an empty husk of a person, which is more like a humanoid robot than a true human. Therefore, when this humanoid "strong" female robot has no fear based on the events unfolding, why should we as an audience? When the character pretends there is nothing to fear, why should be be engaged in their journey? We should not, and we are not.

[@Vivifyre]

Couldn't agree more 👌 thanks for the comment!

[@dizzykong123]

Nice video. Make more breakdowns of what constitutes excellent character arcs and story structures. We've got to keep up the representation of what great entertainment actually is.

[@whybenorman]

Great analysis and presentation! Subscribed. Keep up the good work 😊

[@Vivifyre]

@@whybenorman thank you!

[@Lomiop]

I wish your video gets millions of views because you have great content. Try running ads for your channel using some kind of system.

[@Vivifyre]

@@Lomiop thank you so much for your kind words! I'm really new and still figuring things out - one of last month's videos only got 2 views so I think there's still lots of learning to do. Having said that, comments like yours are a great motivator, so thank you for taking the time 🙂

[@momo-ne4tt]

Just so YES to this! I was already wondering at what point it became suddenly alright to write a Mary Sue Fascinating analysis and beautifully told. Subscribed!

[@Vivifyre]

@@momo-ne4tt Thank you! 😁

[@Bolpat]

Borrowing from a video that I just saw: An example for a strong character who one would generally not regard as such: Ron Stoppable (from Kim Possible). He’s not physically strong, or wise, or intelligent, but he is a good person with some obvious flaws, and most importantly, he’s usually plays a crucial role in the story.

[@jontell726]

I actually really like The Rings of Power. The shallowness of Galadriel is part of her whole dealio with me. In my interpretation, the hardened sociopathic behaviour is a defense, a façade. She is at war and in survival mode, that façade can be dropped when she feels she is able to. As we see later in the OG Trilogy. I feel connected to this character for that reason, she has to dissociate in order to survive the chaos of Sauron. She is in this series that "wise" character, but she does have to mature, she has to experience herself and the horror of Sauron on the world, to give her the wisdom we know her for. In terms of Elf age, in the series, she is very young, so I think it is unfair to expect her character to be as we know her from the trilogy.

[@Klavieralter]

I probably rewatch Silence of the Lambs once a year. It is a masterclass in story, pacing, acting, and character. The writing is outstanding and throws a shadow over the swill seen today. Great analysis here. Video essays about characters are always fascinating.

[@eerice704]

Éowyn from LOTR is my favorite strong female character. I get emotional every time I watch the scene of her riding into battle secretly and then later revealing herself to Théoden. It's my favorite scene in the trilogy

[@knowledge-girl]

That's supposed to be Galadriel? I thought she was a bad remake of Éowyn. She even looks like a discount version of Miranda Otto.

[@Vivifyre]

@@knowledge-girl There isn't a bargain bin deep enough or cheap enough for this version of galadriel 😅

[@knowledge-girl]

@@Vivifyre I guess this happens when they can't secure the Silmarillion so they have to pull it out from where the sun don't shine.

[@Vivifyre]

@@knowledge-girl I'm not gracious enough to give them that excuse 😖 if this is what they've done with the rights to lord of the rings and the appendices, imagine what they would do with more. Such a waste! 😂

[@magister343]

For some reason they decided to cast someone 5'3" to play a character who is canonically 6'4"

[@EmonEconomist]

I hope you will make more videos on this topic, because your analysis was really interesting and accurate (imo) and I'm so keen to see what other strong female characters you'll cover! I haven't seen either ROP or Silence of the Lambs but your video made me want to watch one of them. 😅

[@Vivifyre]

Haha! Thank you very much for your kind words - I reckon watch all of silence of the lambs and maybe one episode of rings of power (don't worry - it will feel like an eternity!) 😅

[@EmonEconomist]

@@Vivifyre 🤣 I'll take you up on Silence of the Lambs! But I boycott everything produced by Luthercorp on principle, so I'll continue to spare myself that pain.

[@lauracristina7286]

As a woman surrounded by media that doesn't represent my outlook and values, I really appreciate your take on this. Hope to hear more from you. Thank you for this analysis.

[@Vivifyre]

@@lauracristina7286 thank you for your kind words! 😀

[@bonniehalf-elven]

Morfydd Clark reminds me, looks-wise, of Kate Mulgrew, and fans of Star Trek Voyager loved Captain Janeway. "Sir" was used generically in the show, but she insisted on "Ma'am." It was a small distinction, but it represented her very female, well-rounded character, who was a great leader.

