Netflix are facing mounting criticism following their marketing of a debut film “Cuties” (“Mignonnes”) by writer/director Maïmouna Doucouré.
The french film is rated 15 and currently due for release on the service from 9th September, but a row over the sexualisation of children in the promotional artwork for the drama has led to a petition to have it withdrawn.
The streaming service issued an apology for the “inappropriate artwork” used and has insisted it is not representative of the film which won the World Cinema Dramatic Directing Award at the Sundance Film Festival this year. Critics maintain that the imagery and content of the trailer suggests the film is paedophilic and islamophobic.
In its description on Netflix, the film reportedly follows 11-year old Aminata (Amy), a Senegalese migrant in France who “starts to rebel against her conservative family’s traditions when she becomes fascinated with a free-spirited dance crew”. It is the suggestive dancing with this group and violent reaction by Amy’s mother to finding her daughter dancing provocatively in the trailer that has led to many of the critical comments.
Ironically, it was Doucouré’s own surprise at the sexualised behaviour of young girls in dance groups that led to her writing the film. In a recent interview with Cineuropa she stated “I was rather shocked and I wondered if they were aware of the image of sexual availability that they were projecting. In the audience, there were also more traditional mothers, some of them wearing veils: it was a real culture shock.”
Against the petition to ban the film there are also those defending it (including many who have actually seen the film) as a critique of western culture and the sexualisation of children. They suggest that in their poor approach to marketing the film, Netflix has portrayed the film as the opposite of its actual intention.
What is certain is that the emotive response is unlikely to subside soon, the hashtag #SaveOurChildren has been trending on Twitter in relation to the film and Maïmouna Doucouré has reportedly deleted her account following abuse and death threats.
