*2.1. Cinema*

When talking about cinematic languages and productions, di fferent positions and schools of thinking can be traced. George Friedmann and Edgar Morin [39] stated that all movies must be considered as keys to understanding and accessing the dark spaces of society. The cinema is co-created together with its public through the production of images, which might be assumed to be forms of knowledge of reality. A movie undergoes di fferent interpretations that result from constraints defining the register and the genre of the critic, and thus of its public. Spectators are an important part of the meaning-making process of a movie, as they are part of this act of communication. Originally, according to the French film theorist Christian Metz [40], the founder of film semiology, films cannot be

regarded as comprising a language composed of strict grammar and syntax like the written or spoken word. In C. Metz's opinion [40], a film's basic unit is the shot, which is neither symbolic nor arbitrary but iconic; therefore, it is laden with specific meaning. Considering this, a movie is a language that involves a large number of signifying organizations that are linked to perception, imagination, social, intellectual, and ideological position. In his theoretical model, known as the "grande syntagmatique", C. Metz [40] argued that individual cinematic texts construct their own meaning systems rather than sharing a unified grammar.

According to the German film theorist Siegfried Kracauer [41], cinema is unique as it establishes a permanent tension between reality and creation. Even the most artificial movie creation expresses a certain epoch and a certain culture. For this reason, he stated that cinema is a documentary that reflects the status of the real world. Conversely, the French philosopher Edgar Morin [42] believed that the movie is not a direct reflection of the social world; rather, it is an object to analyze in itself, between the everyday and fantastic world, truth and illusion. Thus, it is an object with a double nature, both real and imagined. Cinema presents institutional and sociological issues, but also acts as an institution of social imaginary. E. Morin [42] stated that one of the main aspects of cinema is the public, which reminds us that the cinema is a social engine aimed at cultural consumption. A further position about the degree of realism within cinema is that of the French film critic Pierre Sorlin [43], who argued that cinema is a translation of reality that works on the basis of a levy operated on the world, which is enabled by the tools and techniques of each movie. In other words, he stated that cinema is a translation of the real world that acts like a repertory and producer of images that projects that fragment of reality accepted and recognized by its public [44].

Considering these di fferent positions, cinematic productions narrate stories and describe places and locations, lifestyles, customs, and practices. In other words, they participate in the creation of a territorial discourse that might seduce millions of spectators and contribute to the di ffusion of di fferent social habits and behaviors, apart from being a tool for promoting natural and cultural environments. Due to their communitive function, movies facilitate the di ffusion of cultures and create an image of a destination [8,27]. As such, they produce a visibility, reinforcing the territorial soul and uniqueness and increasing international popularity [36–39]. Cinematic images can reproduce emotional journeys (experiences, vision of places, and scenic beauties), thus a ffecting the decision to undertake a trip [45–51]. Due to this enhancement of human and spatial relationships, cinematic productions can disclose a ffective aspects of the places, creating geography of experience and even imaginary geographies [52,53].

Among the emerging factors relating the cinema with the rural area is the rural landscape perception. Since the end of the 20th century, the perception of rural areas as part of the open spatial system has grown [54], and cinema is one of the industries that are incorporating this trend due to its visual and scenic properties. Perception and interpretation come together in the domain of visual ideology and the spectacularization of life in Western culture, with the eye as the only means to acquire knowledge [55,56]. It is possible to distinguish between an outsider and an inner cinematic landscape. In the first case, the cinematic landscape represents the territorial richness and the magic atmosphere of faraway places; in the second case, it refers to an experience based on the relationships between characters and space [57,58]. All of these elements result in the soft sale of the territory generated by movies. Due to the di fferent techniques, movies appeal both to rational and to emotional elements; these elements interact to produce a representation of cinematic landscapes subjectively organized depending on cultural additions [59]. In terms of the case study, cultural itineraries mirror the territorial wealth of film productions, which are favored by the use of dynamic images.

