health
Jabs, human ash and a tapeworm: behind the appetite for a new kind of disordered eating movie
Supernatural horror Saccharine and melodramatic comedy Maddie’s Secret are the latest films on body-image anxieties served up by Hollywood
TL;DR
- Hollywood films 'Saccharine' and 'Maddie's Secret' address body-image anxieties and disordered eating.
- 'Saccharine' uses supernatural horror, with a protagonist consuming human ash for weight loss and being haunted by the victim's ghost.
- 'Maddie's Secret' is a melodramatic comedy about a food influencer whose bulimia resurfaces due to work pressure.
- Both films highlight how societal pressures, online challenges, and familial influences contribute to unhealthy relationships with food and body.
- The films draw parallels to modern trends like the 'almond mom' stereotype and viral weight-loss challenges.
- Disordered eating themes have been present in cinema for decades, but these films emerge in a landscape shaped by weight-loss drugs and a focus on perceived physical flaws.
- Maternal figures and societal scrutiny play significant roles in perpetuating these anxieties.
- The films examine the isolating experience of body dysmorphia and the struggle for self-acceptance.