Was it such a different time?

Like Molly, I too began watching the remake of the film for tomorrow's class, getting an hour into it before realizing my mistake. Some of the parallels, especially with respect to the sexist attitudes of the male characters are uncanny. While speaking to a friend, Billy is describing his relationship with Robin. His friend points out to him that he is her husband, not her social worker, and therefore he just needs to slap her around a bit to set her straight in her ways. While Billy's character does not take his advice more laugh at his joke, the original very much exemplifies this behavior. When Michel finds Juliette dancing in the basement of Les Deux Amis, a violent scene ensues ending with Michel slapping Juliette repeatedly.

While I suppose you might chalk both of these instances up to the classic excuse, "It was a different time," the parallel through the movies, in two different times shocked me. Sure, we have the femme fatale luring these men into sexual traps… Okay. But certainly these women are trapped in marriages and social situations in which they cannot find happiness. Nor can they find the direction or strong female role models to help guide them towards that happiness in fulfillment. I do not think it a coincidence that both female leads came from less than traditional family backgrounds. Juliette was an orphan and Robin's mother was an alcoholic, whom she had to take care of with an absent father. Does this background of a broken home add to their mystery? Does the fact that no one can relate to them add to their mystique, or does it prevent them from finding the support and fulfillment they need? Certainly they don't need their husbands, the people they arguable rely on most consistently, to put them in their place. How often do the people we can't relate to get marked as "a mystery" or "helpless?" How can they find the love and support they need so they don't need to settle for someone who can't relate to them?