#### *2.2. Brief Review of Gendered Issues*

After the psychoanalytic hypothesis of Robert Stoller in 1968 [60], *gender studies* was a concept elaborated by Ann Oakley in 1972 [61]. Sex is a social category; men and women are social groups. With the term *genre*, Risa Whitson [3] defined it as "one of the primary ways in which our society produces and naturalizes di fferences" (p. 49); therefore, it is relevant for understanding culture. Gender studies are a way of approaching women and men as inseparable parts of a functioning system. They are based on a relational approach to sexes, according to which the features ascribed to each genre are socially founded on a relationship of opposition and complementarity [62]. Early studies of women and geography addressed di fferences between men and women in terms of work, pay, and societal roles [63]. Gender relations are constitutive of the spaces because our presence and behaviors within is gendered-determined, and spaces assist power relations that are traditionally constructed according to a masculine and heteronormative scheme [64]. From the point of view of the feminist geography, places are not harmonious, fixed, and static; rather, they are dynamic, socially constructed, fluid, and porous. Thus, spaces are generally considered "locations" where social and spatial relations occur, with interactions between them to produce a certain interpretation [65]. In some spaces, the patriarchal norms are more evident [65]. In *Theorizing Patriarchy*, Sylvia Walby [66] identified six structures through which women are dominated: households, waged work, the State, violence, sexuality, and cultural institutions (the media). As far as this last aspect is concerned, in the past, the cinema has been a "place" of research for the relationships between men and women, relatives and children [67]. Molly Haskell [68] showed that cinematic productions convey a certain kind of female representation evolving throughout time. In her opinion, the cinema naturally serves a singular ideology that tends to maintain the superiority of the male status; thus, spaces can be gendered through images that stress the women's subordinate status and reinforce masculinity [69]. This evokes the role of the male gaze; Laura Mulvey [70] stated that: "in a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female. The determining male gaze projects its phantasy on to the female form which is styled accordingly. In their traditional exhibitionist role women are simultaneously looked at and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness" (p. 19). She properly referred to how Hollywood narrative films used women to provide a pleasurable visual experience for men. This concept is related of Judith Butler's [71] notions of performative gender definition.

Following the so called "critical turn", tourism studies started to be interested in the analysis of the political and social dimensions of tourism, including the study of gender relations [72,73]. According to Karla Henderson [30,31], there are five stages defining the evolution of gender analysis in leisure studies that Margaret Swain [32] reinterpreted as follows: (1) invisible (without women); (2) compensatory ("add women and stir"); (3) dichotomous di fferences (sexual di fferences); (4) feminist perspective (focused on women); and (5) gender-aware frameworks (analysis of gender relations, roles and stereotypes that situate women in a subordinate position with regards to men). The progressive spatial feminization is changing other spaces into being woman-accessible. This is what can be appreciated in the case study. According to the statistical series published by the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, presenting the number of pilgrims collecting the *Compostela* (a certificate stating the completion of the pilgrimage having covered at least 100 km on foot or 200 km by bike or on horseback) at the Pilgrim's Reception O ffice in the Diocese of Santiago, there has been a general increase in the percentage of women pilgrims, as shown in Figure 1. The questionnaires by the Cathedral of Santiago and the resulting reports that, before the interruption of the activity due to the COVID-19, were regularly published on the webpage, provide di fferent kinds of information, but the one regarding the pilgrims' sex was selected to point out a patterned increase in the female presences. Since data collection began in 2004, the percentage of female pilgrims had always been around 40%. The only peaks occurred in 2004 and 2010, coinciding with the Holy Years. Since the last Holy Year 2010, the number of women heading to Santiago soared. Between 2011 and 2019, female participation increased by nine points and went from 42% to more than 51%. This is interesting and relevant information, as it confirms a sort of feminization of the Camino, far from the past historical stereotypes according to which pilgrimages were undertaken by men [74,75]. This empowerment of the female pilgrims is irregular throughout the year. In winter the number of men is double that of women, and this might be due the fact that the most crowded months are perceived as the safer ones. In addition, these di fferent behaviors might confirm what M. Swain [32] stated. In her opinion, women are involved differently from men in their consumption of tourism. However, at the present there is no study investigating this current trend, which might be due to different factors. Firstly, the post-contemporary space of the Camino is a "safe space", thus female pilgrims can walk alone. Secondly, the Camino welcomes people from different ages and cultures; it is an inclusive space, and thus it is also adequate for female pilgrims. Thirdly, and no less important, there is a democratization and equal access to cultural spaces, as the one of the Camino. These factors enhance the female participation in the pilgrimage, as, for instance, the same increasing female literary production of travel diaries is proving.

