“˜Road Trip’ twists tropes, lets women drive movie

  Emilia Hwang Hwang is going to need more
than a bomb threat to pass her midterms. Help her by writing to
[email protected].

Women of the world unite. Recently released on home video,
“Road Trip” may seem like an unlikely candidate for
empowering females into action.

Fueled by a line of testosterone-driven laughs and gratuitous
scenes with topless girls, the movie will have audiences searching
hard for the shifting gender dynamics within the story.

Encoded in resourceful and strong female characters, however, is
a girl-power message that overpowers the overtly masculine premise
of the film.

Saturated with gross-out gags, the movie is nevertheless a
surprising celebration of the subversive nature of film as a
literary form.

In the movie, long-time sweethearts Josh Parker (Breckin Meyer)
and Tiffany Henderson (Rachel Blanchard) find their college-bound
futures ensnared by the trials and tribulations of a long distance
relationship.

All seems to go well for the couple though, until Josh’s
charms penetrate the heart of the vixen-next-door, Beth (Amy
Smart).

Miles away, Tiffany will surely never find out about her
boyfriend’s infidelity ““ if only he hadn’t
videotaped the whole affair. To make matters worse, Josh’s
half-wit buddy accidentally mails the tape to Tiffany.

So Josh and friends head from Ithaca, N.Y. to Austin, Tex. on a
1,800-mile road trip to intercept the illicit tape.

The narrator of the whole story is Barry Manilow (Tom Green), a
seventh-year Ithaca student who enjoys the female form unattached
to the person. He objectifies women in his storytelling, relishing
his ability to control how the female characters in his accounts
are dressed, or rather undressed.

The apparent gender politics of the film are established early
in the film at a fraternity fund-raiser in which girls are
auctioned off to anyone with the requisite cash. With bidding
starting at $5, the girls are readily compared to Happy Meals.

One of the girls up for auction is Beth, who, in this scene, is
clearly a commodity to be purchased. Her future, or at least
evening, belongs to the highest bidder.

Hosting the auction is E.L. (Seann William Scott) ““ a
stereotypical frat boy who only cares about getting laid. He
encourages Josh’s infidelity and does not understand his
friend’s earnest commitment to Tiffany.

The other male characters also demonstrate a lack of respect for
the sanctity of Josh’s relationship. While the four friends
are on the road, they outline the rules of long distance dating and
reach the consensus that Josh didn’t cheat on Tiffany since
he did it in a different area code.

At the outset, the movie may seem to support a dominantly male
perspective, but in the end, women master the film’s
unexpected detours.

Like gross-out comedies, road trips are considered to be
ceremoniously masculine diversions. In this film, however, the
whole adventure is intrinsically driven by a woman.

Though it is unclear whether Josh still hopes to salvage their
lifelong romance, he clearly respects his girlfriend enough to
spare her feelings.

Ultimately, the driving force behind the actions of the road
trippers is not a sort of masculine hedonism, but rather feminine
sentimentality. The car is blown up, the credit card is maxed out,
and Josh puts his college education on the line ““ all for
Tiffany.

When he finally gets to Austin, Josh finds out that Tiffany has
been thinking about ending their relationship even before learning
about his infidelity.

She tells him that she doesn’t want to be tied down to the
first guy she’s ever known. Tiffany wants to be free to meet
more people and experience more of life in general.

Furthermore, Josh finds out that Tiffany cheated on him back
when they were 14-years-old. She justifies her actions by saying
that he had been out of town and they were therefore in different
area codes.

By throwing the male rhetoric back in his face, the power
dynamics shift in favor of the female character.

Up until this point in the film, the picture the audience has of
Tiffany is limited to her role as the complacent girlfriend ““
a portrait that was incidentally drawn by Josh.

Finally, while Josh is away, Beth doesn’t just sit around
idly waiting for her fate to be decided for her. Though her
character is highly sexualized, Beth proves she is not a slut, and
furthermore, not a pawn in Josh’s game.

Even from the beginning, Beth was able to manipulate her
situation at the auction by coercing Josh into outbidding a
stalking admirer.

When Beth finds out that Josh has gone to Austin (or Boston) to
see his girlfriend, she decides to take matters into her own hands
and pay Tiffany a little visit of her own.

Traveling by bus and confronting the would-be girlfriend (in a
comic episode of mistaken identity), Beth demonstrates an
independence of thought and a strength of will which far exceeds
that of any of the male characters.

At the end of the film, Beth even calls in a bomb threat that
postpones Josh’s final exam long enough for him to get back
from his road trip. Thanks to her, Josh is able to pass the class
he needs to stay in college. Beth’s acts of free will and
thoughtfulness add dimension to her character that transcends any
stereotypes initially attached to the beautiful blonde.

By allowing female characters to dominate a conventionally male
forum, “Road Trip” manipulates conventional gender
expectations and ultimately provides an even playing field for its
male and female characters.

You go girls!