Charlie's Angels

Okay, I finally watched this again last night. Here's some random observations.

I had forgotten Tom Green was in it. I still don't quite get how anyone ever thought he was funny.

The film does in fact present the main characters as women who are tough, smart, kick-ass and capable. It gives each one a little something to, I guess, round out the character-- Liu can't cook, Barrymore makes bad man choices, Diaz is a ditz-- but those seem offered as leavening and not undercutting for the characters.

It totally passes that test for women characters. Interestingly, it does NOT pass that test for the male characters. There are more than two male characters with names, but they mostly do not talk to each other at all.

That said, the movie is fascinated with the women's asses, which fill the screen as often as their faces. And boobs.

It has what I call the Mulan problem-- these women can be so powerful because the men are morons. There are at least two scenes in which the character takes control of the situation by flaunting her sexuality and thereby reduces the male characters (all nameless in these scenes) to drooling, stammering idiots. I am at a loss to decide who's being insulted more there.

Barrymore is the producer and is subtly first among equals in the trio. She has no father, and the script makes the point of paralleling her absent father and her absent boss. FWIW.

There is a scene in which Diaz fights off bad guys while keeping up a cell phone conversation with Luke Wilson, her new crush. My female co-viewer found that insulting/ridiculous.

Bill Murray's character has to be rescued by the women. Charlie has to be protected by the women.

The scene in which Diaz appears on stage at Soul Train dancing to "I like big butts" in front of an all-black, initially rejecting crowd probably puts racism on the table, too,

Tom Green sucks and I hope that someone has really truly driven a stake through the heart pf his career at this point. I'm just sayin'...