[@juliancain6128]

Starling was a fine choice to showcase. Excellent analysis. I think a body of work displaying various examples of virtue, vulnerability and resilience would be a real help to the younger generations that have been flooded with unrealistic characters and false strength. Keep it up sir! Subscribed 👍!

[@Vivifyre]

@@juliancain6128 thank you very much! That is my aim for this channel - to reignite creative motivation and encourage good art so I'm beyond pleased to see that people are open to it 👍

[@juliancain6128]

@@Vivifyre It shows! I look forward to more videos!

[@Doutsoldome]

This was a very good analysis. Well done!

[@michelerobinson4815]

I would love it if you delved into this topic again. This was great!

[@Vivifyre]

@@michelerobinson4815 thank you!

[@Duckfest]

Good video, well made. Your decision to use (only) Clarice as an example worked very well, narratively. It made your video essay more focused and to the point. However, since you're asking, I would also welcome a follow up video with other examples that aren't as predictable. Maybe Rita Vrataski, Teresa Mendoza, Beth Harmon or Lady Jessica Atreides.

[@Vivifyre]

@@Duckfest Thank you!

[@ludovico6890]

Wow! Very compelling. I watched Silence of the Lambs only once, back in the 90s, I thought it was well made, but otherwise it did nothing to me. Now I want to rewatch it.

[@Vivifyre]

@@ludovico6890 oh it will stand out nowadays compared to what's currently on offer! It's an excellent film, I'm sure you'll enjoy it 🙂

[@ludovico6890]

@Vivifyre I never revisited it because I'm not big on serial killers stories.

[@Vivifyre]

@@ludovico6890 ah! I take back my recommendation in that case 😂

[@Ellangellemni]

Are you kidding me?! Of course, learning about MORE female heroes would be wonderful! Even if we didn't have a strong woman problem. Our main problem, speaking as a gay male, is we have so few amazing women characters! And too many stereotypical strong males, not enough Samwise. In the future, wouldn't it be great to highlight great HUMAN characters. So, share away! Thank you for your work.

[@Vivifyre]

@@Ellangellemni thank you!

[@barbarabaker1457]

Definitely worth more content. I'd love to see Polly (and Polly Comin Home) explored as a proper adaptation from a different cultural perspective vs one of the many crappy replacement movies they are putting out now, say a Disney movie to keep the comparison fair like Little Mermaid or the new Snow White when out, what have you. Admittedly my take on the little mermaid is funny as I loved the cartoon in many ways, but felt it violated the morals of the original story so I've never held the cartoon up as a good adaptation either, just beautiful and creative. But it was a big name, still if any other big name diversity changed movies are of interest that could be used as a healthy comparison to one of my favorite reimaginings of Pollyanna, I'd love to see it even more.

[@Vivifyre]

Hmm, judging by what we've seen so far, the new snow white seems to have a lot of fertile ground for criticism so might have to consider it! Be careful what you wish for in terms of adaptions - there's kind of a monkey's paw effect going on just now. I was once ecstatic to hear they were doing a second age of middle earth show 😬. Thanks for the comment, I'll definitely consider making it a series 🙂

[@SethZones]

Not only for Algo and his friend Rhythm... I like.

[@Vivifyre]

@@SethZones and I appreciate! 😁

[@ninja-mouse]

My favorites are Kim Basinger in Final Call, the princess in Braveheard and from my childhood Princess Calla from the Gummi Bears.

[@ida_sriyaka]

Thanks for this passionate lesson! This should be shown at all film schools!

[@Vivifyre]

@@ida_sriyaka Thank you so much! That's very kind 🙂

[@churblefurbles]

Colttaine explained it, the hollywood female power fantasy is to be the villian.

[@Vivifyre]

@@churblefurbles Yep. Started noticing it with the "Disney tales from the villains point of view" films started coming out - kind of gave themselves away lol

[@vwhite3055]

Excellent essay. There are many strong female characters in movies. Look at most characters played by Katharine Hepburn, Barbara Stanwick, or Lauren Bacall. Look at Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca. So many strong women, but, in essence, feminine. Today's "strong woman" is a man in a woman's body. It's actually insulting to women.

