A friend of mine used to call life “a bucket of shit with the handles on the insides.” I’m going to appropriate that now to the internet, thanks in large part to the disease of accepted bullying that happens every second of every day here — our formerly dignified selves taking a backseat to the worst humanity has to offer. What Novak experienced the night of the Oscars is an example of a typical day online – it has become so accepted, in fact, that almost everything and everyone is fair game for ridicule – the best way to handle it is to ignore it and go on with your life. I’m sorry that we aren’t better people. I’m sorry that you had the courage to face the public, 40 million people, who may or may not had their own things to say in the privacy of their own home, but that they took to Twitter and various — USELESS — gossip sites to make fun of your face. Just remember, it isn’t you. They (we) are addicted to the taste of blood.
But more than even that, I’m sorry that we live in a culture – and that Hollywood has become an industry that encourages “getting work done” in order to have a career. There is a reason why so few actresses go under the knife in the UK and other countries because they are allowed to age there. Their worth is beyond someone saying “she looks great for her age.” We live in a world that praises someone like Jane Fonda who gets all of the work done “right.” There are other examples – Sofia Loren, Raquel Welch – former beauties who had a skilled surgeon nip a little here, tuck a little here and aren’t we still falling all over ourselves at how young they STILL look because god knows that is all that matters — that we stay looking young.
So you’re kind of damned if you, damned if you don’t, Kim. Don’t get the work done and people say “I remember her when she looked beautiful.” Get the work done and people might say “doesn’t she look good?” But if it isn’t done “right” or if it is noticeable people will say “what happened to her?” You aren’t alone. Women are everywhere in my city with unrealistically swollen lips, puffy eyes, stretched back skin, giant rubber boobs, sucked in tummies – all trying to look like Nicole Kidman who injects to keep young looking, wears lots of sunscreen and works out like a madwoman. You see, this is the end result of a culture that values the worth of women by what they look like on the outside. It is ruining Hollywood. It is ruining women. Unfortunately, women are even worse when it comes to talking about how bad someone looks. Ever take a gander at those awful magazines in supermarkets? Perhaps we all feel so badly about ourselves we can’t really face the day unless someone else is taking a hit for cellulite or wrinkles or bad plastic surgery. Women punishing women. The endless awful cycle.
All of these things are separate issues from what you experienced the morning after the Oscars. What happens on Twitter now and in the comments sections of blogs where any user can sign up anonymously and say whatever they’re thinking, get a quick thrill from saying the unsayable, then sleep at night, knowing they caused someone somewhere great harm. On Twitter, the bullying mentality catches on wildfire – isn’t it fun to make fun? Didn’t we leave this all behind in high school? I guess we didn’t. We have an enormously powerful tool at our disposal and this is how we choose to use it. Ain’t we a grand species?
The only way to console yourself over this is the simple truth that none of it means anything. It is chew for the day, spit gathered in an overflowing spittoon until the next item for ridicule presents itself. The worst thing the media can do – and they do it all of the time – is pay any attention to globs of spit whose only future includes being flushed down the toilet. Any sentence on a news program that begins with “people on Twitter…” Lazy journalism that isn’t worthy of anyone’s time.
There isn’t much left to say except this: you’re still here. You’re still alive. What remains of your life, with or without the assclowns online, is a gift. It matters less what your face looks like and more that your soul is in intact. The only upside to your appearance at the Oscars is to perhaps remind women that sometimes those surgeries won’t earn them Jane Fonda-like status in the tribe. Sometimes it isn’t a way to age backwards in hopes of keeping that admiration we only really get freely when we’re young.
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It is oh so easy to post hateful comments in complete anonymity while hiding behind a computer screen or whatever. Sad people. I wonder how many of these haters would have the courage to look in the mirror and examine themselves with the same scrutiny that they so willingly apply to others?
Jesus Susan,
What a cruel, cynical take.
She was part of classic Hollywood .. Period.
And thank you Sasha!
You’re writing is marked not only by you’re eloquence, sense of history, passion and knowledge, but by you’re compassion.
That’s something I don’t get anywhere on the Internet, not about film culture.
I get so depressed when I see this kind of cruelty, not only for Novak, but Liza, the nasty comments about Gabourey. I remember high school, and its disappointing to be reminded time and time again that cruelty might be part of human nature and not just adolescence.
I adore Kim Novak, but I don’t think it’s wrong to point out she didn’t look very good. Getting plastic surgery done well is tricky.
I’d have to say that I was horrified by the cosmetic re-application that I saw. Though I avoided watching her struggle through this, I somewhat felt that Matthew McCoughney was treating her very feebly.
As for goldie hawn – Whatever she did – she looks nothing like the Goldie I saw that presented the year Penelope Cruz won when they had 5 past winners honor a nominee. What a change for the worse!
Forget the online trolls, what about Ellen’s nasty remarks about Liza?
GlobalCritic
–
Yes,may be you are right !!!
I think Angelina got her nose job whenever she had gotten pregnant.
Because her nose became wider whenever she was carrying babies.
She also got face fillers whenever around that time because her face looked much rounder than usual.
Let’s see if she will do it again when she carries a new one.
