AIBU about the movie Magic Mike

[ScarletLadyOfTheNight01]

I'd like some opinions on this please.

Don't you think it's a bit weird that it seems perfectly fine to have a film about male strippers and have women drooling over Channing Tatum etc I mean visibly foaming at the mouth at the prospect... Whereas if it was a film about women strippers it would be looked at as a bit sleazy and cheap and the men going on about it might be looked down on?

AIBU? Does anyone else agree or am I being a bit of a party pooper? I just don't get it....maybe I'm weird >_

"As for men being called perverts for going to strip clubs? Bloody hell you're wide of the mark, it's pretty mainstream entertainment, no? Expected of stag dos, some businesses have come under fire for doing corporate entertainment at strip clubs like Spearmint Rhino"

I am not wide of the mark, I am referring to many threads on these boards where a poster has mentioned her husband going to a strip club. That is the assumption that is given on all of those threads, by plenty of other posters.

Personally I dont agree with that view, and would have no problem with my husband going to a licenced entertainment venue that had dancers who stripped.

Part of me is horrified by this in the way that I would be horrified by the equivalent film about female strippers. I take Axl's point though about this film apparently featuring actual characters who happen to be strippers, rather than being used solely for their physical charms. However, I am intrigued because well, they all look absolutely bloody gorgeous! Would never go to see it though, would be mortified if anyone saw me there too chicken

squeaky referring to Mumsnet threads is a bit of a biased sample when it comes to opinions on strip clubs.

If most people held the mumsnet opinion, there wouldn't be so bloody many of them.

Oh I know it is a biased sample, but it still gives an insight into the double standards that are quite prevalent within our generation.

squeakytoy and AndiMac - that is exactly what I'm referring to. It just seemed odd to me that the very women who were drooling over the prospect of male strippers in this context, were the very same who'd have a problem with their partners going to a strip club. Just seemed at odds with each other.

It's just interesting and brings up a lot of issues about the inequality that is everywhere...that's all I was saying.

I have no problem with people admiring the male (or female) form. Naked bodies are gorgeous and (can be) great to look at. No-one should feel ashamed of admiring the human form...it's more the stigma that comes with the establishments themselves that I'm talking about.

I think a lot of women share the 'mumsnet opinion' on men visiting strip clubs. A lot of men probably don't, and don't men's opinions count for more, a lot of the time?

There is one quite handsome bloke in the film, IMO, not Channing Tatum but the youngster who he mentors. However, not a body hair in sight in the whole film (as could be expected given it's about male strippers) so it did nothing for me in an erotic sense.

squeaky if you're wanting to prove double standards then you would have to show that the people who object to their DH's going to strip clubs are the same people going to the chippendales.

Or that people who wouldn't let their DH watch a film for a female stripper are the same people going to watch Magic Mike.

I've seen male strippers and I've unfortunately seen female strippers. You can't compare the two. The atmosphere is completely different. I'm not someone who is easily intimidated but I hated, hated how it felt with the female strippers (not a particularly seedy bar, quite an upmarket one in Sydney) 90% of the men there were there to get off, the strippers were meat and there was no interaction. Horrible. I walked out.

Male strip revues are the complete opposite. It's light-hearted, there's laughter and it's a performance over and above anything else. It's a two way thing between the performer and the audience.

I don't know why this is. Whether it's just a fundamental difference between men and women and how they view sex or whether it's to do with patriarchy and power balances, I couldn't tell you but there is a difference.

FWIW I don't think Magic Mike makes you think that stripping (even for men) is all sweetness and happiness. It's quite bittersweet in some ways, and if people just go to see hot men taking their clothes off then there will quite a few disappointing bits! I was quite pleasantly surprised that there was plot the first time I saw it

I have come across women who are quite happy to joke about it and would go and see male strippers, but if they found out their partners were going to go and see female strippers they'd be annoyed about it because "it's different".

I'm not saying that applies to everyone, nothing ever does, but it DOES happen.

