A Look at Scopophilia & Voyeurism by Way of Blue Sky and Forrest Gump

Between these two movies is a similar concept – that of active (male) and passive (female) (Mulvey, 27). So, both Forrest Gump and Blue Sky put forth the idea of a scopophilic quality inherent in the female psyche; and voyeuristic counterpart inherent in the male psyche. Another similarity of these films is the central female characters seem to have little or no real convictions of their own. In Blue Sky, Jessica Lange’s character seems to only advocate the richness of a woman’s beauty and her sensuality. This is what most of her dialog centers upon during the entire movie, even in conversing with the other female characters. She is totally convinced of her powers as a woman, and displays this whenever she can. Expressing her sensuality seems to give her an enjoyment, a satisfaction, and also a personal force with which to contend against the male dominated society in which she lives. Likewise, in Forrest Gump, Jenny shows little or no stable convictions of her own. She is basically a drifter, carried through the film with what was “in” and popular during those turbulent times, and she never really stands for her own thoughts and ideas. She never finds her own strength and direction in life and repeatedly must rely on Forrest for a true support system. She is definitely not a strong female character, mainly because of her inability to become independent and thus a truly liberated woman. And for these weaknesses, which are related to drug problems, emotional breakdowns, and suicidal thoughts, she finally has to call Forrest to her side to take care of her until she passes away.

So, both Blue Sky and Forrest Gump show the similarity of giving their main female characters few true convictions of their own. Traditionally, the female shown on screen has functioned on a couple of levels; as an erotic object for the characters on-screen, and as an erotic object for the audience. In this role, women are simultaneously looked at and displayed. Their appearance has been coded for an visually erotic impact (Mulvey, 27). Both Forrest Gump and Blue Sky display some of the same ideas regarding females and how females fit into society. One of the ideas they both have in common is of the scopophilic quality that is supposedly present in the female psyche, which according to Pally stems from the fear of castration (of Freudian psychoanalysis) (70). When the film is visually pleasurable, especially to the male, then the male viewer is left with a larger-than-life concept of himself. The woman is left either jealous of her on-screen counterparts, or unsatisfied (Pally, 68).