TQS StaffThis week has seen the announcement that Naomi Watts will be filling the elegant heels of the People’s Princess, Karl Lagerfeld made controversial comments about singer Adele’s weight and Jersey Shore’s Snooki revealed that she considers herself bisexual.
Naomi Watts to play Princess Diana in Biopic
Mulholland Drive and King Kong actress Naomi Watts has been cast in the role of Diana, Princess of Wales, in a film beginning production at the end of the year. The casting choice was announced on Thursday at the Berlin International Film Festival. At the helm of the film, entitled Caught in Flight, is British production company Ecosse Films which produced the Queen Victoria biopic Mrs Brown and Jane Austen biopic Becoming Jane. Caught in Flight will be directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel, known for the Oscar- nominated Hitler biopic Downfall. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Hirschbiegel said that Watts is capable of capturing “the warmth, humanity and empathy of such a global icon as Princess Diana”.
If I were directing this film, I would be equally as concerned with portraying “the warmth, humanity and empathy” of Lady Di, however there is a fine line between painting a true portrait of a human being and beatifying them. As much as it might appeal to many to reminisce about the charitable philanthropist who received worldwide adoration, I can’t say I’d want to pay a ticket fee to see Diana simply glorified to goddess status (yet again). Thankfully, Watts has the ability to play the complexities of the human psyche with elegance. We need only look at her damaged, haunting portrayal of Ann Darrow in King Kong. Or, for the real film buffs, her enigmatic turn in David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. As much as I am excited to see how Watts fills the designer heels of the icon that brought the royal family into the 21st century, I am already gagging at the thought of a massively bias depiction of the People’s Princess entirely through Elton John’s rose-tinted glasses.
Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld labels Adele “too fat”
Fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld caused outrage this week after labelling British singer Adele “too fat”. The head designer at Chanel made his controversial comments when guest-editing for Metro New York in Paris. When giving his opinion on US singer Lana Del Rey, Lagerfeld chose to compare her to the British Someone Like You singer. He revealed:
“’The thing at the moment is Adele. She is a little too fat, but she has a beautiful face and a divine voice.”
Fans of the 23-year-old took to Twitter to criticise the German designer’s comments. He later argued that his views were taken out of context. TV funnyman Alan Carr defended Londoner Adele, he told The Sun:
“Adele is beautiful — leave her alone. Lagerfeld is a vile old queen. If I see him I’d rip his grey hair off the top of his prune face.”
It seems to me that the pandemic of insensitive comments in the public eye has taken its latest victim. Whilst Lagerfeld is perfectly within his right to have an opinion on the Grammy award-winning artist, he would be well advised to keep his leathery jowls firmly shut in such a position of impressionability. From the size zero debate to revelations this week that Gaga suffered from bulimia (click here to read more), body image and the psychological effects caused by emphasis on the ‘perfect body’ are issues that still deeply affect the lives of people who admire celebrities such as Lagerfeld. Lagerfeld himself underwent a controversial diet in 2001 to lose 42kg for a Hedi Slimane fashion collection. I wouldn’t publicly knock one of his models if they had the brain capacity of an amoeba because it’s irrelevant to what they’re good at, and therefore he has no reason to make public bitchy comments about a woman’s size when it has nothing to do with her outstanding voice. Is the beautiful Adele publicly promoting an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise? No. Is Lagerfeld publicly promoting an unnatural, unhealthy body image? Yes.
Jersey Shore’s Snooki Says She Considers Herself Bisexual
Nicola “Snooki” Polizzi, star of US reality TV show Jersey Shore, revealed in an interview with the Huffington Post that she considers herself bisexual. The comments were made during a joint interview with fellow Jersey Shore housemate Jennifer “JWoww” Farley after 24-year-old Polizzi discussed her intimate interactions with a co-star on the show and admitted to having “experimented” with girls. She revealed:
“I would consider myself bi. I’ve done stuff with girls before. But I would never be with a girl because I like… penis. But I’ve experimented.”
The Jersey Shore stars also speculated on the sexuality of co-star Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino in the interview which can be viewed in full here.
I was apprehensive about featuring this as ‘news’ because I don’t think sexuality should be made into a spectacle or made to seem unusual. However, there’s something about the flippant nature of her comments that makes me suspect dear old Snooks of exploiting her sexuality to seem exotic. I’ve ‘done stuff’ with women but I ‘like penis’ and I only fall in love with men, does that make me bisexual? Nope. If she genuinely considers herself capable of being intimate and loving with women as well as men then good on her for being so casual and matter of fact about something that should be considered perfectly natural. However, my suspicion is that she is just another attention seeker who likes the whole Katy Perry I Kissed a Girl thrill and creates this persona of sexual adventurousness to ultimately attract men. If this is the case, she would be disrespecting the loving, equal relationships experienced by bisexual men and women. Where do we draw the line between experimentation and one’s sexuality? In an age where two girls kissing is seen as a turn-on for straight men, are Snooki’s claims as inflated as her ego?
Words by @j_fishman
