Gendered Film Criticism and “Intolerable Images”: Representation of Female Trauma in Brady Corbet’s Vox Lux (2018)
type: CreativeWork
description: This thesis explores Brady Corbet's 2018 film Vox Lux, focusing on its portrayal of female trauma and the subsequent gendered division in its critical reception. The film centers on Celeste, a survivor of a school shooting who rises to pop stardom, depicting an eighteen-year narrative that transforms her personal trauma into a public spectacle and a critique of American culture. Through theoretical frameworks from Judith Lewis Herman, E. Ann Kaplan, Jacques Rancière and Susan Sontag, this thesis examines how the film's fragmented narrative and stylistic shifts represent the long-term psychological aftermath of trauma, manifesting as emotional dysregulation, substance abuse, and unpredictable behavior. Vox Lux generated a divisive critical response upon its premiere, notably exhibiting a significant gender imbalance, with a large majority of negative reviews authored by male critics, who pathologized Celeste's adult behavior as morally failing, narcissistic, and characteristically flawed, largely overlooking the manifestations of her unresolved trauma and exploitation. Conversely, female critics tended to provide more nuanced interpretations, contextualizing her actions as complex coping mechanisms arising from continuous trauma and industry exploitation. This divergence is analyzed through Rancière's concept of the "intolerable image," suggesting that critical resistance stems not from the suffering depicted itself, but from representations of female trauma that defy conventional expectations of victimhood and resist traditional narrative containment. By doing so, this thesis further highlights the persistent gender biases influencing the interpretation of trauma narratives in film criticism.
abstract: This thesis explores Brady Corbet's 2018 film Vox Lux, focusing on its portrayal of female trauma and the subsequent gendered division in its critical reception. The film centers on Celeste, a survivor of a school shooting who rises to pop stardom, depicting an eighteen-year narrative that transforms her personal trauma into a public spectacle and a critique of American culture. Through theoretical frameworks from Judith Lewis Herman, E. Ann Kaplan, Jacques Rancière and Susan Sontag, this thesis examines how the film's fragmented narrative and stylistic shifts represent the long-term psychological aftermath of trauma, manifesting as emotional dysregulation, substance abuse, and unpredictable behavior. Vox Lux generated a divisive critical response upon its premiere, notably exhibiting a significant gender imbalance, with a large majority of negative reviews authored by male critics, who pathologized Celeste's adult behavior as morally failing, narcissistic, and characteristically flawed, largely overlooking the manifestations of her unresolved trauma and exploitation. Conversely, female critics tended to provide more nuanced interpretations, contextualizing her actions as complex coping mechanisms arising from continuous trauma and industry exploitation. This divergence is analyzed through Rancière's concept of the "intolerable image," suggesting that critical resistance stems not from the suffering depicted itself, but from representations of female trauma that defy conventional expectations of victimhood and resist traditional narrative containment. By doing so, this thesis further highlights the persistent gender biases influencing the interpretation of trauma narratives in film criticism.
author: Kreul, Alison
keywords: film, trauma, film criticism, Brady Corbet, Jacques Rancière, Susan Sontag, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Film and Media Studies
date published: 2025-05-01T07:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T01:38:43Z
provider: Chapman University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Chapman University