My friend and I saw a teen type movie yesterday, with a lot of silliness and some crude jokes. It was a double-edged sword, because it made fun of women, fat women, and minorites, but included them all as the good girls. I'm not sure what a teen would come out thinking. There were two commentators that were played by Fred Willard and Elizabeth Banks and they played stupid and in his case unbearably sexist and in hers cruel and vicious. It wasn't funny to us, but this film, "Pitch Perfect II" will probably do well. The singing is terrific, exuberant and fun. But the messages are troubling. And since when is saying the v word any more hilarious than the p word?
I'm not saying as teens we saw anything better. "Tammy and the Bachelor" and Annette Funicello and Sandra Dee were not exactly role models. Elvis Presley movies were ridiculous and we adored him. I suppose we all survive such onslaughts without too much damage. Movies are still pushing the Cinderella model and romance. The kick butt girls of "Hunger Games" and "Divergent" aren't particularly admirable either. That's why a teen film like "The Perks of a Wallflower" is so rare and honest.
Oh, well, nothing really changes except the language gets coarser and is permeated with sexual reference. You have to hope parents are discussing the messages and countering them for their kids. And be grateful you're not a teen or the parent of a teen.
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