**Figure 1.** Pilgrims arriving at Santiago and collecting their Compostela according to their sex. Sources: pilgrims' reception Office (2004–2019).

#### **3. Materials and Methods**

Table 1 presents the main details of the selected movies: year and country of production, director, duration, the reason for doing the Camino, and the starting point. Concerning the motivation, the movies show post-contemporary pilgrims' motivations, as they point out the importance of living a unique experience with therapeutic effects, while enjoying landscape and environment, heritage and social relations [20,23,24]. These primary sources were selected according to the following criteria: (1) their location is basically the rural space of the Camino; (2) producers come from different countries: *Saint Jacques* ... *La Mecque* (France, C. Serreau, 2005), *Al Final del Camino* (Spain, R. Santiago, 2009), *The Way* (USA, Spain, E. Estévez, 2010), and *Onde Está a Felicidade?* (Brasil, Spain, C.A. Riccelli, 2011); and (3) they represent two different filmic genres: two comedies and two tragicomedies (thus determining different filmic discourses).




**Table 1.** *Cont*.

Source: own elaboration.

As each film's analysis was based on a filmic theorem, the interpretive act consists of setting a hypothesis and an interpretative work [76,77]. The interpretive theorem was the use of gendered stereotypes that (consciously or not) appear in the cinematic productions regarding the case study, whereas the interpretative work relied upon an inclusive multi-layered approach to obtain a critical understanding of power relations and social identities [76]. This interpretive procedure allows the identification and discovery of the potential of visive language when investigating knowledge and theories behind the camera. Thus, cinematographic images were compared to qualitative and social indexes that allowed the consideration of three components: (1) content—the plots are choices indicating the preferences of society; (2) style—the technical choices correspond to aesthetic selections; and (3) how to act in society—testimonies of social processes and dynamics [78,79]. Filmic decoding is aimed at drawing attention to the social and cultural aspects that are set together to characterize female pilgrims and their relations.

Upon these premises, this aim is achieved using a combined methodology based on the linguistic and visual analysis.


The preferences for these codes are justified by the intention to consider the most common and easily recognizable discourses related to cinematic production. Language and image are opposite and complementary codes, as language participates in the production of the visual content, reinforcing its message [79]. As stated by T. Van Leeuwen [80], "words provide the facts, the explanations, and the things that need to be said in so many words" (p. 136). They show until which point images can furnish imagination.

From an operational point of view, once the interpretative theorem was set and the sources selected, movies were watched using a media player reproducer, which made it possible to interrupt the projection when necessary to analyze the visual and linguistic content. Due to the multi-layered approach, movies were viewed several times. The first viewing was mainly conducted to understand the plot and to confirm the coherence of the selection of the sources; the views were repeated to "quantify" the information represented in the interpretative tables about the societal role associated with female pilgrims. Therefore, the number of projections changed according to the movies, as some needed more attentive analysis. This quantitative exercise necessitated counting, so a checking session was undertaken. The last projection was conducted to select moviescapes that satisfied the interpretative hypothesis of the research. This selection is introduced in the following section.
