Movies take their audience into account when they are being made and distributed, and gender is one of the primary considerations for the intended audience. There are "chick flicks," for female audiences, and "dick flicks," for primarily male audiences. These movies are characterized by the type of villains, emotional scenes, character relationships, and climactic scenes they contain. These movies also are marketed very differently and the socially acceptable behavior prescribed within the context of these movies is radically different. While "chick flicks" and "dick flicks" are very different from each other, they both adhere to a set of stereotypical conventions

The marketing of a movie, in the form of the posters and rental box art, often stresses these differences. Women are virtually absent on the "dick flick" movie poster. If a woman is even present she is normally shown in various states of undress and is much smaller than any of the men in the ads. "Dick flick" posters normally have cars, guns, and explosions, or at least a sweaty depiction of the protagonist in ripped clothing. Facial expressions are normally those of determination and seriousness. "Chick flicks," on the other hand, often depict a smiling group of women clustered in a laughing, loving embrace mirroring the expected emotional state of the targeted audience. Men are shown in "chick flick" advertising more often than women are in "dick flicks," but they are still normally smiling and holding the female lead in a loving embrace.

The major plot elements of these movies are radically different. The typical type of villain in a "chick flick" movie is an everyday person, like a cheating husband or a nasty boss. The villain in a "dick flick" would be a person that you would probably never see in a lifetime, like head of a cocaine cartel, criminal mastermind, or an alien. The villain's worst act in a "chick flick" movie might be something like sleeping with her best friend's spouse and in a "dick flick" the villain might do something like stealing a nuclear weapon. The character relationships in a "chick flick" movie are those of a loving interaction between a man and a woman, or between a woman and her girlfriends. In a "dick flick" the major relationships are those between a man and his sworn enemy, or an inanimate object like his submachine gun or sports car. In "chick flicks" characters learn to respect one another through long talks and thoughtful actions, but in macho movies, characters learn and teach respect by beating each other up. Climatic scenes in "chick flick" movies involve an explosion of passion and a happy ending where the lead character finds love and commitment. Whereas in a "dick flick" the climatic scene involves an extended scene with elaborate fight choreography and a building or car exploding in a ball of flame as the lead character finds the villain and blows him to smithereens, saving the busty female lead from peril.

"Chick flicks" and "dick flicks" are also differentiated by the things that you do and eat while watching them. "Chick flicks" are often associated with women holding a box of tissues, crying, and leaning on others for emotional support, and this trend is exaggerated when the movie is a rental. Women are often depicted with the lights out, on the couch in their pajamas wrapped up in a blanket drinking international coffee. On the other hand, "dick flicks" may provoke groups of men to hoot, holler, and laugh at scenes of unimaginable violence and destruction, or the obligatory breast shot. Men are depicted as constantly eating food, the greasier the better, and swilling beer, the bigger the better.

"Chick flicks" and "dick flicks" are vivid examples of gendered entertainment. The advertising that draws us into these movies follows predetermined formulas that both create and uphold our expectations of what these movies will provide for our entertainment. Once we have immersed ourselves in our fantasy world our behavior is largely determined by this context (Just try crying in a dick flick when the antagonist kills someone, or laughing out loud when the chick flick lead finds her true love). These movies fit into the framework of hegemonically constructed paradigms for gendered behavior, creating and reinforcing social norms.