The Modern
Brassiere
Bulletin Page
Established 8th March, 2000
>
Ally McBeal/Callista Flockhart
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal is a blond, beautiful and succesful lawyer. However, she is also neurotic and doubtful. She falls over tresholds, and she pushes men who push her accidently in an overcrowded street.
She is a woman who does not live in accordance with the reflection of the modern female icon of the independent woman who makes a career. Instead, she is dreaming of white knight mounted on a horse. Her dream reveals that she is dependent on men.
Ally's honesty to met a man is not in accordance with the ideal of single life as it is presented by the ladies' magazines. The single life is presented as a balanced, happy, romantic and self-content woman, who tides her apartment fast, because there are no beer bottles and pizza trash caused by men. The absence of men makes life simpler and funnier. The life of the single woman does not have problems, but it has many interesting challenges.
However, Ally McBeal finds her life empty without a man. Ally McBeal finds it difficult to celebrate herself as a balanced, independent and lonely woman. The ironical humour, the striking selfishness and the enormous popularity of Ally McBeal shows that the frustrated woman who makes a career, is actual and important.
Ally's friends admit that she is hysterical, and that she sometimes is crazy. However, Ally is permitted to be crazy at the same time she is given responsibility for important legal matters.The irony of Ally McBeal's personality reveals a distant and reflected attitude to her and the universe of the TV-series.
The presentation of Ally McBeal challenges the idea of female independency and freedom that informs us that it is important to be calm, happy and succesful single person. Foremost, Ally McBeal is a comedy of the expectations to female lawyers, who shall be strong, self-confident and powerful women. However, Ally is angry, neurotic and unbalanced. She does not behave in accordance with the ideal of the modern female lawyers. Ally is an anti-heroine. Her dream is not to find justice and truth as an lawyer, but her dream is to marry and get children.
The TV series Ally McBeal is a complex mixture of musical, slapstick, comedy, surrealism and court drama. Ally's biological watch is visualized with a dancing baby. This baby turns up when Ally is in romantic circumstances.
The scenes of the unisex toilets is an important part of the absurdities. TV episodes close always with the lawyers who are philosophizing in the toilets. The intention of these scenes are not to show the humanity of the lawyers. However, the intention is to create a new form of scenes, which normally are not connected to traditional TV series. The unisex toilets are a part of unexpected elements, which characterize Ally McBeal.
Ally's dream to be a succesful lawyer, to be married and have children has caused reactions among feminists, especially in the USA. The presentation of the adult, single woman reduces the image of the modern, liberated woman. The feminists worries if Ally McBeal will be a legal, cultural prototype. Although the ironic TV series Ally McBeal criticizes the idea of the modern, single woman, the feminists have not grasped the point. Although the the absurdity, the humour and irony are very visible, the feminists are not very pleased with these political, incorrect images of the modern woman.
Ally McBeal are debated , because she is not a strong, female lawyer. She is difficult to accept because of her female squeals and fumbling femininity. Obviously, women are obliged to represent their sex. Ally McBeal is debated, because she is a bad role model. She is an self-centered egoist. In spite of the clear irony of the TV series, Ally McBeal is considered as an self-centered person. The TV series has a challenging and creative TV aesthetics with a funny and incorrect dialogue. In contrast to the modern and succesful female ideal, Ally is searching for a husband. The single and successful female lawyer is an illusion. Ally crushes the image. Ally is lonely in a surrealistic, modern and succesful TV series.
Behind, from left: Vonda Shepard, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Gil Bellows,
Jane Krakowski, Greg Germann, Portia de Rossi, Peter MacNicol, Lucy Liu.
In front, from left: Callista Flockhart, Lisa Nicole Carson.
| Main Page |