The style in which films are created alters with time to mirror changes in society and technology. The films, Eat Drink Man Woman, Rocky, Suffragette, and Avatar all reflect the views of society from their respective times in history. Eat Drink Man Woman along with Rocky both mirror constraining gender roles for women, while Suffragette and Avatar espouse a more modern view of women’s roles in society. Films remain the same in their aspiration for money, which is achieved by satisfying society’s desire to be entertained.

Eat Drink Man Woman echoes mainstream cultural values that societies still blindly cling to, namely that a patriarchal civilization makes women happy. Eat Drink Man Woman reaffirms women’s traditional role of giving up on their careers in order to stay in the home and care for their male relatives. This conventional movie “…focuses on a traditional view that women belong in the home,” for female audiences in Taiwan and in America, as Elise Settle’s 2018 CollaborateX review entitled, “Gender roles in Eat Drink Man Woman and The Terminator” asserts. In the following image, Jia-Jen is seen to erase a board in her classroom while despairing of finding someone to love. It is only when Jia-Jen has a secret admirer that she discards her plain clothing for vibrant colors, symbolizing her entrance into cheerfulness.

As maintained in a 1994 New York Times review entitled, “Film Review; Avoiding Basic Human Desires, or Trying To,” Janet Maslin states that Jia-Jen “…has never recovered from an unhappy love affair.” This scene, wherein Jia-Chien cooks for her ex-boyfriend while exclaiming at her misfortune of being forbidden to cook at home, also demonstrates the concept that women are only content in the home rather than at work.

Rocky similarly seeks to affirm this idea in American society, as is demonstrated through this scene, wherein the ideal of the American dream is successfully achieved by Rocky Balboa.

As is stated by Stallone in a 1976 New York Times article entitled, “‘Rocky Isn’t Based on Me,’ Says Stallone, ‘But We Both Went the Distance,’” the average man in America “…sees ‘Rocky’ as a simple man, a man he can identify with….” This illustrates the films’ wholehearted attempts to affirm the established society by telling the happy story of a man who could be anyone.

Suffragette thoroughly supports the dominant values of modern society, as women are now applauded for being such resolute figures in the fight for equality. The story is a familiar one, as the women’s suffrage movement has been portrayed in countless other films over the years, although Suffragette does not spare the audience some of the more gruesome scenes from history, such as when women were force-fed while in prison.

Even these scenes of violence reflect modern society, as such intense imagery is expected of contemporary films. Avatar also portrays modern society through its depiction of a strong female lead, while satisfying the public’s need for action and adventure scenes. Moreover, “[n]ew digital technologies gave [Cameron] the necessary tools…” with which to draw audiences into the world of Pandora, as is stated by Manohla Dargis in a 2009 New York Times review entitled, “A New Eden, Both Cosmic and Cinematic.”

Movies have shifted through the years alongside the advancing views of society, yet they always remain abreast of society’s whims, in order to avoid offending any specific social group. These four films represent the differing views that society has held towards women, and the types of scenes that filmmakers are willing to show audiences.

In his 1994 Washington Post review entitled, “‘Eat Drink Man Woman,’” Hal Hinson averred, “…what is most surprising, perhaps, is how involved we become with these people.” Especially considering that this film was set and filmed in Taipei, with Mandarin being the exclusive language spoken, it is amazing that this film found much of a reception in the U.S. This illustrates the globalization of Eat Drink Man Woman, as well as its attempts to affirm the dominant gender stratified culture of the times. Similarly to Eat Drink Man Woman, Rocky affirms the ideals of the standing society. In her 2018 CollaborateX review of Rocky entitled, “Rocky – the Fight to Success,” Evita Babin stated, “…it brought back the appreciation of a hero, having all odds against him, but persevering despite it all.” Released in 1976, Rocky attempts to expose the American public to the idea of success, which is affirmed in this 1976 interview with Stallone. Rocky was influenced by the ideology that the American Dream is possible to achieve for everyone, if people only make a concerted effort to attain their desires.

As is evident from this scene in Suffragette, wherein Emily sacrifices herself for the hope of women’s suffrage being nationally heard, Suffragette represents how much the film industry has changed over the years.

Filmmakers in earlier times would not have dared to depict such a blunt and horrifying scene as the one above, but in the modern age, such scenes of violence are commonplace, as the film industry attempts to earn increasingly more money from their productions. The following scene from Avatar, with Neytiri fighting the wolves in order to save Jake, also illustrates the changing consciousness of gender roles in American society.

In Rocky, Adrian remains a passive character, possessing minimal power in her life as this scene depicts, whereas in Avatar, Neytiri is portrayed as a strong woman who is capable of handling herself in violent situations.

Avatar’s globalized status is portrayed through its Canadian director, James Cameron, with filming locations situated in the U.S. Furthermore, in her 2018 CollaborateX review entitled, “Society and Technology Reflected in Avatar and Inception,” Elise Settle maintained that “Avatar was successfully and instantly globalized after its release to audiences.”

These four films depict various aspects of the film industry, as sometimes they are produced in order to make a profit, while at other times, they attempt to deliver an artistic creation to viewers. Movies also address social and political struggles, as the conventional ideals of the public change over time, allowing films to enact previously controversial plots.

