Masculinity is a huge theme in the Incredibles films, something that may come as a surprise for a superhero film about a family that fights villains together. The main character Mr. Incredible faces ups and downs concerning traditional gender norms and what requires someone to be masculine. Bob Parr (Mr. Incredible) is a superhero that wields superhuman strength, the rest of the Parr family also have their own respective powers such as speed, elasticity and invisibility to name a few. Mr. Incredible is portrayed as a very strong man, saving lives, stopping criminals and an overall invincible guy which can draw similarities to older gender roles in families with the father being the protector of the family, strong, put together and seemingly invincible to any emotion or physical damage. The idea of Bob being invulnerable gets tested later when he’s challenged by a new villain Syndrome, when Mr. Incredible gets defeated and captured by his new foe the roles get reversed, his family comes to save him and in a sense be his protector which normally would be his role. Syndrome attacks his family, something that brings out his emotions of anger, sadness, and despair. Sadness was once reserved for only the women and children, the idea of crying being associated with a “sissy” or being a “baby”, but in Bob’s case it just shows the love he has for his wife and kids. The second film continues to challenge stereotypes with the whole flipping of traditional gender roles, Mr. Incredible taking care of the kids as a stay-at-home dad while his wife, Elastigirl takes the role of bread winner and works. Bob learns the troubles of being a stay-at-home parent and faces many hurdles dealing with the kids all the time. Many men who take on a bigger role in the house might feel often criticized for not being manly enough or soft will see themselves in this movie and have a strong male figure to look up to. Making more people feel comfortable in their role or even allow for more men to not feel emasculated by taking care of their family is a very nice thing to include in such an action-packed film. Mr. Incredibles character progression throughout the films display an evolving portrayal of masculinity in media and wider acceptance of various definitions of what it means to be a man, he gives more understanding to society of how to balance both work and family while also giving flowers to all the stay-at-home parents around the globe who don’t see enough praise.
Fight Clubs/Night Clubs 