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August 9, 2007
The latest in pretend lesbian entertainment
I don't know how I missed earlier reports of this casting news, but Mischa Barton, canned actress from canceled teen drama The O.C., is starring in a new movie called Finding tATu. The movie just finished filming in Moscow, and tells the story of two young women who find love at a tATu concert.
Russian pop group tATu was a perfectly engineered specimen of pop marketing. Their cliche of a Svengali-like producer and former child psychologist, Ivan Shapovalov, said of his soft-porn entertainment product, "I saw that most people look up pornography on the Internet and of those, most are looking for underage sex. I saw their needs weren't fulfilled. Later, it turned out, I was right. This is the same as my own desires."
As an erstwhile tATu fan friend once said, what's better than two underage girls? How about two underage girls soaking wet? In school uniforms? Making out with each other? Here you go: the "All the Things She Said" video, which is like the KFC Famous Bowl of mainstream commercial fetishism.
By 2004 their popularity started to wane, Yulia got pregnant by her hockey player boyfriend, and the illusion crumbled. A year later during primetime sweeps, Mischa Barton locked lips with Olivia Wilde in a brief teenage lesbian relationship on The O.C. [screenshot], which generated a little ratings boost (the show was already starting its downward spiral) but didn't really raise any eyebrows. Now, in a complex layering of simulations, Barton plays a young lesbian inspired by performers that everybody knows are just pretending to be lesbians.
Since this is such a tireless niche market, somebody figured it was a good idea to write a screenplay based on a Russian novel called tATu Come Back (looks like the novel was never released here.) Actually, writing this story in anything other than screenplay form sounds like a big waste of time. The director is the same guy who did the recent schlocky Captivity. Today's Daily News calls the movie a "sexy romp" (2nd item)--demonstrating the robust appeal of manufactured pretend-gay pop culture. But who cares, everybody knows it's manufactured; two girls getting it on = built-in audience.
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Comments
ok i have to agree that fake lesbians are getting overrated too but again you may have to really look from a male perspective also. Of course nowadays it seems everywhere we go 'sex sells.'
The way i see it too is people should look past the lesbian facade they got going on cause they actually put out really great music and no one really seems to be looking past the fact they acted like lesbians when they came out. Yes they were a 'soft-porn' product BUT they are very unique and original when it comes to music i believe.
Look at Japan's Visual Kei movement with the rock scene there. Men are cross dressing as women but nothing really pornographic but like in T.a.T.u's case, they use that gimmick to attract fans and also when they have a decent enough loyal fan base they tend to wean themselves off the cross dressing to make fans realize that music is more important than looks but it's still important to look presentable.
Consider the lesbian act of T.a.T.u just a way of them 'weaning' away from what the general public really wants to be.
Posted by: Kortney at July 18, 2008 8:43 PM
I do agree about what you all are saying, it's getting to overrated!
But still, I think many is taking it to hard out on T.a.T.u.
They do have great music. And come on, what popstar haven't done something fake and spontanious to get fans?
If we all really look at it, that's how the world sadly is today. People will do about anything for a ounce of attention. -even if it's not a positive type.
What is so big about the popstar world anyway? I just care about the music and the meaning. If the people playing it does something weird spontanious and maybe sick to get attention, good for them then, why should I care?
Posted by: Carine at July 23, 2008 3:25 PM
Yep, I am also sick to death of pretend lesbians. I have nothing against genuine lesbians, but what we often see on TV is a perverted male version of how lesbians are.
I guess the truth is just too boring for the darlings. A pity women's desires aren't catered to the same way men's are. Very one-sided.
Posted by: Julia at May 4, 2008 9:18 AM