Down With Girl Power 

By Martha Brockenbrough
MSN Cinemama

I am officially sick of "girl power."

I don't mind the message behind it -- that girls are every bit as worthy, courageous and strong as boys. To quote a 7-year-old, "Duh." It's sort of sad, though, that we've had to call that out and label it. There is no such thing as "boy power," for example. It's assumed.

And now "girl power" has become something else, entirely: a craven marketing device.

I submit, as Exhibit A, the press release touting the new Bratz movie, "Bratz Girlz Really Rock." And I quote, with trademark symbols intact: "The ultra-cool, multi-racial Bratz dolls -- Yasmin"!, Cloe"!, Jade"! and Sasha"! -- are all about girl power."

And here's Exhibit B, a press release for "Star Wars: The Clone Wars": "... 'girl power' in the galaxy far, far away takes on a whole new look."

Did they have to sell the first "Star Wars" as a girl power anthem because of Princess Leia? Of course not. Leia was a fascinating warrior-princess who played a meaningful part in a classic hero's journey. She was a character, not a sales tool.

Ahsoka, the female padawan, isn't a bad character this time around. She's good with a light saber, but her wit is only half as sharp as Leia's. There's no reason in the story that she should be a girl, though. Unlike Leia, who had to be female to advance the plot, she could just as easily have been a boy. It's clear she's been inserted just to increase the appeal of the movie to girls. How disappointing.

Let's go back to the "Bratz" movie, though, to look at creepy marketing at its worst.

"Girlz Really Rock" starts out in a loving video montage of the main characters getting ready for camp. They're sweeping glittery eye shadow across their sexy bedroom eyelids, slipping into spangled dresses, and wondering whether their curling irons will work at the elite performing arts camp they've been admitted to. Seriously. One of the characters actually utters this line.

Then we cut to the last math class of the school year, where a blockheaded teacher is droning on about something soporific while the girls are passing a string bikini back and forth.

Super! A movie for little girls that reinforces the message that math is boring, teachers are oblivious, and string bikinis are an appropriate show-and-tell item. That kind of girl power will fuel a rocket straight to Underachievementville, Pop.: Too Many Already.

We cut ahead to camp, where we learn there will be a showcase at the very end. The winner gets to be the subject of a famous male director's next movie. (Apparently girl power doesn't aspire to direct.)

Will it be the beautiful dancer who's followed by a pair of dimwitted best friends and abused by her ambitious and unattractive teacher? Will it be the Bratz girls' rockin' band? Or will the Bratz go their own separate ways in theater, dance, acting and fashion design, listening to the encouragement of their individual teachers?

I'm going to go ahead and spoil the ending for you. The Bratz consider splitting up, so each can pursue her dream. But they keep the band together, and play the ballerina to victory. Then they all get to be in the Big Male Director's movie, while the ugly ballet teacher brings them beverages. Oh, snap! The dimwitted friends, meanwhile, end up as an incompetent plate-spinning act.

The intended message, according to the press release, is that girls should "be themselves, embrace their individuality, and treasure their friendships."

The actual message? Even if you're really good at something, sticking with your friends is more important than pursuing that passion, unless your friends are dimwitted plate-spinners, in which case, it's hilarious to ditch them. Also, ugly, old people shouldn't dare to dream for more than the chance to serve the young, beautiful and talented.

Above all else, don't even think about pursuing your own dreams, little girl. "Friendship" means you're stuck with the band. You'd just hope the band doesn't someday give you the boot. Or the stiletto, right in the neck.

I'm not saying friendships are unimportant. But jeez. We only succeed if everyone succeeds? Talk about peer pressure.

This is where the "Ballet Shoes" movie I wrote about last week is so much better. Each girl wants something different. Each one makes mistakes in getting it -- mistakes that hurt her sisters. But they forgive, move on, and keep encouraging each other. That's actual power. Human power.

The writer Bruce Coville, who's penned 90-some fantastic books for children, has a theory about the role of kids in today's society. At one point, kids were cherished and adored. We gave them heroes in stories, heroes they could look up to. We also let them do meaningful things in society. Now, he says, their primary job in our society is to consume.

As individual parents, we might object to this. We don't treat our kids like little consumers. We're not buying them stuff so they can keep the American way of life intact.

And of course we're not. We're doing the best we can, trying our best to make sure our kids are happy and healthy.

But then there's the collective effect of some of our less-inspired decisions, particularly those with our kids' immediate happiness in mind. Millions of "Bratz" dolls have sold since their launch in 2001, despite the repellent brand name.

The Bratz movie release, before it even tells you what the movie is about, reports that the original dolls "have also branched out into a mega-successful franchise of mega-selling DVDs, CDs, a magazine, a top-rated animated television series, video games, and several lines of clothing, footwear and accessories."

This movie is not really about the importance of friendship, or even working hard to perfect a talent. It's about extending a "mega" moneymaker just a few more deadening inches into the souls of our daughters.

Make no mistake. These characters are appealing to kids. I watched the movie with my own daughters. They pointed out, "That one's me," when they saw a character who looked like they did.

Our kids have no idea about the implications of what they watch on-screen, and the messages they fold into their hearts from the stories they encounter. They just see girls who look like sparkly princess versions of their own selves, appearing to have fun and get famous -- all for going to summer camp.

This is where we, as parents, have to step in and do something heroic. We have to say no to junk that exists not to tell a meaningful story, but to extend a brand. We have to support the people who want to give our kids heroes, not idols.

Part of this means paying close attention to the people who promise "girl power" if you buy their product. It's become a cheap trick. And I'm not buying it anymore.

Martha Brockenbrough is MSN's Cinemama, for the Parents' Movie Guide. She is also the author of "It Could Happen to You: Diary of a Pregnancy and Beyond." She's also founder of SPOGG, the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. She writes a fun-with-kids column for Cranium.com, as well as an educational humor column for Encarta. Check out her Web site.

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