It seems to be related to the uncanny valley effect. When a robot is obviously a robot, all its human-like qualities stand out. Take, for example, Wall-e and eve, neither of whom could ever be mistaken for a human, but their emotive faces and upper limbs highlight how similar to a human they are. Take, basically any human animatronic, however, and you have a rubber face that just isnt quite right or eyes that look real, but absolutely dead inside movements that should be natural, but have a prerecorded essence to them. When they don't perfectly emulate humans, their robot qualities are what stands out.

This is similar with what you described, how a masculine haircut or outfit makes all the feminine features of a beautiful woman stand out, or how a dress and styled, long hair make an adam's apple stand out. Acknowledging what you are while taking features of something you aren't can often make something stand out with contrast, but it is a delicate art to make sure what you want to stand out is what stands out, and not what you're trying to hide. And that seems to be it, Marlene and Wall-e weren't hiding anything, so everything that stood out was meant to be seen, but when you poorly cover a hole in the wall with a poster, everyone looks at that indented poster