America The Beautiful 3: The Sexualization Of Our Youth (2014)
Director: Darryl Roberts
Country: USA
Genre: Documentary
Editor’s Notes: America The Beautiful 3: The Sexualization Of Our Youth is now open in limited release.
Just before watching this film, the focus on my social feed was about inappropriate Halloween costume gear targeted at very young girls. While boys were being offered the firefighter and police uniforms modeled after the real thing, little girls were given the choice of the same costume only with hiked up skirts, and little fascinators instead of helmets or hats. I’m not entirely sure when the shift to these types of costume happened or when costumes were made specifically for girls, for that matter. Whatever the reasoning or history of it, the reification of children, specifically girls, is disconcerting and has grown to epidemic proportions.
America The Beautiful 3: The Sexualization Of Our Youth is the latest installment in Darryl Roberts’s investigation on America’s fascination with youth and beauty.
America The Beautiful 3: The Sexualization Of Our Youth is the latest installment in Darryl Roberts’s investigation on America’s fascination with youth and beauty. For most of the trilogy, Roberts has distributed the film himself while screening it at festivals, theatres, and schools. By mainly plugging the film through social media, Roberts was able to successfully make his film a hit.
In this film, Roberts focuses on the exploitation of youth and how corporations profit from the objectification of women and children. He interviews activists and critics (Gail Dines, Jean Kilbourne), teens, and journeys to the Adult Video News Convention as well as child beauty pageants to find investigatory insight. It isn’t a slick production by any means. The sound cuts in and out during interviews and the film meanders from scene to scene after establishing its thesis. While one would expect a more in depth study of such a complex issue, Roberts targets his mission more towards those that aren’t aware of how hyper-sexualized our culture has become. However, there’s an inherent danger in this method, for the film tows the line between well-intentioned examination and blatant slut shaming. Teen girls have sex and the shock expressed at this fact isn’t met the same way when interviewing the boy teens. He follows a young woman’s quest to be a model; from her provocative yearbook photos to amateur acting, and eventually a quest to become a Playboy playmate. Meanwhile, how porn affects young men is merely glossed over. Much of this is due to the fact that Roberts’s narrative tone feels naive and innocent in his questions, but he somehow manages to bring out salient points. One of these is how easy it is for children now to access porn on the internet compared to when Roberts was younger. He mentions the bygone era of pinups and Playboy centerfolds that were once targeted to adults and contrasts it with the free gonzo porn that is readily available to anyone with a computer.
In this film, Roberts focuses on the exploitation of youth and how corporations profit from the objectification of women and children.
There is definitely something wrong with how women in particular are sexualized from the get go. Girls are highly aware of the Miley Cyrus posters and Cosmopolitan magazines aimed to mold women into society’s acceptable idea of perfection. It’s not based on reason, but in the male gaze and patriarchal satisfaction. The imagery used in the film is rife with examples of this: the sexy woman posed ridiculously while eating a hamburger in a fast food ad; the photoshopped fantasies of teen magazines; and the cutesy footage of youngsters dirty dancing as adults cheer them on. Roberts’ own interns are profiled: one recovering from an eating disorder, and the other a victim of sexual harassment by the movie’s producer.
The situation is virulent to children especially girls breeding a burgeoning rape culture that powerfully trolls the freedom of women even as adults. America The Beautiful 3 may not be the best documentary for this issue, but it is an important eye opener for a world most in need of a heads up.
America The Beautiful 3 may not be the best documentary for this issue, but it is an important eye opener for a world most in need of a heads up.
