Directed by Ridley Scott, Thelma and Louise is a revenge fantasy in which our two anti-hero leads go on a crime-spree across the southern United States after Thelma (Geena Davis) narrow avoids an attempted rape that results in the would-be raper being shot dead by Louise (Susan Sarandon). Knowing that no-one is going to believe the story and in all likelihood they will get the blame for almost being raped, the girls decide to go on the run. What starts as a desperate escape from the injustice of a male-dominated justice system turns into a full-on crusade against macho culture.
Is Thelma and Louise a chick flick? Well probably, it does have Brad Pitt in the nude after all. But it's also much more than that genre tag would commonly imply. It's a crusade against machismo in society, a buddy movie, a love story and an advert for the scenery of the Southern USA. The film is on the surface extremely anti-macho, but it isn't anti-male. It tells a story that's very clear at portraying many sides of men, you have Harvey Keitel as the understanding but misplaced cop, Brad Pitt as the ultimate desirable heartbreaker and Michael Madsen as Louise's surprisingly astute and caring husband Jimmy. Jimmy might not be able to remember what colour Louise's eyes are, but he loves, cares about and respects her deeply. In this sense it's a film that's a study of men and male behaviour, from the point of view of women.
The ending of the film is a now-famous scene that has been much-parodied, shame that it looks a little cheesy when you watch it now 25 years after it was made. The power of the story is still there though, and the fact that it still resonates 25 years on shows us how far we still have to come before men and women will be treated equally by everyone at all levels of society.