MrsDmitri, it sounds intriguing! I know what you mean about men and women viewing stripping differently - as a feminist, I would say that it's down the patriarchy rather than innate differences between men and women, but maybe that's for another thread!

Actually while I was watching the trailer, as well as thinking 'Phwoar' I was thinking how they seem like a good bunch of dancers and that the show seemed well-choreographed. Honest!

I agree with you MrsDimitri, I know it's different. I'm just talking about WHY that is. It raises a lot of societal questions to me, but then I like learning about what makes people tick...

I would like to see the day a female stripper can make a rape case stand.

When women are not judged by their sexual behaviour and the exploitation and traficking stops, then bleat about double standards.

I like watching pole dancing, so would go and see about it with my DP, however, proper pole dancing cannot be compared to strippping.

Although more and more Eastern bloc Women are using it as a way out of poverty instead of education and that is the difference.

Men's activity tends to be as a suppliment, where as women's doesn't it is an instead of, choice, because of lack of alternatives.

I watched the programme on the biggest breasts and it was very sad how the women had given upon themself to just find this way of earning money.

Top class Pole dancers are worlds apart from the average stripper.

Scarlet would it not be better to complain about the many many instances of female sexuality being used to sell films than this rare instance of table-turning?

You're right of course noblegiraffe. I wasn't complaining per se, it was just that this example brought the subject to my attention on this particular day following a conversation I witnessed that's all.

I'm not saying it's wrong to have a film about male stripping, it was just that this film caused me to start thinking about the points that everyone's raised a lot more.

Okay, this is just musing out loud.

I think it is a power thing. Female strippers, male audience has the power. Male strippers, the performer has it. However Burlesque and performers like Dita Von Teese have the same power over the audience as the male strippers do. Is this because the audience isn't predominantly male?

FWIW, I wouldn't ever stop DH from doing anything and vice versa. If he wanted to see strippers then more fool him, but luckily he finds the whole thing a bit creepy. I wouldn't see it as a marriage breaker if he did go unlike some of the MN threads on the subject.

I pretty much agree with you there as well MrsDmitri...I would never not "let" my DH do anything...who am I to "let" him? It's up to him, he's a grown arse man. He doesn't like it though. The way he looks at it if he wants to see a woman take her clothes off then he'll ask me...and I feel the same, so we agree on that subject. It wouldn't end our marriage though if he wanted to go to a strip club, though I would want him to be honest about it...just as I would with anything else.

When you say 'this example', Scarlet, can you think of any other films which are similarly sold to woman in this way?

I was at Westfield the other week when the were topless blokes chucking free knickers to crowds of screaming and frothing ladies. opening of some teen shop or other

A) they were unattractive, looked like they were moulded from plastic, had bodies built by the gym not by actual real physical activity
B) my overwhelming feeling for them was pity. They were demeaning themselves. It was embarrassing. Not empowering for anyone concerned.

Have now watched the clip. Cal me freaky, but I am not turned on by someone pretending to shag a floor like a wiggly caterpillar.

"I would like to see the day a female stripper can make a rape case stand"

This thread is not about rape though.

Why is it that any thread which touches on what could be a feminist issue gets rape dragged into it in no time at all?

That's fine, more for me then! :D

Right, haven't seen it so am prepared to be shouted down. Does it market to women, or actually to gay men? was it written, directed, produced by women?

There's a bit of an insinuation because you don't like the look of it Jamie, it must be meant for gay men. Let me assure you, I am female, heterosexual and whilst I don't want these fellows showing up on my doorstep for a show, I do find the looks and moves of them for a bit of eye candy very appealing.

Fair enough.

I think my idea of attractive is bit out of synch with the prevailing fashion.

It was co-produced by Channing Tatum and written by some man I've never heard of, but based on events in Channing Tatum's life (he was a male stripper before he started acting)

Not sure who is was originally marketed to, but they had a positive response from the gay community so revamped the trailer to push the stripping more and on the way picked up a lot more women (this based on various things I've read online)