This scene demonstrates the importance of the culinary arts in Eat Drink Man Woman, as Jia-Chien comments on troublesome neighbors who are loudly singing karaoke, “[w]e communicate by eating. They do it by singing.”

The dismal familial feeling that permeates the dinner table illustrates the film’s artistic sense, while the social issue of families growing apart in the modern age is simultaneously addressed, as the lives of Mr. Chu’s three daughters undergo radical emotional turmoil.

Stallone is quoted as saying; “…I want to be remembered as a man of raging optimism, who believes in the American dream” (New York Times, 1976). This quote aptly describes the societal function that Rocky played in America, as the film directly urges the everyday person to follow their innermost desires in the hopes of success. Through this ideal, Stallone sought to lift the spirits of the American public, by presenting them with the satisfying image of a man who ‘won’ due to his hard work and determination.

While Rocky conveys a joyful sentiment to audiences, Suffragette was able to portray the fundamental wrong that has been perpetrated against women in the past, due to modern society’s approving stance on women’s rights. In a 2015 review in The Guardian entitled, “Suffragette Review – A Valuable, Vital Film About How Human Rights are Won,” Peter Bradshaw stated that “…votes for women were not something that naturally evolved…they had to be fought for.” This critic correctly views Suffragette as a film involving English women’s journey to equality in politics and in society. As A. O. Scott stated in his 2015 New York Times review entitled, “Review: In ‘Suffragette,’ Feminist Insight That’s About More Than the Vote,” “[w]hat joins these narrative strands is the feminist insight that the subjugation of women extends from the highest reaches of government through the workplace and into the domestic sphere.” This quote ably describes the informative aspect of the Suffragette, as it attempted through a brutally honest style, to portray the experiences of women in the U.K. as they fought for the vote.

As upheld in a 2009 Hollywood Reporter review entitled “‘Avatar’: Film Review,” Kirk Honeycutt maintains that “James Horner’s score never intrudes but subtly eggs the action on….” All of the many facets of Avatar combine to create an emotionally fascinating production. Yet, aside from profiting monetarily from Avatar, this film attempts to amaze viewers with its wondrous plot and astonishing use of realistic technology. Cameron “[is] making a credible attempt to create a paradigm shift in science-fiction cinema” with his release of Avatar (Dargis). Thus, Cameron’s goal of creating this movie was to advance the cinematic artistry used in science-fiction films. Additionally, the special effects and CGI technology that was used in order to film Avatar greatly contribute to the extremely lifelike portrayal of the scenes.

Changes in society as well as technology are portrayed in the cinematic artistry of these four films. Women’s limited roles in society due to their gender are upheld in Eat Drink Man Woman, while women’s place in society was advancing in the form of social and political restructuring in the film Suffragette, released 21 years later. Similarly, the issue of gender was discussed in Rocky, as Adrian’s sole purpose in the film was to be Rocky Balboa’s girlfriend, while in Avatar, Neytiri was frequently more skilled than Jake, even undertaking to teach Jake the ways of life in Pandora. Unlike in Rocky, Neytiri is a crucial part of the story in Avatar, which demonstrates the change in society’s view of women over the years through their portrayal in films.

With Eat Drink Man Woman, Ang Lee wanted to create a culinary art film. The filmmakers attempted to attract as large an audience as was possible, by affirming socially accepted gender roles in the plot rather than challenging social standards. Lee desires to impart a message through the frequent silences in the film and obvious lack of action-packed scenes, as the opening scene illustrates.

This style was influenced by internal changes in filming techniques, as the director purposefully slowed down the progression of the plot in order to create a visibly artistic and meaningful film.

Rocky is a film that rests firmly in the established character of the American society. Stallone agrees with the ideals of society through the depiction of a common man rising to the height of success in his personal and professional life, which is the embodiment of the American dream. The deeply rooted idealism depicted in Rocky’s happy storyline, shone into the lives of downtrodden Americans in a time when pessimism was on the rise.

The sets and costumes used in Suffragette aided in the accurate depiction of the lives of English commoners in the early twentieth century. Without these modern internal cinematic abilities, this film could not have achieved the production of such an honest image of historic factory life. The depth of the filmmakers’ talent is illustrated in the following image, wherein authentic factory machinery is shown alongside the dreary lives of the laborers who operated them.

Avatar was strongly influenced by the external technological advances of the modern age. Cameron was not immediately able to produce Avatar, for the lack of the appropriate technology his idea necessitated (Honeycutt). Yet, with the turn of the twenty-first century, Cameron had the cinematic capability of filming Avatar using CGI technology.

In the desire for making money, filmmakers tend to avoid challenging social and political constraints of societies. This quickly turns an enterprise away from creating art, and into the production of a movie that can entertain audiences enough to make money. In this manner, movies remain conventional through the decades, as filmmakers continue to value monetary gain or critical acceptance over artistic messages. This stationary status can act to severely limit the creativity of the film industry. Overall, the elements in movies change over time due to the availability of technology, and to follow the shifting ideals of society.