Female Agency as Structural Default
Putting women at the center as leads, leaders and villains, and letting their choices drive every major plot turn. The story treats this as normal and never makes their gender the subject.
How this film uses it
Alice makes the big turns in the film. She decides to leave town, to leave Ben when he turns violent, and to stay in Tucson. Ellen Burstyn wanted a story told from a woman's side and recommended Scorsese after seeing Mean Streets. Her character is never treated as a special case.
Where to see it
Alice leaves Ben: after he assaults his wife in Alice's apartment and wrecks it, Alice takes Tommy and flees.
