
The Females
1970

Representation Score
Good
1973
RDirector
Joseph G. Prieto
Runtime
85 minutes
Average Rating
No ratings yetNew Showbiz Analysis
Miss Leslie's Dolls stands out for its era by placing a transgender protagonist at the center of its narrative. This disrupts assumptions that everyone is cisgender and uses gender identity as a primary driver for the film's tension and mystery. However, the film's engagement with other identities is more limited. While it offers some intellectual ability to act through female characters, it relies on genre clichés when handling psychological instability and lacks significant racial depth. Ultimately, the film functions as a piece of transgressive storytelling that prioritizes the disruption of social hierarchies over a nuanced exploration of lived experiences.
Category Breakdown
The film centers on Leslie Lamont, a transgender woman, placing her non-cisgender identity at the heart of the plot. Her identity drives the central mystery and tension rather than serving a peripheral role.
Leslie Lamont subverts traditional gender roles by exerting predatory power within a traditionally feminine space. While Professor Alma Frost displays intellectual ability to act, the horror elements often emphasize the physical vulnerability of female characters.
The film follows conventional 1970s casting patterns. While Charles Pitts provides some racial integration within the ensemble, the narrative does not center non-white perspectives or prioritize racial themes.
The narrative moves away from singular Christian morality by embracing occultism and situational ethics. It portrays the outsider through a lens of tragic history and social isolation.
Psychological instability is explored through Leslie, though it relies on common horror clichés of madness. Her mental state serves as a plot catalyst rather than a nuanced study of neurodivergence.
Present on Screen
Limited or Absent
Official Synopsis
A young college professor and three of her students seek shelter during a storm in the rural farmhouse of a strange woman who collects lifelike mannequins.

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