Masculinity in the Movies and War

This article is an interesting look at the current status of the masculine ideal in American film.

The author, Christopher Goodwin, is arguing that the gender paradigm has recently shifted away from stereotypical manly men (think Arnold in Conan the Barbarian or anything by John Wayne.) There are no movie stars who have the masculine appeal of Cary Grant or other early stars. The male romantic leads of the day are most often nerds, geeks, or others who have a "flawed" sense of what it means to be a true man.

He seems to think that this is a troublesome development in terms of how gender is viewed within American society.

(Shift to me postulating with some of the ideas from the end of the article:)
But it is definitely a reflection of a different time. Even as late as the end of the cold war, warfare was something that was fought on the ground against enemies you could mostly see. It required a certain amount of physical prowess and strength. Since the fall of the USSR, the American army has taken a very different role. Now, rather than being in a struggle for military supremacy with another militaristic super power, the American armed forces now find themselves more often in the role of peace keeper and occupier, not struggling against an army but controlling an "unruly" country. These roles are much more associated with traditionally feminine charactistics: placations, fairness, and keeping children (and many Americans seems to think of the Arabs and others as being beneath us, something like children.)

Also with the ever increasing role that computers play in our lives, the man as hunter, and later warrior, is becoming a surprising and somewhat unexpected casualty. Fighting is not as much about strength as it once was. Battles are not won but the muscles of the common soldiers. Battles are won by the techies. Computers are responsible for much of the American prowess. And computers are where "geeks" shine. In addition, the current regions of fighting that the US finds themselves in are focused less on hand to hand combat and more on guerrilla warfare , suicide bombers, and automated bombs. This means that the focus on the importance of "masculine" skills, fighting, strength, and ruggedness has lessened a great deal. And the "weaker" skills of more mental tasks have taken greater importance.