Le Blog de Sara

In between explosions and ridiculous set pieces (I know the Romulans are a different race, but really, what is the point of a ship that has cliff edges every place you turn, so you could trip and fall to your death at any moment?), I counted the number of women who spoke at all in the new Star Trek movie. I got to 10:

1. Kirk’s mother
2. Her medical attendant
3. Woman killed in the first Romulan attack
4. Spock’s mother
5. Uhura
6. Girl Uhura spoke to in bar
7. Uhura’s green roommate
8. Officer on Enterprise
9. Someone I can’t remember
10. Someone else I can’t remember

Now, I like Star Trek. I’m glad they rebooted the franchise, and I think the alternate timeline story is great. I get that the story focuses on the original characters, and I’m not asking for a Battlestar Galactica/Starbuck gender switcheroo. But why on earth does this bright shiny future have every commander, instructor, and most of the officers as men? Gene Roddenberry wanted his wife to play the Enterprise’s first officer and the network made him recast; 40 years later and we’re in the same place. Don’t even get me started on the miniskirts: I want people to wear whatever they like, but you’re hardly likely to get picked to go on an away mission or be able to help Scotty fix the Enterprise’s engines if you’re running around in a miniskirt and high heels.