[@Vivifyre]

@@vwhite3055 Thank you! I agree - I really don't see the appeal in women acting like insecure overcompensating males and thinking it makes them "tough". So demoralising. I shudder to think what modern writers would do to a remake of Casablanca 😂. I suppose they would cut out victor laszlo, give Ilsa his role as leader of the resistance (and make her as obnoxious about her leadership position as possible), and friend-zone Rick, reducing the Paris romance to one-sided unrequited love 😂. And there you go - Casablanca for a modern audience. That was depressingly easy!

[@bettyelgyn3071]

Oh! Clarice is the one of the most of the smartest and underrated female characters. All remember Sarah Connor and Helen Ripley(and I adore them) but they fought against not realistic monsters. Clarice fought against very REALICTIC monsters. So my personal thanx for this video to author ^^ And..... about elfs. I couldn't watch Rings of Pawer! I just CAN"T! (sad laughter) Ааааа! Elfen Mary-Sue it's too much! XD There are so many bad decisions, but the worst - to make a MC NOT a human! In "the Lord of the Rings" one of the main character is Aragorn. Human! And yes - we see a lot of elfs, dwarfs, wizards, and Frodo and Sam are hobbits! BUT they all were "connected" with humans.. .throw frandship, love and etc. They also have a comon goal with humanity ! And the main theme of tge LotR - uniting in opposition to pure evil ! ... In the R of P no theme at all.

[@Vivifyre]

Thanks so much for the comment, it's great to see the enthusiasm! 😁 I agree about the rings of power central character. If they were going to compress the timeline so much the main character should have been Isildur. Shame he's such a wuss in the show 🤦

[@bettyelgyn3071]

@@Vivifyre Thank you for good video! And... Yep! I thought that MC will be Isildur... when this series was annaunsed. Or they could show us more about Sauron ...if they wanted so much! Show his path. It's really interesting. But this ... this is the PAIN! A few years ago I saw fanfiction-comic about Melkor(Margoth) and Sawron.. oh! That was more "canonical" then this GalaDRRRRRRRiel that somehow almost fall in love with SawwwRRRRRRRRon! 😂 (the same **** that was in StarWars ..I mean last films 😣) btw - why they love this "rrrrr" ...sounds like Chewbacca 😂

[@swissarmyknight4306]

The flawed characters that you point out are pervasive today. I'd be very interested in more breakdowns of actual good female characters.

[@Young_Jim]

Very much enjoyed this video and agreed with all your points. Perhaps you may consider looking at some older films portraying women characters to see how they compare to today. I’m thinking of maybe Katherine Hepburn in The African Queen or Bette David portraying Queen Elizabeth. Just a thought, look forward to more videos. Liked and subbed.

[@Vivifyre]

@@Young_Jim thanks so much! I think I'm going to return to this subject in the future, people seem to be into it 🙂 Want to make sure I do it right though, will have some other videos out first.

[@cjpreach]

SILENCE of the LAMBS. The screenwriter gave Foster a Clarisse character she could really sink her teeth into, as we say in America.

[@Vivifyre]

@@cjpreach writing, directing and acting came together brilliantly in the film - but it all starts with the writing!

[@josephcallahan1664]

Well done. Try Lisbeth Salander in Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. She's the best! Furiosa, Fury Road (not the recent film) is good. Hermione Granger is pretty good, despite Rowling's transphobia.

[@theaaasland-jensen9334]

I would love to see more videos from you on this topic!

[@ohslytherin94]

If it's me, I would choose Duchess Sarah Marlborough. In The Favourite (2018), she's played by Rachel Weisz. When you read her history, you will find that she came from a humble family who then she saved Anne, future Queen of England. She used her wits and intelligence to get top rankings especially her connection with Anne. Anne was the Queen, but she was the one who ran the country. And that's how strong female figures depicted if you use old past movie. Sarah O'Connor survived from Terminator. Even though she must lose the father of her baby, she kept living and fighting. Breaking from asylum. After her death, she still prepared guns in her grave yard to ensure the future.

[@arnaudgerard1971]

If you watch Constantine, it makes sense Gabriel doesn't show any weakness that is "her" weakness.

[@BlueNorth313]

What a great video. Thank you!

[@Vivifyre]

@@BlueNorth313 thank you! 😀

[@geektome4781]

Excellent mic-drop of a video. Want to see more like this.

