In The Company Of Women

From "Desperately Seeking Susan", "Steel Magnolias" and "Thelma & Louise" to "Desert Hearts", "Girl Friends" and "Passion Fish", mainstream cinema has seen a wave of films focusing on friendships between women. This text offers a critical investigation of the resurgence in this variety of the "woman's film". Examining the female friendship film since the 1970s and setting it against older films of the 1930s and 1940s, the author studies the character of the films themselves and how they speak to female viewers. She argues that while many of these films initially seem to affirm the power of women, most of them ultimately fall back on conventional feminine roles.