The opening scenes of the film are vital to True Lies message of masculinity because Harry is seen sneaking into a black tie party unnoticed. Underneath his wetsuit is a perfectly ironed tuxedo for the ball. He even takes time to put on a little aftershave prior to going inside. Schwarzene

A man will always devalue a woman before he will question himself if he is wrong. Evidence of this is the frequency with which a man will call a woman a “bitch” or “slut” after a fight to degrade her and prove to her and everyone else that she is of no value. The male may never question if his actions could have been wrong.

Another element of the gender issue in True Lies is the male characters constantly striving to become more masculine as seen in Bill Paxton’s character, Simon. Simon plays a sleazy used car salesman who manipulates women to think he is something he is not. He lies about being a secret agent to Helen, Harry’s wife, to persuade her to have an affair with him. This is ironic because Simon pretends to be a secret agent while he is having an affair with Helen whose husband actually is a secret agent. Both men have another life that is secret from the one Helen sees. Harry is everything Simon wants to be. Simon tries to gain the respect and acceptance of Harry and other men by faking his way through life. When Harry finds out about the affair between Helen and Simon he confronts Simon in an irrational manner. After Harry threatens Simon’s life, Simon says “I am not a spy, would a spy piss his pants? I have to lie to women to get laid. I got a small dick it’s pathetic.” This is a perfect quote from Simon because when his masculine façade is exposed, he breaks down and admits that he is not a spy and is pathetic. He makes himself seem pathetic by saying he has a small penis and he lies to get laid. Kimmel says

“… as if to demonstrate the accomplishment of the first two tasks , the boy also learns to devalue all women in his society, as the living embodiments of those traits in himself he has learned to despise.”(125)

“Although maleness and masculinity are highly valued, men are everywhere unsure of their sexuality, our needs and fears, our strengths and weaknesses, ourselves are created-not simply learned-through our lived reality”(487)

As our culture takes a drastic turn towards a more violent nature with movies, video games, T.V., and other forms of media. Masculinity is evolving with the changing times. There is more and more pressure on men to become tough and fit the masculine

Some topics in this essay:
True Lies, Violence” Kaufman, Harry Helen's, Helen Simon, Harry Schwarzenegger’s, , GI Joe, Lies Harry’s, Simon Simon, Tia Carrere, true lies, secret agent, gi joe, affair helen, constantly striving, arnold’s character, car salesman, male characters, throughout film, schwarzenegger’s character,