as
a palate cleanser. While taking in a second show certainly wasn't a mistake,
discounting more than Charlize Theron and Patton Oswalt's phenomenal
performances and the careful depiction of a disorder called
was.
It's better if
this starts with what Trichotillomania (Trich) is because it's what prompted
this review. So, Trich is a body-focused repetitive behavior (BFRB) that causes
people to compulsively pull out their hair. Other BFRBs include skin picking
(Dermatillomania), nail biting (Onychophagia), lip and cheek biting, compulsive
nose picking, compulsive hair cutting and shaving (Trichotemnomania), and hair
eating (Trichophagia), among others. It's often triggered, as depicted in this
movie, by stress or anxiety, but some people with Trich pull without realizing
they're doing it. It's believed that 2-3% of people have it, and a significant
percentage of those people are women. How that affects
Young Adult's main
character, Mavis Gary (Charlize Theron), is more prominent than I even remember,
but it's still subtle. Trich is clearly something that she has, not who she is.
I'll go more into that toward the end.
The movie's summary from
Vudu is "Charlize Theron stars as Mavis Gary, a 37-year old former prom
queen, and current writer of young adult novels, who returns home to relive her
glory days and win back her now-married high school sweetheart, Buddy Slade
(Patrick Wilson). When she finds her homecoming more challenging than expected,
Mavis forms an unusual bond with a former classmate, Matt Freehauf (Patton
Oswalt), and both must face the harsh realities of growing up in this brilliant
and bittersweet story." It is directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diabolo
Cody.
I'm not sure there's anything that can be added about Theron
and Oswalt that hasn't already been said. Still, on rewatch, what did stick out
to me is the moments Theron has of vulnerability and clearheadedness as Mavis.
In a way that works and feels rewarding, those moments feel so different from
the character we get to know. So, when they quickly vanish toward the end of the
movie, you may want to shout at the screen or, like I did, reach for
silver-screen-colored mouthwash. That didn't happen this time around, and I may
know why.
Anti-hero led tv shows are huge now, and it's not just
The Sopranos anymore. The best comparison I can make to Mavis is Bojack
Horseman. The worst comparison is to other YA authors, so let's get that out of
the way first. YA is a diverse genre full of more than high school drama and
romance, and even if it wasn't, and these writers have to become part of that
world, a lot of them still know how to "turn it off" when it comes to business
and just interacting with people. This movie reminded me of a video (
here) about
Twilight's Stephanie Meyers, and how she is in fact an adult,
treats fans and non-fans with respect, is the exact opposite of
Fifty Shades of Grey's E.L James and
Harry Potter's J.K Rowling in
that regard, and should at the bare minimum be recognized for not being a
narcissist. Mavis, especially as a ghostwriter of a declining series, falls into
this mix on a sliding scale. While she's an adult, she tends to slip down as she
struggles at times to maintain that role. She's the type that would stir the pot
if Twitter had been as prolific in 2011 as it is now.
Back to the
Bojack comparisons, whenever he tries to make big changes all at once, he
backslides hard. Mavis is kind of the same way; a long week in her hometown
isn't going to do much, if anything, as far making substantial changes. Plus,
this isn't a Lifetime movie where the hometown is full of the nicest souls in
the world. Mercury, Minnesota is just a regular, albeit fictitious, town. Which
brings us to Buddy Slade, a regular guy in this regular town.
Patrick Wilson has gotten better with age and is sinking into more
exciting roles, like Ocean Master in
Aquaman. At the time though, he was
taking these love interest roles that, to me, didn't seem right and needed an
actor who was a little more eccentric in some way. Dan Dreiberg/Nite Owl in
Watchmen is kind of in-between because it's about finding that spark
again. Anyway, Wilson is a great fit as Buddy Slade, playing the stable husband
and new father perfectly. And it's not like it's a boring role either. It's easy
to imagine him getting his dad jokes ready for after the baby's first words. His
wife even has the drum set and rimshot he needs. The only issue with Buddy is
that he seems a little too civil to Mavis and allows her to take her plans for
him a little too far. He doesn't lead her on whatsoever, but he brushes off her
reminiscing and going into intimate recollections a little too easily and often.
She may be the same person, but he's not, and there are things I've seen
floating around social media now that make that topic perfect to bring up.
