Hey guys,
Today I decided to take a trip down memory lane. To a time when we wore trucker caps, skinny scarfs and chunky highlights.
I don’t know what it is about me that I always have to pick a side. No fence sitting here, which is probably what makes me such a good shipper. But especially when I was younger, I would take celebrity feuds very seriously.
I craved a Team Aniston T-shirt, it pained my heart when I had to pick between Britney and Christina, and sometimes I wonder why I don’t have the same affection for some celebs that my age mates do. But many times it comes down to some stupid manufactured feud from the early 00s that I read about in Heat magazine.
This is why I never had much of an attachment to Lindsay Lohan. I’m basic enough to admit that I loved Mean Girls as much as the next girl, but my affection for the film never translated into affection for the lead actor. Perhaps it was her bad girl image in the image or because I never felt like I could relate to her, even though I enjoyed her films. When it was announced that Lindsay would be making a comeback in a Netflix Christmas film later this year, I felt excited for her but not for myself. I realised I did not particularly care if she chose to opt out of making movies, not in the way that I just wish that Amanda Bynes would return to my screen.
But lately I’ve been wondering whether it might be because of that little feud she had with Hilary Duff.
Let me take you back a bit if you’ve forgotten. It took place during the years of 2002 and 2007. Aaron Carter was the hottest young act, a JBieber of his day, and he cheated on Hilary with Lindsay and then went back to Lindsay. Lindsay apparently talked some shit about Hilary in interviews, to Chad Michael Murray and on SNL, and Hilary responded by talking shit about Lindsay talking shit. It was a wild ride that had Lindsay banned from the A Cinderella Story premiere, and Joel Madden refusing to sign an autograph for Lindsay’s brother. And that’s what you missed on Glee. The two did end up burying the hatchet in 2007, and Hilary invited Lindsay to her album launch, and blamed it all on childish drama.
But I think often in these celeb feuds, one woman gets branded the ‘good girl’ - usually blonde, has a more wholesome persona and the other the ‘bad girl’ the villainous one. From the days of Glinda the Good Witch and The Wicked Witch of the West we have been told to choose a side, and basically what side to choose. And because we often see ourselves as the ‘hero’ or the good character we tend to sympathise with the hero or the victim and demonise the other. Stories like Maleficient have turned this on its’ head and offered a new perspective on the way of storytelling we’ve grown up with.
Recently I was watching a TikTok about why Demi Lovato doesn’t like Taylor Swift (spoiler alert: apparently it’s because she stole Selena away from them?) and I was like, ‘this is stupid.’ Especially since the TikTokker seemed to be a die-hard Swiftie pushing a very specific agenda. But I also realised that this is similar to how I would trawl though the gossip websites and magazines, believing everything I heard, putting clues together in order to back a celebrity who probably wasn’t even in a ‘real’ fight with another celebrity. Dololo nuance, no critical thinking, just vibes.
Anyways, nowadays I still have to fight the urge to pick a side, especially when the battle lines have been drawn. And sometimes I secretly do have my favourites, but I do try and think about different angles of stories, what’s been told, what might just be hearsay, and who is the easy hero and the easy villain of the story.
three documentary recs
Here are three I’ve enjoyed lately if you are looking for something to watch:
If you are looking for something about people: Three Identical Strangers is a wild story about triplets that were separated at birth and found each other when they were 19. But the true story about why they were separated is so much more sinister and chilling. It’s available to watch on Netflix.
If you are looking for something about nature: The Year Earth Changed tells how the natural world adapted to life under lockdown in 2020. We saw many articles and memes about ‘nature is healing’ but it is interesting to see how this really happened around the world and just how much damage humans do to nature. This is narrated by David Attenborough and you can watch it on Apple TV Plus.
If you are looking for something about people and sport: Everything in Between - For someone who doesn’t really watch sport I really do enjoy sport documentaries and this one tells the story of Ron and James - two strangers who decide to cycle from London to Tokyo to deliver the Rugby World Cup whistle and to raise money for charity. It’s a 20 000km ride over 230 days through some hectic terrains but the journey itself is exciting to watch, also their experiences as they meet people from across the world just feels so special. You can watch this on Showmax.
what i’ve been writing
For Channel24, I reviewed the extremely chilling and difficult but utterly beautiful The Underground Railroad which is directed by Barry Jenkins and stars South African actor, Thuso Mbedu. You can read my review here.
For Tagged Online, I wrote about how Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist does an excellent job of using music to depict grief in an unique and interesting way. You can read my article here.
For ASA Magazine, I spoke to influencer and fitness guru, Simhle Plaatjies about her favourite restaurants and bars in Johannesburg. You can read the article here.
what’s ign crushing on
This week on the podcast we were joined by series queen Rushe Cawa (@Rushe_C) to talk about the best in SA TV from The Bachelorette SA to Dead Places to Legacy, as well as what’s hot in international TV. We also chatted to Qiniso van Damme and Gareth Ehret from The Bachelorette SA about their relationship, what surprised them in their rewatch and whether marriage is on the cards.