Legally Blonde Analysis

The movie Legally Blonde is seen as a “girl power” movement because of a naive sorority girl, Elle Woods, who makes her way to law school, wins a big murder case and gets her man. No one believes in her, in fact, her boyfriend dumped her to be with someone with more brains, but she proves him wrong. She is able to prove everyone wrong while still maintaining her femininity. What the film shows on the surface is very different from what it depicts when you take a closer look. One may think that this film challenges the ideas of white patriarchal capitalism, but it actually reinforces it through stereotypes of women, racial differences, sexuality and gender roles.
The very first stereotype you identify in the movie is the stereotypes of women. This …show more content…
In the film, Callahan was hitting on Elle and was trying to tell her she needed a man like him. Therefore, the viewers see this as unacceptable behavior and as a bad person. Although Callahan is criticized for acting this way towards Elle, the teacher’s assistant Emitt, also reinforces his actions in a different way. While he may not have blatantly hit on Elle, the only way she would have become Ms. Windem’s new attorney was because of Emitt. This reinforces white patriarchal capitalism because it shows that without a man in power Ells cannot get what she wants, and no one will take her seriously.
Throughout the film, there are many clear examples that show how Legally Blonde reinforces white patriarchal capitalism through stereotypes of women, racial differences, sexuality and gender roles. Each of these arguments shows how the movie depicts not only women but blonde women as dumb, needy and submissive to men. It also shows how men are always viewed as dominant and should be heterosexual. The problem with a film reinforcing white patriarchal capitalism is that it just makes the stereotypes in today’s society more