Netflix has recently released a new movie, “Dumplin,” which focuses on the daughter of a beauty queen and her plan to change the tradition of beauty pageants by enrolling without fitting the type of usual contenders.
The movie has garnered extremely positive reviews, and has an all-star cast, including “Friends” star Jennifer Aniston. However, when looking up the movie I found some articles that I thought were a bit problematic, stating how “new” and “controversial” the plot was.
The first article that surprised me was The New York Times’ “’Dumplin’ Shares an Ordinary Girl’s Truth.” Isn’t this attaching the same stigma to the body type of the main character that the movie is protesting? The film seems to seek equality, making a statement that more overweight girls are beautiful as well, however the movie is stating that not only is this the norm, it is simply ordinary. I personally do not agree with calling anyone ordinary, as it takes away their individualism and, in movies, the value of the work the actor, writers, and publishers have put into making their character’s personality unique. Also, this movie may make girls who have entered beauty pageants in the traditional fashion feel as if they were somehow not ordinary.
The second qualm I had about how the film has been reviewed is how every newspaper and magazine covering it seems to be so very surprised about the message it conveyed, saying that the film was “groundbreaking” and “controversial.” I disagree with this reaction for three reasons. Firstly, I feel that it is degrading to everybody who worked on the film to be surprised that it had actual meaning. When award-winning actresses such as Aniston and a streaming service with a history as full of meaningful and groundbreaking works as Netflix combine, I am not surprised that the film is positive and moral. On the other hand, I believe that calling the film groundbreaking is giving it too much credit. Yes, it is a good message, however it has definitely been done before, most notably in the 2000 film “Miss Congeniality.” Credit can be given for choosing a theme such as the one in “Dumplin,” however it is certainly not novel. Finally, by making such a big deal about an “ordinary” girl entering a beauty pageant, are we not being counterproductive? By saying that it is so amazing, aren’t we taking a step backwards in relatability? If girls are shown that being normal is not the norm, I am afraid that this will only increase pressure to be perfect.
These are of course only my opinions, and I do in fact think the movie is wonderful. Just some food for thought!
Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/05/movies/dumplin-review.html