[@Vivifyre]

Thank you very much! More on the way so I hope you enjoy them 😄

[@stone-hand]

I suspect that the true problem is that the abundance of content produced allows erstwhile unemployable hacks to write shlock. After all, a few actually good female characters are written even today. Arcane comes to my mind, but also Kitty Softpaws from "Puss'n Boots: The Last Wish" carried her weight well.

[@Vivifyre]

@@stone-hand that was a fantastic movie 👍

[@moamee]

Arcane was absolutely fantastic, in *all* character writing but especially for the female characters, specifically due to the problems they usually have. Vi being incredibly strong and tough, but so very protective and caring, and vulnerable to both her sister (despite it being dangerous) and to her new friend, Cait. Cait, being so feminine and at first glance weak and simple, but with such an open mind and sense of justice. Mel, extremely determined and ambitious, but later revealed has actual love and care for others, and is somewhat psychologically abused (and cowed) by her mother. And of course Jinx, disturbed and vindictive, admittedly pretty "cool", smart, inventive, and dangerous; but deeply vulnerable, on the brink of breaking mentally, and craving attention and love. Just brilliant.

[@theautisticmystictarot631]

A strong character for the sake of their own strength alone, and esp. with "no flaws" is a Mary Sue ( or a Gary Stu). Writing a Mary Sue/Gary Stu is the easy way out and only results in bland, 1 dimensional, boring characters.

[@TheGovernorsJester]

I haven't seen Rings of Power yet. I've been too hesitant because of all of the negative things that I keep seeing about it and this video just adds on to it. I love Clarice Starling though. Hollywood keeps screeching about not having enough strong women characters and they keep ignoring the strong ones that we already have. Olivia Dunham from Fringe would be another strong female lead with no hollywood agenda. I see people listing characters in the comment section lol

[@Vivifyre]

@@TheGovernorsJester if you're really curious you should check it out, but don't feel compelled to watch a whole episode if you're not into it - it really tends to drag 😬 I'm enjoying all the recommendations so thank you very much 🙂

[@katmatally]

For some more well-written female characters see Alicia in "The Good Wife" and Diane in "The Good Fight." Both have their weaknesses and character defects, but manage [mostly] to win their legal cases and the battles in their private lives. Kudos to Michelle and Robert King for both heroines.

[@JJmonty7s]

Thanks for this vid... I'm working on my first movie, and the protagonist is female. Your vid helped me soak up a little vibe on what I should be doing. I always saw her as another character and not some empty persona designed to make a social statement but this helped me dig a little deeper. I'm about to watch it again, actually. lol.

[@JJmonty7s]

...and of course by social statement I just mean I get the impression from the vid that it's the MAIN way the writers see them... I'm not a sexist.. haha.

[@Vivifyre]

@@JJmonty7s Ah man, that's great to hear you're getting some good value out of the video! Thanks for letting me know, it's such great feedback. Yeah at the moment having a female character without making her a political statement... Would be more of a political statement! 😂. I'm only half kidding, but I do think your audience would enjoy it more if she was a real person. Best of luck with the project 👍

[@smlorrin]

Very enjoyable!

[@rockbandny]

I think one of my favourite characters is princess Carolyn from BoJack horseman.

[@Vivifyre]

@@rockbandny I actually haven't seen BoJack! Sounds like it's worth watching though 🙂

[@rockbandny]

@@Vivifyre yeah, I'd say all the characters are really well written, but princess Carolyn is probably the best female character in there in my opinion.

[@Vivifyre]

@@rockbandny nice, i'll check it out! Thanks for the recommendation 🍻

[@rockbandny]

@@Vivifyre np

[@Serai3]

Also, female characters are seen to "fail" or "be weak" if they at any point decide that the stereotypically "strong" things just aren't for them. Eowyn springs foremost to mind. She spent her life wanting to have a man's destiny - battle, war, honor, fame. But when she finally got those and damn near died of them, she saw her life differently, fell in love, and decided to forego the gore and bloodshed and be happy, helping others to find their health and happiness. And she gets lambasted so often for it, as if finding herself and her happiness is somehow "weak". Pretty sad comment on our culture ideas about "strength".

[@Vivifyre]

@@Serai3 Couldn't agree more! Also I know everyone loves the "I am no man" line... but personally I get the chills EVERY time over "I will kill you if you touch him!" It's just a fantastic line reading and it's an unbelievable expression of love and bravery. I love Eowyn.

