Jon Favreau,
I would like to start off by telling
you how much I enjoy your Iron Man
movies. I love Tony’s humor and the action in the movies. I am, however,
disappointed at the portrayal of the character, Pepper. I feel that so many
movies do not give female characters enough credit for their accomplishments
and instead focus on their sex appeal, their insecurities, and undeniable
dependence on men. I will tell you right now, that I am not a crazy feminist. I
actually have many traditional beliefs about the roles of men and women, yet I
will not waver on my belief that women deserve respect. And I do not believe
that Pepper, from the Iron Man movies
does not have this respect and this portrayal will affect many women’s views on
their worth.
Movies have such an effect on
people, which you probably know already. And knowing this, I feel that the Pepper
character should be portrayed as a much stronger woman than she has been
portrayed as. For example, Pepper does get in on the action, which is so great
for women to see that they can do crazy things as well. However, when Pepper does
an investigation encounters Vanko in Iron
Man 2, she is wearing a pencil skirt and 5 inch heels, which she would
never be able to wear if she were to realistically run away from Vanko! I think
that this image would give many women and girls the impossible notion that they
must look good for men at all times, even when they are doing something that
could be dnagerous. I would have rather seen Pepper rip off her heels and
actually run. This would have been more realistic and would have made Pepper
seem more legit.
Also, I feel that Pepper seems too
dependent on Tony. She does so much for Tony, and yet Tony treats her terribly.
If I did as much for a man as Pepper does for Tony and was still treated like
dirt, I would get out of that relationship. And yet, many females watch this
and acquire the false notion that if they wait long enough, their overlooked
acts of love will finally pay off. I could see this as easily influencing
abused women to think that eventually their partner will stop abusing them and
actually love them. I am not saying that Tony is depicted as abusive, but many
women and girls could use these principles in their own lives and continue to
be hurt. And even if females are not in abusive relationships, they could be
influenced to stay in terrible relationships because they believe their partner
will change and one day realize how much he loves her.
I’m not saying that I want you to
change the world and change how every woman and girl thinks. But, I would
highly recommend that you critically look at the movies you are creating and
see how the female characters are truly being portrayed. It’s great that Pepper
can fight and help Tony, but how is she truly being portrayed? My hope is that
you will do this and portray women in a more positive manner. They don’t have
to necessarily fight and be the most hard core girl that was ever depicted on a
screen, but they do deserve to be respected. I think that every female deserves
that, whether on or off the screen.
Sincerely,
Megan Smith, a college student who cares
