I saw The Last Showgirl and was disappointed, but I love your reading of the scene where Shelley insists that being beautiful is power and the total dissonance she displays in terms of...power to do what, exactly? I also thought it was fascinating how much the film emphasizes Shelley's lack of solidarity with other women or her own family, which seems to be a comment on how capitalist structures alienate through competition. I think I was overall thrown off by the fact that Shelley was so unlikable, yet the film itself and all the critical reception positioned her as the protagonist when she's actually more of an antihero.
I saw The Last Showgirl and was disappointed, but I love your reading of the scene where Shelley insists that being beautiful is power and the total dissonance she displays in terms of...power to do what, exactly? I also thought it was fascinating how much the film emphasizes Shelley's lack of solidarity with other women or her own family, which seems to be a comment on how capitalist structures alienate through competition. I think I was overall thrown off by the fact that Shelley was so unlikable, yet the film itself and all the critical reception positioned her as the protagonist when she's actually more of an antihero.
Oh--also. My favorite element of this movie was certainly Kiernan Shipka. She was underrated!
she was really good, i agree. and yes, shelly is much more of an antihero!