beelikej: (BringItOn)
BeeLikeJ ([personal profile] beelikej) wrote2007-04-01 02:18 pm

This documentary made me cry and now I'm angry as hell

Most of you probably won't be able to watch or understand this documentary, but it made me cry out of frustration and I really need to share. I urge you to watch it if you can. The second half is filmed in the USA, so it's in English with Dutch subtitles.

"Beperkt Houdbaar" ('Limited Shelflife' or 'Over The Hill' (official English title)

Documentary maker Sunny Bergman is 34 and scared of losing her beauty, while at the same time she's angry about how women are judged on their looks all the time. She talks to editors of fashion-magazines, psychologists, plastic surgeons and 'patients'. Not only about botox, big(ger) boobs and tummytugs, but also about laser labiareduction. Yeah, you've read that right: as soon as you look more like a woman than a girl: get ready to be cut.
Sunny even gets into that lovely gynaecologists chair herself and films the surgeon between her legs during the consult. He tells her everything about her body is wrong and she is definitely a 'candidate' for surgery. FYI: Sunny is a very healthy woman and 'normal' looking mom of two kids.
What made me cry was the interview with a fifteen year old girl (15. years. old) and her mom who -based on (photoshopped!!!) pictures in Playboy magazine- were convinced there was something wrong with the girl's vagina and she needed to be operated on. Her mom was surprised that her medical insurance didn't want to pay for this 'neccessary' operation on the 'disformity' of her child.

It made me cry and curse at the same time. What the fuck?
sillie: Aidan curls drawing (TroyBarnabyWTF)

[personal profile] sillie 2007-04-01 04:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Urgh... that's just... Yeah.

*blinks*
ext_63196: (BringItOn)

[identity profile] beelikej.livejournal.com 2007-04-01 08:14 pm (UTC)(link)
I knew I would get angry watching this documentary, but I didn't expect to cry. It was really aweful to hear this girl talk: that doctor really had convinced her she was some kind of freak, because she didn't look like a manipulated model.

Did you happen to see it on tv (a couple of weeks ago)? I tried to find it, because it was mentioned on De Wereld Draait Door last Friday. I was glad I was able to see it online (Uitzending gemist) because it is a really powerful message. Unfortunately those women who need to see it, probably won't watch it. :'-(
sillie: Aidan curls drawing (TroyBarnabyWTF)

[personal profile] sillie 2007-04-01 08:50 pm (UTC)(link)
No, I didn't see it. It's sad that the people who need to see it won't. :/