"From The World Of John Wick: Ballerina," starring Ana de Armas as Eve Macarro, the ballerina assassin, has arrived. But beyond the sleek choreography and violent revenge plot, a crucial question lingers: Does this film truly empower women, or does it simply repackage old tropes in a shiny, action-packed veneer? I'm not convinced it's the former.
Action Heroine Or Damsel In Distress?
We've seen the female assassin before. Kill Bill, Atomic Blonde, even the John Wick franchise itself has some pretty scary ladies who aren’t afraid to go all lethal on a dude. What sets Eve apart? Is it agency, though, or just another type of exploitation in a pretty package? The movie revolves around vengeance for her father’s murder, a cause that’s sympathetic enough, but it seems so sadly reactive. Is Eve really in charge of her own story? Or is she merely an avatar, operating under the influence of past trauma and outside forces?
Think about it: How often do we see female action heroes driven by something other than pain or loss? How many times do they have the opportunity to be proactive! Or do they lack the opportunity to determine their fates, free of paternalistic men or vendettas from history? As for Ballerina, I would have liked to see the freedom of a full-fledged woman’s journey. Sadly, it’s not quite there.
Ruska Roma Traditions And Forgotten Voices?
While Eve’s training as an assassin is a highly stylized fantasy, the film incorporates a layer of cultural specificity through the Ruska Roma traditions that Eve descends from. Here's where it gets tricky. As someone who is strongly committed to democratizing DeFi & NFTs in Africa, I understand those intoxicating dynamics that accompany representation. Does Ballerina really enrich us by honoring Ruska Roma culture, or just present it in a way that exoticizes it for entertainment? Most importantly of all, is what would African women, the very people often excluded from these debates in history, theology, and legacy, think of Eve’s story?
While I haven't personally polled women across the continent about their views on Ballerina, I suspect many might find the narrative disconnected from their lived realities. In reality, in virtual all African contexts, women are confronted with systemic challenges that are a lot more complex than personalized revenge narratives. For them, the fight is for economic empowerment, for access to quality education, and for all of us to experience basic human rights and dignity. A Hollywood assassin avenging the wrongs of the world would seem like a far-off and, frankly, privileged dream. We must heed the hushed voices, the ones seldom heard above the din of popular opinion.
Empowerment Or Exploitation In Disguise?
The film’s Hindi market success is forecasted as being modest because of its woman-centric revenge plot. That prediction itself speaks volumes. And why is a woman getting revenge such a liability at the box office? Does it challenge ingrained patriarchal expectations? Or does it just not connect with audiences because they’re so conditioned to seeing women in less active roles?
Ana de Armas stars as the incredible femme fatale, captivating audiences in the titular role. The movie has a ton of technical craft on display, with incredible cinematography, production design and editing. Impressive graphics and a powerful voice actress cannot ensure true female empowerment. So, let’s ask if “Ballerina” really subverts the male gaze. Or does it just pander to it by including a female lead? Does it add something to the discussion, a new angle on what it is to be female? Or is it just rehashing poisonous cliches about a woman’s rage and fragility?
The truth, I fear, is somewhere in that murky space in-between. Though those moments are few and far between, Ballerina is powered by genuine empowerment, real glimmers of a woman unmoored finally taking control of her fate. But it falters beneath a crushing weight of genre conventions. The story suffers from logical limitations imposed by its revenge-centering premise.
In the end, whether you see Ballerina as empowering or exploitative is up to you and your personal experiences. Let us not confuse action with agency, or spectacle with substance. Let’s demand something better for our women characters. We’re looking for rich motivations, layered characterizations, and stories that authentically capture the complexity, unpredictability, and intensity of women’s lives around the globe. Adding a woman to play the lead role isn’t enough. We have to make sure that her voice is prioritized, her agency is returned to her, and her story is told with complexity and nuance—not as a one-dimensional archetype. Otherwise, it's just another ballerina dancing to someone else's tune. And that's a tragedy, not a triumph.