[@queenberuthiel5469]

Eowyn and Faramir are PERFECT for each other. 🤧 Some feminists out there hated that ending and it proves that they didn't understand Eowyn's internal struggle. She lived peacefully, content with life. She finally found her purpose in life in healing and growing a garden and in her family with Faramir. Sure, not the typical Shiny-Girlbossy ending but still empowering to everyone, not just women.

[@Serai3]

@@queenberuthiel5469 Most of the people I've encountered who don't like Eowyn's turnaround are men.

[@queenberuthiel5469]

@@Serai3 Well for me it's mostly women. Those who have extreme feminist views who saw Eowyn's ending as something sexist/misogynistic.

[@Serai3]

@@queenberuthiel5469 A lot of people confuse "feminist" with "wannabe men". Real feminists don't put women down for making their own choices. We don't see the goal of feminism as becoming acolytes of violence and supposed "heroism". That's Cool Girl crap, not the point of feminism at all.

[@binkyboy448]

If you're looking for strong female characters away from the Hollywood sphere, try Uzi from Murder Drones. She's a tough badass robot girl who hates when people come to her rescue because she hates seeing them get hurt on her behalf. She's paired with a happy and effeminate boy named N who happens to be a deadly robot vampire who will use lethal force against anyone who threatens those he cares about.

[@gnarlin4964]

Please cover more well written strong female characters to use as examples. It's interesting.

[@wanderingseth]

3:51 WELL DONE 😂😂😂

[@Vivifyre]

@@wanderingseth 😂 had fun with that edit!

[@wanderingseth]

@@Vivifyre ha yeah I could tell - that was very finely done. I take my hat off to you 😄

[@monalucas4254]

Terrific video! I've been so very frustrated with the 'strong woman' characters the last few years, so poorly written and ultimately boring. Written by idiots. Sadly, young women are buying into this too often. Ugh. Another great woman character from back then is Marge Gunderson from the movie Fargo. She's not necessarily seen as 'strong' but she really is beautifully nuanced, so smart, so strong. (Frankly, any of the women characters in the various seasons of Fargo make good example too, especially the 1, 2 and 5th seasons.)

[@Vivifyre]

@@monalucas4254 funny you should say that! Marge was one of the characters I considered doing - might still do a video on her in the future, she's a brilliant and memorable character 👌

[@Vivifyre]

@@monalucas4254 also I agree re Fargo characters in general. Kirsten Dunst really nailed it in season 2!

[@candide1065]

If by "idiots" you mean feminists aka. females, you're right. Because it's them who started this trend.

[@AnthonyBarksFine]

How can a male protagonist rescue his female partner without making her look weak? (She isn't the only character who gets saved.) (Love your analysis.)

[@Vivifyre]

@@AnthonyBarksFine well, people don't need to be invincible - we all need saving from difficulty at some point in our lives. Accepting help doesn't make someone "weak" in a bad way - in fact it can be an opportunity to show great moral character! Lots of examples to choose from but from your specific example (man saving female partner, multiple other hostages) I'd look at how they did Holly McLean in the first Die Hard movie 👍

[@whiteshadow8520]

Hanna and The Descent are 2 other wonderful films with wonderful female characters

[@Vivifyre]

@@whiteshadow8520 big fan of The Descent 👍 it's one I often recommend

[@reub1565]

Xena & Buffy still managed to be thoroughly enjoyable characters even though they were actually physically strong women - they were never the insufferable "strong women" that we are inundated with now.

[@Vivifyre]

@@reub1565 I remember when women were allowed to be fun! The women of firefly are good examples, great characters

[@Whookieee]

The writers are people who believe belittling others makes them look tough.

[@rvaviima]

Finally someone who talks about the actual thing and doesn't turn it into a political question. A huge thanks. Please, do continue on this same topic. And, I would also like to see a similar analysis on male characters. A challenge: don't use the term Mary Sue a single time across the series. 😅 PS. I absolutely love your accent.

[@Vivifyre]

@@rvaviima Thank you very much! Haha, I'll try and stay away from the labels, I prefer to discuss things from a layman's point of view anyway - especially when the effect on the story is so cut and dry. Thank you for your encouragement 🙂 it's very much appreciated!

