Four state attorney generals are asking Netflix to “Cuties” from the broadcast service, saying the questionable film sexualizes girls.
In a joint letter sent Monday, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton suggested Netflix CEO Reed Hastings film the film, saying “Cuties” is “forage for those with crooked imaginations. Array used to normalize the concept that young people are sexual beings. “
“This opens up the appetite of those who want to harm our young people to the fullest,” the letter adds.
The AG notes that if the director of “Cuties” Maimouna Doucouré intended to combat opposing the sexualization of young people who advertise it, the film “does more harm than good. “
Early Monday, federal Rep. Vern Buchanan, a Republican for Florida, criticized the film because it introduced a law in Congress to ban the sale of children’s sex dolls.
“A film showing women up to the age of 11 participating in highly sexualized dance routines is inappropriate,” Buchanan said in a press release. “I’m an artistic expression in the film, but it’s exploitative, harmful and scratched in child pornography. “
“You can’t say you’re making a film that explores the issue of child sexual exploitation through child sexual exploitation,” he added.
U. S. Senator Ted Cruz, Republican for Texas, U. S. Senator Josh Hawley, Republican for Missouri, and U. S. Senator Tom Cotton, Republican for Arkansas, opposed the film, and Cruz asked U. S. Attorney General William Barr to investigate Netflix, his executives or filmmakers violated federal legislation that opposes the production and distribution of child pornography.
USA TODAY has contacted Netflix for comment.
Even as critics pile up, Doucouré stands firm in his film.
At a virtual roundtable with uniFrance on Monday, the French director said “Cuties” intended to “sound the alarm,” noting that “the hypersexualization of our young people is everywhere” thanks to social media.
“She’s a feminist, but it’s so vital and obligatory to create a debate and find answers together,” she said. “Watch the movie and sense we have the same fight. “
The reaction against “Cuties” began when the artwork debuted last August and generated complaints on social media for appearing in the casting of the film of young men in nude uniforms and short films with dance poses. Netflix apologized for the “inappropriate. ” a selling symbol of the film, which follows Amy’s 11-year-old struggle to locate her identity amid contrasting cultures.
A day after the film debuted on the streaming service, the hashtags #CancelNetflix and #BoycottNetflix caused a furore on social media, and a petition was born calling for the removal of “Cuties”.
After the film’s release, Netflix responded to critics in USA TODAY: “Cuties is a social commentary that opposes the sexualization of young children. It’s an award-winning film and a tough story about the strain young women face on social media. and developing society, and we inspire anyone who cares about those vital problems to watch the film. “
Netflix subscribers who watched the film also turned to social media to express their thoughts.
The user @cheetukun tweeted: “I just watched the Netflix movie Cuties and it’s not that bad. The Internet is exaggerating. No one shrugs. “
The Twitter user @justsomeguycc: “SoArray . . . I looked at Cuties. That’s not what other people think. Most scenes have meaning in their context, with the exception of the final dance scene. It’s finished to make you feel uncomfortable, and it’s, however, filmed as WAP, so it does what it criticizes. “
The user @YasMohammedxx: “Ok, I looked #Cuties, so now I can give my informed opinion. It’s an incredibly tough movie with vital themes. I also think the messages may have been done without the exaggerated dance scenes. It would still be much less visible. “
The user @weisenbutchfeld tweeted, “I looked cute. Let’s start by saying it’s the worst thing I’ve ever seen in my life and that it deserves all the negative attention it gets. “
The user @iKromatica: “I just watched the movie ‘Cuties’ on Netflix and it’s disgusting, disgusting and more like porn. Don’t see her. “
Contribution: Carly Mallenbaum, Cydney Henderson, Morgan Hines, Kim Willis and Charles Trepany
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