DIRECTOR'S CUT: Who's the Meanest? Therapists React to MEAN GIRLS with Guest Dr. Stephanie Sarkis
We all know Regina George is a "mean girl" but she's definitely not the only one being manipulative and mean in Mean Girls.
Licensed therapist Jonathan Decker and filmmaker Alan Seawright are joined by Dr. Stephanie Sarkis to talk about Regina, Cady, Janis, and the toxic patterns of manipulation and narcissism we see in this movie. They also talk about the social structures and what it means to be a "mean girl," how both Regina and Janis try to manipulate Cady, and the awesome performances from Rachel McAdams, Lindsay Lohan, Lizzy Caplan, and the real hero of the movie - Tina Fey.
Comments (3)
I would say there's a lot centered around toxic femininity that women deal with, maybe not a real term but there's a lot directly paralleled to toxic masculinity
I daresay that "toxic femininity" is actually a consequence of toxic masculinity and the patriarchy--the idea that the attention of a man is the ultimate goal for a woman and that all women are in competition with each other for men's attention. That seems to be where a lot of what could be considered "toxic feminine" behaviors stem from
I think (one of) the reasons why it was so hard for me to tell that abuser was in fact abusing me was that she was a Janis and not a Regina. I mean, she had elements of Regina (wanting a big friend group, triangulation), but then also elements of Janis (I'm the only one you can trust, it's ok if I make jokes about you being Jewish because I'm your friend even though I never asked if it was fine).