Archery Bows in the Media
Archery bows are coming into the spotlight at a very quick rate in recent times. Theaters have always enjoyed using the bow and arrow as a weapon in many of their movies. Many years ago, you could see Robin Hood on the big screen with his group of merry men. You could also see Sylvester Stallone a few years later showing us the lethal nature of the weapon, in Rambo.
In recent times, there has been more of an emphasis on the female character yielding the bow. Today you could catch glimpses of Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Tauriel from the new Lord of the Rings movie, The Desolation of Smaug.
These recent additions from Hollywood are really promoting the female archer in ways that I have not seen since Jessica Biel played Abigail Whistler in Blade III. In this movie, you can catch glimpses of Abigail whistler wielding her compound archery bow, but the story was never really centered on her character. The story revolved around the character, Blade, who was played by Wesley Snipes. He tries to rid the world of vampires with the help of Abigail. This story is more about him and the vampires than it is about her and the compound bow.
I sense that the new Hunger Games movie, Catching Fire will cause interest in archery bows (again) when it is released on November 22, 2013. The first movie that features the heroine Katniss Everdeen, who is played by Jennifer Lawrence, already proved that it could garner attention for the archery industry. In the new movie, she is told that because of her defiance during the last Hunger Games she has inspired rebellion in the districts. Katniss and Peeta are forced to return to the arena to battle it out again against other previous winners. She must defend herself with her intellect as well as her bow and arrow.
The Desolation of Smaug is set to be released on December 13, 2013 much to the delight of fans everywhere. Archery equipment is used by many a different fighter in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Hobbit series. Legolass has always been the predominantly featured archer in the series, but in this new movie, there is a new featured archer, and her name is Tauriel. This role is played by Evangeline Lilly who is most known for her role on the popular television showComputer Technology Articles, Lost. Her character in this movie can best be described as going against the social order of the land of the elves. The story follows the group who must band together to get their gold back from the dragon named Smaug.
Media is having a great impact on this sport in general. It can be credited with gaining the attention of young women who would like to join the sport. The women that are playing the roles in these movies and the characters themselves spark an interest in women for the sport of archery. They are strong characters and help to diversify the sport that we all love. Numbers are increasing among the JOAD (Junior Olympic Archery Development) clubs since these movies have been coming out. Check the movies out; maybe you will spark the interest of your little archer and maybe you can get them one of their first archery bows.