When I saw the controversy about Cuties, I was astonished that a large corporation such as Netflix, would, despite all the protesting, keep the international movie on its’ platform. Intrigued, I read article after article, and Facebook post, after Facebook post, which led me to sign the petition to remove it, hashtagging #cancelnetflix.
As time went on, my concern was genuinely sparked when I saw that the movie was still being streamed, so I decided to watch it. Yes, I watched Cuties.
CUTIES: THE MOVIE
It is important to mention that when I was looking for the movie on Netflix, it was not listed with the controversial marketing poster. This was my number one “uh-huh” moment.
Cuties, translated from Mignnones is an hour and a half long, with themes far more intricate than a one minute clip circulating on social media. I watched with impatience for outrageous scenes to agree with my allied opposition, however, in my disappointment, I loved the movie and grew fond of its’ protagonist, Amy.
The story-line hits very close to home for immigrant children who struggle with the social pressures of fitting into new countries. I have been chatting with so many women online, who have told me in private, that they too relate to Amy.
So Amy, a young girl, uprooted from Senegal to France, trying to find her way in an intricate new culture that praises social media and the hypersexualization of women, was just imitating what she saw. In the context of today, are we aware that WAP, which signifies WET-ASS-PUSSY is the number one trending song in the world?
CUTIES: THE CONTROVERSY
The controversy was sparked by the movie’s original marketing poster. Below, you will see the difference between the way the movie was marketed in North America versus, the way it was marketed in Europe and other continents.
In addition, here are some of the reviews from accredited French media:
CANCEL CULTURE VS. CRITICAL THINKING
My call to action is to watch the movie before making a judgment. I too got carried away with online rage, herein lies the notion of the hashtag: Cancel Culture. #CancelCulture comes to prevalence when anything taken out of context is circulated and petitioned online. While a high percentage of stories that spark outrage on the internet are misleading, we do not take enough time to do research before canceling a person, a movie, or ideology.
In my resolve to get to the bottom of the Cuties controversy, I also had a conversation with its Casting Director who asserted: “the previous Netflix poster was awkward and inappropriate”, sighting that “those who are opposed to the movie, should simply watch it, then form an opinion” – Tania Arana.
Here’s another critical point to mention: Cuties won the 2020 Sundance Director Award for New Cinema Dramatic. If the movie was so destructive, would the executives of Sundance select it?
HERE’S WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH CUTIES
The themes of the movie outweigh the marketing error by Netflix, while an apology was sent to the Director, Maimouna Doucoure, listed below, are the reasons why this movie worth watching: 
1) Struggles of Senegalese women bonded by cultural polygamous marriages and its’ effects on their mental health.
2) Immigration: how young Black girls assimilate into European and North American countries, and its’ effects on their mental health, peer relations, and family dynamics.
3) Social media and teens: teen suicide has increased by 131% in recent years blamed mostly on social media pressure.
4) How over-sexualized the Hispanic/Latina culture is overseas in Central America and the Caribbean, and its’ effects on young girls in those environments.
5) Women who expose themselves on social media in sexually explicit ways are heavily followed, and easily perceived as high value.
How do we expect teenagers who now have access to Facebook and Instagram to do any better?
In closing, there is not much more I can tell you, other than, watch it for yourself.
Sources:
https://www.sundance.org/projects/cuties
https://www.instagram.com/mignonnes.lefilm/
https://www.insider.com/netflix-apologize-cuties-movie-poster-young-girls-petition-2020-8#:~:text=Netflix%20has%20apologized%20for%20the,removed%20from%20the%20streaming%20service
https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/netflix-cuties-backlash-1.5724482
https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/cuties-backlash-netflix-cancellations-record-levels-1234769354/
https://www.instagram.com/mignonnes.lefilm/
