Plus size women have long been neglected and outright mistreated by Hollywood. Yet, times are changing. Full-figured women are showing up everywhere in movies now and in more three-dimensional roles. While some of the movies on this list are clearly better than others, none of them were chosen for any sort of cinematic genius. They made the list because they handle the issues facing plus size women in a humane way. The characters are real people. They are so much more than just a fat girl punch line. So, grab some popcorn and make it a movie night.
™
1. Real Women Have Curves (2002)- America Ferrera stars as Ana, a Mexican-American teenager trying to find her way. The story explores family dynamics, ambition, body image issues, and more. Follow Ana as she enters womanhood, searches for identity, and struggles to mesh other people's belief systems with her own.
2. Shag The Movie (1989)- This lighthearted film set in the Summer of 1963 follows a group of four friends who intend to have one last girls' adventure before one member's upcoming wedding. Caroline, nicknamed "Pudge," is a chubby girl who loves to dance. While her friends run amuck all weekend, Pudge makes peace with herself, finds a guy, and shags 'til her heart is content.
3. Last Holiday (2006)- Queen Latifah stars as Georgia Byrd, a plus size woman who lives life on the sidelines until she discovers that she is terminally ill. Georgia promptly sets out to make at least some of her dreams come true before she dies. She takes the trip of a lifetime, eats with abandon, and gets herself a to-die-for makeover amongst other things.
4. Phat Girlz (2006)- Ah...what to say about this movie? Well, it's certainly the worst of the bunch in my opinion. The cinematography isn't great, the jokes are crude, and many of the attitudes expressed in it are contrary to all that I believe in. However, there are definitely some worthwhile aspects. Jazmin, the lead character, is a smart, talented business woman. Her struggles with weight and self-acceptance are very poignant. It shows different cultural beliefs about weight. And all the men are fit dispelling the myth that only fat guys are attracted to fat women. That's enough good stuff to watch this one at least once on cable.
5. Camp (2003)- Teenagers attend a performing arts camp. While most of the ensemble of characters struggle with figuring out who they are, the stand out for me is Jenna. Jenna's jaws are wired shut throughout most of the ดูหนังฟรี movie, a compromise made to avoid fat camp, but when she finally stands up to her overbearing parents...it's all worthwhile.
6. Circle of Friends (1995)- This film chronicles the dynamics of a single peer group in 1950's Ireland. Benny, our curvy heroine, experiences the ups and downs of love and betrayal. She shows strength and poise throughout where others fall incredibly short.
7. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004)- In this sequel, we see chubby overly analytical Bridget up to her usual antics in dating and living. Funny and heartwarming, this film is worth watching if for no other reason than one scene: Bridget attempts to get dressed under a sheet, fumbling around until her boyfriend tells her that he has "a very high regard for your wobbly bits."
8. Hairspray (2008)-While the earlier version captivated me, the latest one stole my heart. It's great to see women who are more than just a little chubby find self-acceptance and happiness. You have to love all the singing, dancing, and plus size pride abound. And you just can't beat John Travolta in drag!
In honor of June 26, we would like to recommend the following historically "accurate" films: Son of the Morning Star, Little Big Man, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, and American Experience's Emmy award winning documentary Last Stand at Little Big Horn
Between June 25 and 26, 1876, a combined force of Lakota and Northern Cheyenne led the United States 7th Cavalry into a battle near the Little Bighorn River in what was then the eastern edge of the Montana Territory. The engagement is known by several names: the Battle of Greasy Grass, the Battle of Little Big Horn, and Custer's Last Stand. Perhaps the most famous action of the Indian Wars, it was a remarkable victory for Sitting Bull and his forces. They defeated a column of seven hundred men led by George Armstrong Custer; five of the Seventh's companies were annihilated and Custer himself was killed in the engagement along with two of his brothers and a brother-in-law. Known as the battle that left no white survivors, Little Big Horn has inspired more than 1,000 works of art, including over 40 films. Here are four of the best...
Son of the Morning Star
Based on the 1984 best selling historical novel by Evan S, Connell, Son of the Morning Star won five Emmys when it first aired in 1991. Focusing on the life and times of General George Armstrong Custer, it takes up Custer's life near the end of the American Civil War, follows him through his involvement in famous Indian wars, and culminates with the battle of Little Big Horne. I particularly like this version because it attempts to get beyond the stereotypes and introduce you to the real man; it provides an excellent introduction to the personalities involved and the events leading up to and following the battle.
Little Big Man,
The 1970 film Little Big Man, directed by Arthur Penn and starring Dustin Hoffman, was based on Thomas Berger's 1964 fictionalized "historical" novel by the same name. Admittedly adjusted history, it tells the satirical, fictional and picaresque story of Jack Crabb; a white boy orphaned in a Pawnee raid and adopted by a Cheyenne warrior, he eventually becomes the only white survivor of the Battle of Little Big Horn. It is considered a "Revisionist Western" because Native Americans receive a sympathetic treatment that was uncommon for Western films in previous decades. Revisionist or not, I simply adore this wickedly humorous film about one man's life revolving through the kaleidoscope of cultures that made up the American "Wild" West, and I recommend it with all my heart.
Bury My heart at Wounded Knee,
HBO's 2007 adaptation of Bury My heart at Wounded Knee, a 1970 classic of Native American history by Dee Alexander Brown, recounts the struggle of the Indian Wars from the perspectives of three people: Charles Eastman, a young Sioux doctor who received his medical degree from Boston University in 1889; Sitting Bull, who led the combined forces at Little Big Horn and refused to submit to U.S. government policies that stripped his people of their dignity, identity, and sacred land; and Senator Henry Dawes, one of the men responsible for the government's Indian affairs policy. The story line begins with the American Indian victory at Little Big Horn in 1876 and continues though to the shameful slaughter of Sioux warriors at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, on December 29, 1890. If the film has any fault, it's that it attempts to explain the whole deeply complex fourteen-year struggle in just over two hours. It manages to do an excellent job at providing an educational and entertaining overview for future investigation.
The American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn
The American Experience: Last Stand at Little Big Horn takes the time to explore this controversial battle from two perspectives: The Lakota Sioux, Cheyenne, and Crow who had lived on the Great Plains for generations, and the white settlers who were moving west across the continent. Using journals, oral accounts, Indian ledger drawings and archival footage, James Welch and Paul Stekler combined their talents to create one of the most balanced documentaries about this event ever produced. Their efforts won them a much-deserved Emmy.