Ray Donovan's Women



Wait!

Ann Biderman -- director -- are you paying attention to how women are portrayed on RAY DONOVAN. I am seriously wondering how you are ok about this?

 Here are the top 10 examples (believe me this is the short list) :

 1. Scene shows John Voight holding a gun to Patricia Arquette 's head and demands a blow job. His response to her freak out is, "I musta been in the can too long.  I was just following your lead".  Spoiler: Patricia Arquette gets it anyway.

 2. Ray has a dead girlfriend and this is his dark secret.  We don't know what happened to her.

 3. Ray's wife steals designer shoes because she is unhappy in their marriage.

 4. Scene shows Ray's actress girlfriend handcuffing herself to his bathroom sink and then begging for sex.

 5. Ray's daughter's boyfriend tries to force her to have sex -- she is about 15 years old.

 6. Ray's wife says to her daughter that she will force her, if she gets pregnant, to have a baby and therefore ruin her life, so she can be taught a lesson.

 7. Elliot Gould's girl friend is secondary to his dead wife -- the girlfriend is constantly reminded of the former wife and treated like an employee.

 8. Ray's sister had committed suicide on drugs while pregnant.

 9. Girlfriend of Ray's brother is beat up by husband.

 10. Plethora of prostitutes parade throughout the show as eye candy.

 BONUS -- Kate Moennig, Ray's assistant, is a angry, violent and self-loathing gay woman.   Kate sez "working on RAY DONOVAN is like going to the LA Gun Club on a date".  Go figure. 

I am not sure that Ann Biderman addresses why women are portrayed as tabloid victims.  But she sure explains her resources:
“We didn’t use a specific advisor for the show but we did do a tremendous amount of research,” says Biderman. “We talked to tabloid journalists, to agents, to lawyers, to security consultants…we met up with celebrities and heard their stories…it was important to create a world where the foundations felt solid and right without forgetting that this is still a work of fiction.”

 Ann, I guess that makes it ok. Right?

 Season 2 premieres July 13, 2014 -- 9 pm on Showtime.



Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 11, 2014 at 11:13 AM

    I am so freaking glad that someone else sees this! The way women are prorate in this series disgusts me! Why wouldn't Rays wife file for divorce? I think that's more realistic than Her practically begging for moreeemotionally abuse! The straight women are portrayed as nothing more important than a walking vagina! They are all desperate and act like they just can't get enough of thearly narcissistic male roles! PUH-LEASE! And why is the lesbian so devoid of character other than to do some man's every bidding without question and be so seemingly self loathing? That's an insult too! The only reason I watched this show was in hopes that the wife - the daughter - or SOME female character would stand up for themselves and act like the empowered women of today's generation. Thanks Ann, you know, for setting feminism back about 40 years. Your show sucks and I will not be watching any more of your works. I hopefully this isn't a reflection on your personal life. If it is do something about it instead of bringing the rest of us down with you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Susan UtellJune 14, 2014 at 12:32 PM

      Thanks for your well put insights. If it wasn't that the director was a woman, I would just blow it off as more of the same. More to come on the portrayal of women regarding the "beloved" Orange is the New Black".

      Delete

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