Laura Mulvey is "best known for her essay on Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema"
This idea focusses on how media is used and edited to be more appealing to the male gender and or homosexual women. Hence, 'The Male Gaze', in films there's is normally shot or dialogue that discusses the women body/shows off.
This theory also involves the topic of Voyeurism: the practice of gaining sexual pleasure from watching others when they are naked or engaged in sexual activity. This can be said that it is also the enjoyment from seeing the pain or distress of others. Overall, voyeurism is the act of looking on, which is why people enjoy the art of cinema so much. But this is also aimed at men like to look at women during film.
Effectively the theory states that, when aimed at women, the camera fragments them. This gives them no identity as a character and ultimately sexualises her. Here are a few examples.
In 'A married Women it is clear that only the body of the women has no identity as we cannot see her face. The mans hands on her dory indicate that she is being controlled and that she has no power.
In The Minion Movie, a little more of the woman is shown but the same rules apply. Even though it can be used as added mystery to a character, but also it can be used to, in this case, focus on her legs. I feel that this is a subtle way of portraying it but even in children's films it happens. For most kids to see this, a parent would have to be there to take them. This gives the adult something to look out for so that the movie is suitable for everyone. Much like an adult joke in a kids film, where the children won't get it but it's there for the parents.
Finally in the recent Wonder Woman movie. Yes, it allows for the idea that women are powerful but in this poster she doesn't even have an identity. Part of her face is shown but to most, the audience still doesn't know who it is. The focus in this mid/close up shot is the lips. Usually this aspect of a woman is sexy and allows for men to fantasise about the character. Even in the movie, yes she has power but she still obeys the laws when it comes to the love interest in the text.
I believe that these examples fit pretty well with Mulvey's theory. Mulvey states that in a narrative the rile of a female character has two functions. One is where 'she' is used as an erotic object for characters within the narrative to view. The second is so that spectators out of the narrative, such as audience members in a cinema, to view.
References:
https://www.filminquiry.com/film-theory-basics-laura-mulvey-male-gaze-theory/
Fol, I. (2004) p.25 The Dominance of the Male Gaze in Hollywood Films
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