[@Dunderslag]

It's not noticeable that your channel is relatively new: everything is very professionally done. Only sometimes, in scenes between Clarice and Hannibal, the images are blurred. Is that intentional? I would be happy if other aspects of filmmaking were also considered. In my opinion, there is too much talk these days about men and women and how they are portrayed in movies. Sure, it makes sense when you look at all the propaganda films of recent years. But aren't there more enjoyable topics? How is a good arc of tension created and which films succeed in portraying it? How can you find new and unused themes that make a good movie, which films meet these criteria? Are there generally largely unknown films that should be presented? I'd like to see something like that. I hope I'm not asking for too much.

[@Vivifyre]

Hi! Thank you so much for your kind words. Yes, the blurring is intentional to conform to KZbin's copyright policies - it was the least obtrusive option for some of the longer scenes in my opinion. Yes I intend to discuss more writing advice on this channel too - I have already done a video about set up and pay-off in Back to the Future and another about the common advice to write about what you know (featuring office space and clerks!). If you are interested, definitely check them out, there will be more videos like them in the future 👍

[@Dunderslag]

Ah - Office Space, not bad. I'll have a look at it. I hadn't really looked to see what other videos you had put online. In any case, good luck with the development of your KZbin channel. Incidentally, I've just noticed how many more hits this video has than all the other videos you've put online so far. It really does seem to be THE TOPIC that people are talking about these days. It is therefore understandable that you should publish more videos on this subject. 😊

[@SHS_CougarConnect]

No one ever mentions Zoe Washburn from Firefly/Serenity my personal favorite.

[@dennismason3740]

Please, more female characters - well done.

[@glygriffe]

Great essay. I would like to see (from your channel) more exemples of strong female characters that are not just one-note. I like Clarice, but I would like more exemples of physically strong women that still can be relatable and emotionnally open. What we often get from strong male action heroes is physical basassery with a hidden (but still perceptible to the audience) emotionnal bagage. That should translate easily enough to women characters but we seldom see that switch. A woman is either physically strong (Galadriel) or emotionnally and intellectually strong (Clarice) in medias. Rarely both. And the reverse is true, too. The male protagonist that is an intellectual and have less muscular mass than the average hero usually turns into a badass physical fighter at just the right moment, never showing fear, except if it's in a goofball comedy.

[@Wizartar]

great comparison.

[@constanzagarcia348]

There´s no point in cloning a male character into a female character. It´s boring. Why don´t they try to find layers anymore? Ripley in Aliens was a frightened woman (she had nightmares), she was courageos, she relied on the soldiers, didn´t trust Burke. Also, she was willing to reverse his hate for androids, could flirt with Hicks, kick the monster´s ass, and become again, a mom. Come on! All that and more in one movie. Now, when there´s a female character I think the producers, acording to woke wave, tell the writers: Make her punch a lot of guys, and make the guys stupids as hell. Sorry, I speak spanish, so may be there are spelling mistakes. Thanks for the video and keep up with the good work.

[@Vivifyre]

@@constanzagarcia348 Yeah you got it 👌. To be fair, if galadriel was male in rings of power she would still be boring as all hell, terrible character traits, but apparently that's fine for women these days 👎 ... Except maybe if she was male it would more easily straddle the line between cringe and funny 🤔 she might end up like Steven Seagal! 😅

[@constanzagarcia348]

@@Vivifyre Oh, My! there´s no amount of hair gel in the world to cover her hair if she becames like Seagal! On another mather. Could you be interested in talking about evil characters (females and males), but not the cannon ones (Joker, Darth Vader, all the Marvel villains, etc, would be great to know new ones) I was thinking more about Waldo Lydecker from Laura, Milady from The Three Musqueteers, Eve from All about Eve, and Frankestein, and I mean the Dr., not the monster who is acutally the heroe. Perhaps, you have your favorites ones.

[@Vivifyre]

@@constanzagarcia348 haha! Yes I'm very fond of well crafted evil characters too. It's definitely an interesting topic for a video because depending on the story they can be literally anything - they can be massively over the top and petty (Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore) or wicked but understated (like nurse ratchet in one flew over the cuckoos nest). There are all sorts of good villains - they just have to serve their story function well and (most importantly) be interesting in some way!

[@foxesofautumn]

Alien was scripted with a genderneutral lead and then cast with Weaver so it's not that useful as an example. Sure she was great but she wasn't designed as a female character. Which kind of suggests writing more female characters as people first is the way to go.

