2 posts tagged “women who sport”
Watched A League of Their Own for the first time this weekend. I think it's safe to say that this is the only Madonna film I'm ever likely to own... but sneering aside, she does a good job here, and really comes alive in the jitterbug scene. I barely recognised Lori Petty with hair, having become so used to seeing her shaven head poking out through a tank hatch, but I guess that's also a compliment to her acting. Apparently she recently wrote and directed her own feature film, which could be good, but I still think it's a shame that Brimstone never made it to a second season. Meanwhile, Rosie O'Donnell is very funny, and it's always great seeing Jon Lovitz work his magic, but ultimately the star attraction here is Geena Davis. I'm not in the least bit surprised that she was elected America's first female President, because the woman sweats star-quality from every pore of her body! Despite appearing in an atrocious pirate movie that cannot be named, she earned major points from me for her turn as the funnest female assassin of all time, Charly Baltimore, in A Long Kiss Goodnight... a flick which remains annoyingly underrated, despite the impressive cast and smart script.
As if Davis weren't loveable enough on-screen, she's apparently quite a trouper off-screen as well, fronting the Women's Sports Foundation campaign to prohibit gender discrimination in United States' educational institutions. She also launched The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media in 2007 which, according to Wikipedia, "works collaboratively with the entertainment industry to dramatically increase the presence of female characters in media aimed at children and to reduce stereotyping of both males and females." Coolness. On the subject of discrimination, I was also touched by the brief scene in ALoTO acknowledging the absence of black women in the teams. Apparently the so-called "Negro Leagues" only ever recruited a handful of female players, and they were subjected to a great deal of abuse, as they were forced to play alongside resentful menfolk. I can only admire these sportswomen, and the gals of the AAGBL, for the drive and dedication that they showed in the face of stupid, stinky, pointless prejudice. I sure as hell wouldn't have wanted to piss any of them off when they were carrying a bat...
I don't generally enjoy watching sports, because I don't really understand the rules, and don't care enough to learn. Even something as seemingly simple as Tennis is still a mystery to me. Women's tennis, on the other hand, has a very obvious appeal as far as spectator sports go. But for me, it isnt just about the tight outfits and the grunting... I really dig the aggression and the drama of it. Beach volleyball might float some men's boats, but it's not combative enough for my liking. There are few joys in life comparable to watching Williams (S) pound across a court, at the top of her game. It's also worth noting that both Williams sisters display a sense of humour on court, or a sense of fun at least, even under the most stressful of circumstances, which marks them out as worth watching.
I can't say I'm a dedicated fan or anything, but when Wimbledon comes around, I do tend to take an active interest. One of the most annoying things about watching tennis, for me at least, is the bit where the crowd shout out bland encouragement... and I think my objection comes down to a basic sense of decorum, since the audience address the players by their first names as if they knew them. I know that makes me seem rather stuffy, but it does make me cringe. I also take exception to the fact that the vast majority will cheer on the petite blonde players (who get all the tabloid love too), and exclude less dainty players like Amèlie Mauresmo and Williams (S). Do these crowds just have no manners? I dont know... but it's always fun to watch Williams (S)'s face, while the crowd call out her opponent's name. Bless her.
At one point there were some fan-art drawings of Miss Williams (S) on my website, but I was never very happy with them. A proper artist would be able to balance her muscularity with her femininity, but I could never get the knack of it... which only made me admire her more, for some reason. Her beauty defied the artist's attempt to capture it! Not that I'm really an artist. Sigh. I know some men will dismiss women as "butch" if they happen to have the slightest muscle tone, but I just can't get with that sort of thinking... as if "real women" should keep their bones moving with pretty pink ribbons alone, and wait for fluttering birdies to do all of their heavy lifting for them! Muscles are just part of the human body, and no more masculine than any other... as is body hair, of course, but that's a harder sell, and a much longer conversation.