One
small thing about Oswalt's character that gets better with age is how they
handle his high school bullying since the U.S. is taking bullying much more
seriously these days. Honestly, the whole movie gets better with age, much like
Matt's home-brewed bourbon. This is still Oswalt's best performance. He
said
that he consulted with an acting coach and physical therapist for the role, and
it shows in more than just how his character walks. Here's hoping he returns to
more dramatic roles, or at least collaborations with Theron, Reitman, or Cody,
soon.
The recent expression online is something like "if you knew me
in high school, no you didn't." Mavis didn't grow up, but most people around her
did, at least to some extent. Matt may make action figures as a hobby, but he
also does bookkeeping and accounts payable work for a bar. Meanwhile, Mavis is
an author who regularly blows off her publisher.
Actions like that,
social media in general, and the concept of "adulting" make
Young Adult perfect for now. Although it’s not exactly social media,
Mavis is borrowing lines she overhears from people in stores and restaurants and
parroting them as dialogue and thoughts for characters in her book. And as far
as "adulting" goes, she lives like a recent college grad who's just scraping by,
and honestly there's nothing wrong with that even for a 37-year-old. It happens,
especially in the real world in 2020. The problem is that she doesn’t have the
emotional maturity she should at that age.
As I mentioned, Mercury
is a fictional town, but it's very far from an unbelievable one. It's a place
that's just starting to get some big name restaurants and stores, and Reitman
and Cody's way of showing that is similar to how Theron is shown. Some people
don't change, they just appear to change. The same thing goes for some old,
rural towns. The place doesn't look great, but it's not supposed to. So,
strictly visually, the best visuals come from the awesome opening credits and
seeing the inner workings of a cassette player. Anyway, getting a combination
KFC-Taco Bell-Pizza Hut isn't a real milestone (although it's a first lesson in
corporate consolidation) if the school mascot is still a Native American and the
school team is still called The Indians. Although, the movie does note that it's
a step up from Injun, and that's true, and this was 2011. Baby steps can still
be steps. And this movie was a big step forward when it comes to
Trichotillomania.
Mavis (Charlize Theron), a fellow Tricher, and her parents, who are
well-intentioned but uninformed on Trich | Copyright 2011
ViacomCBS
When looking for other writers who covered that angle of the movie,
there wasn't a lot, unfortunately, but something interesting did stick out.
Mavis is the first character in a mainstream movie, that I've seen, to clearly
have Trich. Based on what I’ve seen on forums, like
here and
Gender Focus, some people in the BFRB community take issue with that because they think
others will think only people like her have it or that you can't recover from
it. It's very clear though, that she just pulls when stressed or anxious, and
it's separate from who she is. It's also clear from the clip-on hairpieces and
hairstyles she wears that people involved in that aspect of the movie either
did their research or have first-hand experience (we have no way of knowing
which).
The first time I saw her pull and the glimpse of a bald
spot felt like real milestones on their own. I’m a man, so I saw myself
represented by someone who doesn’t look like me, and the impact of that is
unexplainable. The moment her parents (Jill Eikenberry and Richard Bekins)
brought up her pulling really brought it home.
This is the clip,
and it is EXACTLY what so many uninformed parents, close friends, significant
others, or even teachers (who are some of the worst triggers just, at best,
because of the nature of school and test taking) have said to so many kids and
others with Trich and other BFRBs. "You're not still pulling it are you?" and
"it's just that your hair is so beautiful." That scene is brief, but just
imagine it over eighteen years, or a lifetime. Even people, usually men, who
don't mind being bald, hear it sometimes, and they just want the constant
badgering, guilt, and shame to stop. Add wanting to feel beautiful and being a
woman on top of that, and it's unimaginable. So for a better perspective on
that, I have some recommendations to share.
My friend Abby Andrew
has a YouTube channel where she talks about, among other things,
alopecia, which is an
autoimmune disorder that causes hair loss. She's done some
videos
about how bald women are represented in popular media. Please check her stuff
out, too. For more information on BFRBs, please go to
The TLC Foundation for BFRBs
and
The Canadian BFRB Support Network. For Trichotillomania specifically, there are a lot of YouTubers out there
now who are talking about it openly, and they're just a quick search away.
There is also a wonderful documentary called
Trichster on Amazon
Prime and VHX. It is directed by Jillian Corsie and features one of the more
prominent YouTubers with Trich,
Rebecca Brown.