[@Vivifyre]

This is a good point. Ripley's gender wasn't specified in the first script but it definitely became a big component in the sequel. I can see an argument for both approaches - to be honest I really like how the gender neutral option leaves loads of room for the actor to fill the role with nuance, but it might not be for every story 👌 Thanks for adding to the discussion and making me think! 😄

[@Tubeflux]

Very well researched... Liked it. Similar to many others though. Well, Why not focus on one or two excellent characters of whatever gender...? A 10-minute-long video of that kind could be interesting, couldn't it? Focus on a female character in Peter Jackson's LotR, there are many to choose from. Or one in Starship Troopers (the curly girl who runs after the male protagonist...). Talia Shire's "Adrian" in Rocky? What an evolution she went through... What do you think? bye from Sicily PS Look for a franchise or production which is going to attract enough attention to your video... and then go for it... ciao

[@Vivifyre]

Big fan of Diz from starship troopers! Johnny Rico was crazy to pick Carmen 👎😄

[@jacquelinecallejas1390]

Well thought out video. Have to point out that I read a summary of the sequel (both the book and the movie) and I am so glad I didn't read or watch it because I would have RAGED. The book in particular ends with Clarice in a situation that made me want to bitch slap the author for how he mangled Clarice. I don't know WHAT he was thinking. How can you create such a nuanced relatable but heroic character and then turn her into what he did. I almost want to spoil it so that no one is tempted to read the book if they haven't already. I won't out of respect for the other users of the internet but I strongly suggest you either don't look up anything about the sequel OR at most read a summary like I did. The writer and the publisher do NOT deserve as much as 5 cents for that atrocity. It is like between books the author suddenly started to hate women. I don't get it. I literally would have preferred the character drop out of the FBI and became a sex worker.

[@Vivifyre]

@@jacquelinecallejas1390 I agree. There are some things about "Hannibal" that I like (though it's a lesser story) but I wish they had left Clarice out of it altogether 😣

[@angelika9396]

Someone who starts out perfect (at the beginning of the story) can only not evolve at all, so no character arc, OR go downhill, deteriorate. And as without movement there is no story it goes downhill.

[@Vivifyre]

Precisely! What's worse is that sometimes it feels like they're about to move into a story, then they realise it would be "problematic" and they pull out and leave us perturbed. It's very much: "Guess what?" "What?" "Nothing." 😒

[@dameanvil]

- 00:26 📉 Writers insist on making female characters strong from start to finish, which weakens the story. - 01:07 🕰️ Female characters of the past, like Sarah Connor and Ellen Ripley, had varied strengths beyond physical power. - 01:46 ⚔️ Galadriel from *Rings of Power* is used as an example of a shallow "empowered" character. - 02:29 😕 The lack of character flaws makes audiences unable to relate to modern female leads. - 03:02 🎭 Male characters are allowed more depth, while female ones are confined to narrow representations of strength. - 04:23 🎬 Hollywood is uncomfortable with femininity, robbing stories of emotional depth. - 04:57 👮 Clarice Starling from *Silence of the Lambs* is highlighted as a strong, well-developed female character. - 06:29 👊 Clarice’s strength comes from intelligence, humility, and courage, not physical dominance. - 07:00 🎥 Clever use of camera angles enhances Clarice’s vulnerability in tense scenes. - 09:50 🧠 Clarice’s vulnerability and courage make her relatable and heroic, unlike shallow modern leads. - 12:22 🎨 Propaganda-driven art lacks the transformative power of good storytelling. - 12:55 ✍ Aspiring writers should create relatable, vulnerable characters with real qualities, avoiding shallow power fantasies.

[@Vivifyre]

@@dameanvil thanks! 🙂

[@renzokukenleneyoyo522]

Dana Scully and Marion Ravenwood

[@frankiepips]

Yeah I've got a topic I want you to cover, why do people who observe feel compelled to give their two'penworth to the world when they are just another observer? Why do people who pretend to be offended by subverted character tropes get offended by the subversion when the content itself eventually fails anyhoo? And why don't they just turn the crap off and get a hobby that they "can" enjoy? I'm not kidding I like your appraisal here and I think your unemotional approach could answer these questions without coming across as spiteful or petty like some much more popular critics (some who even drink?) could not. Kind regards and please continue to create, I like a bit of logic applied to these topics instead of dummy throwing. Best of luck.

[@Vivifyre]

Meh 🤷‍♂️ the world's an open place and everyone's allowed an opinion lol. I don't really mind a bit of snark thrown in now and again if a project deserves it but everyone had their preference 😂

[@Noone-of-your-Business]

Some call it the Reyification of cinema.