The "new" Heather Chandler is rebellious, edgy, and of course, a total badass bitch. Jealous much?
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Fans immediately lost it when they realized the modern-day Heather Chandler is plus-size. Photo - The lead actress for the ‘Heathers’ TV reboot is plus-size
The "new" Heather Chandler is rebellious, edgy, and of course, a total badass bitch. Jealous much?
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A huge part of being a hardcore fan of anything, is to have a sense of trust. You have to be able to trust the genre, the creators and the history itself. What made the cult film, Heathers, so popular in the first place was that it took place in the 80's. This reboot will make way for audiences to view a different type of evil. In this article, I think that people are forgetting that the heathers are in fact pretty evil, they do awful things to the world around them and to each other. By making the main characters lesser members of high school society (gender queer, plus sized, etc.) we are able to see the forms in which evil can harbor. Yes, this tv show will encompass the how and why the Heathers are so mean, it doesn't decimate the fact that they are primarily the villains of the story. Since they are making the oppressed the oppressor, I think it leaves room for people to really stand back and question their own morals and thoughts. Since I respect people of color, don't fat-shame girls, and am gender inclusive, does that somehow make me a better person? For me, the article and the tv show itself is an opportunity, an opportunity to bend the rules of high school and hierarchy, and also an opportunity to allow the fans to disconnect the actions from the person and really see the story for what it is. Hopefully, the show will remain true to the show and be able to add these aspects to the character without making it their main character trait.
I’m very much a fan of the movie The Heathers, and also a fan of the musical. That being said though, I wonder what place that story has in today’s world. Obviously the issues of violence and manipulation are very real, but I can’t help but wonder if a show like Heathers glorifies or condemns it. I am happy to see this TV adaptation has been significantly diversified, which bodes well for how they have updated the story. Although, I know I personally considered this story to be indicative of the effects of wealth and white privilege, as well as male violence. Especially in terms of the title characters of the ‘Heathers’. So it will be interesting to see if or how those themes are brought up with this new and diverse cast. I’m especially interested to see how a plus-size Heather will fit into the equation, but I’m optimistic. Either way, I’m very excited for this new series and I hope it does well.
"Heathers" became one of my favorite movies when I watched it on a whim and realized the quiet depth and symbolism that lived in in a movie that showed the almost political high school structures I saw everyday. When I first found out there would be a reboot though, I found it tired. I am not a fan of the recent trend of rebooting movies that were already good in the past, changing nothing but a few cultural references, and calling it art. In fact, I find this practice derivative. But I of course decided to read more, I didn't see the point in judging a book by its cover. When I found out the range of diversity and the new form that the Heathers would be taking, I was interested. I think that the new additions in diversity will find themselves welcome in the story. The fact of the matter is fat, genderqueer, and blk (black) people can be mean. Though these groups often find themselves on the outside looking in in non inclusive high schools, they can definitely be found at the top of the power structure. After transferring from my school where everyone was skinny, straight, and white, to a school where everyone experimented with gender, sexuality, and a lot more of the student body were ethnic minorities, I realized that ultimately all high school students have the capacity to be mean.
Even outside of the ability of the characters ability to be mean, a lot of really bad things happened to them. We see Heather Chandler get coerced into sex with an older college student, Heather Duke has an eating disorder which is seemingly brought on by the pressure of not being good enough for Chandler, and Heather Macnamara tries to commit suicide because her peers begin to call her weak. This movie is ultimately not about heroes and villains. Even our favorite character Veronica is an accomplice to murder. J.D., though a true murderer, is displayed to us as deeply disturbed and ultimately mentally ill. While being a person who is hurting does not excuse violence, the original movie is meant to test our own boundaries of human morality and what is good and bad. I think putting new faces to that question will ultimately serve its purpose.
I love the original “Heathers”. It’s one of my higher ranking 1980’s high school themed films. The original was so crisp and sharp, not only with its themes of teenage suicide, but also with the dialogue shared between characters. Heather Chandler is a character that audience members want to be but also are completely on board when she is killed and her reign of terror in Westerburg High School comes to an end. I love the diversity of HBC’s casting for this reboot. My concern however, is that the Heathers are played by minority actors. Heather Chandler, played by a plus-size actor is killed, and another Heather in the film is attempted to be killed. This reboot is casting plus-size, genderqueer, and African Americans in roles that have them killed. The actor who plays Veronica, is straight and white, which is a shame because she in the hero of the story. I appreciate the diversity of this show, but perhaps the casting could have been a bit more thought-through.
I too am excited for this remake, but admit to a certain nostalgia overload from all the remakes or proposed remakes set to hit in the next couple years. Heathers has had a very successful life before the remake, albeit a cult following at first, and I wonder how this story will fit in with the world of 2017. As Kelly mentioned, the casting does seem well intentioned but problematic; why champion a diverse casting only to have the 'hero' of the story be a straight white girl? While it certainly casts lead roles in a diverse manner, the nature of the roles could have perhaps been considered a bit more. I don't want to be too quick to judge, but I certainly hope this reboot isn't simply casting a portion of its character in a diverse manner without considering the context of the roles. This is not to say that a we should shy away from making our villains as diverse as our heroes. Representation is important either way, but it needs to be done so consistently, responsibly, and with a good deal of careful thought.
While I am excited for the remake, I am a bit wary of a remake. Sometimes fans like it when we follow the same script, keep the old tradition alive. While I love that the industry is trying to change how we perceive stereotypical mean girls, and stereotypes in general, I'm not sure if the old cult following of Heathers will adore the remake as much as the original.
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