I loved this piece and agree with you whole heartedly. It is one thing to have personal or private thoughts, but quite another to express them in these reduntant ways. Personally i do not indulge in any site like twitter or facebook. I belive them to be capable of more harm than use.
I beg to defer. Angelina and Charlize are NOT natural beauties. Charlize has has at least a nose job, some lip injections for her upper lift AND a mini face lift or a cheek implant. As for Angelina, her nose job is well documented as well as her several botox and fillers.
Thanks, Sasha, for an excellent response. I agree with Bates that it was a bit shocking to see her at first, but considering she is 81, I too saw enough of the great beauty from the past. Dr Cyrus also made some good points. I’d like to also defend her admittedly erratic body of work–in Vertigo she plays two women at once, really 3 sometimes, and we can understand all of them. That should have been her Oscar nomination. And she could be a deft comic actress in Bell, Book, and Candle, Notorious Landlady, and even the underrated (and I think unavailable) Boy’s Night Out. A governor’s award would be a nice tribute.
Thanks! Maybe it’s gonna be more pleasant to read the comment section again.
I think part of it was her voice. It was the voice of a very old woman (well, naturally) and that coming from that face – pushing for the 20-30-ish – made it much creepier than it would have been with just the face. The face itself at first repulsed me a bit, but in time I accepted it and even found some of the beauty of the Kim Novak we remember. It was perhaps a little bit awkward overall, but definitely not as much as the massive reactions on the Internet. They were overdone and undeserved, she doesn’t look bad.
I watched the entire telecast and when Kim came onto the stage I thought to myself that she appeared to have some work done. The key word there, is as someone else pointed out in a comment; “appeared”. Did I think she looked like someone who could have been a side show at some state fair? No. Did I think that if she had work done might she have made a better choice by aging naturally? Yes. Do I believe that our society puts an outrageous pressure on women of all ages to become Jennifer Lawrence clones? Absolutely. Did I feel sorry for Kim because she didn’t appear as the woman I remember from film? No. Why should I? And I didn’t simply because I remember her and her films. Did I expect her too come out on stage and look like she was forty? Nope.
Recently the same type of internet bullying has been lowered at Sophia. During the shoot of the Human Voice photographers shot Sophia at various angles and then screamed that she was the victim of surgery gone bad and when someone pointed out that she was in full make up for the shoot everyone commented “pisshaw”.
We need to get a grip of our own expectations of aging. At my age I remember what I looked like forty years ago and there is no way that I’m going to ever recapture that appearance. Neither is anyone else. We all get old people, some of us will age gracefully and some of us will end up looking like some beat us up in a back alley. So goes life.
Personally I thought John Travolta’s hair coloring was more ridiculous than Kim Novak’s face.
And as for people not seeing Kim’s work well Picnic was just aired recenlty; Bell, Book and Candle has become a cable staple; and Vertigo is usually available somewhere.
(I didn’t see her appearance at the Oscar. My previous comments only dealt with her Twitter-related problems if any. I haven’t read others’ comments yet; sorry.)
For the sake of discussing #the matter, Novak looks physically fine – the point is that, if she’s happy with #it and it (the job) is not unhealthy to her, then it’s far better to ignore the internet trolls.
Especially in her case. (She really looks fine. Those trolls basically had nothing better to do with their lives.)
##People should mind their own businesses — in this particular case. I understand that we are talking about the alleged plastic surgery (as opposed to adultery, murder, etc., in other cases).
(Note: ##I’m talking about the haters at more serious level than SotTongue. [Some people didn’t really mean to be hurtful, I believe])
It irks me that the audience got up off their butts for every Tom Dick & Harry- but refused to get up for her. Tacky.
While I agree with your post Sasha, I’m not sure the lack of love Novack received onstage was because of how she has aged. Maybe her reception was less than rapturous because she was never more than a B actress who lucked into having a good director once.
I grew up in the 50s and 60s and Novack was always a bit of joke back then. She was a minor box office draw (because of her appearance) but never taken very seriously. It’s only recently with the apotheosis of Vertigo that she’s being revived as some sort of living legend. Maybe the audience (a lot of whom grew up when I did) weren’t buying.
The more I think about it, you guys are right. The show did a piss poor job of honoring legends this year. Liza deserved better. Nothing substantial for Steve Martin, Lansbury, Novak, Otoole, Fontaine, Durbin, Temple, the list goes on. Where were some of our other living legends in their 80s and 90s? And I agree that one of the better moments was Jolie and Poitier.
Actually, Seattlemoviegoer, Redgrave admitted in an interview a few years ago that she had some eye-work done, but only because it was affecting her vision. She’s kept it to a minimum and “natural”. One sees more beauty in her expressive face than in any other botoxed or carved-up actor, so I don’t know what actors think is gained by doing this. Redgrave’s career continues to thrive because of her natural face, while those who have gone to extreme measures to preserve their youth have disappeared from the screen (Dunaway, Hawn, et al).
With the increasing population of people in their 60s and 70s and aging becomes more the norm in the audience, I’m hoping we’ll see this trend start to lessen.
Glad to see someone thought it’s worth writing about. It’s a fashion in showbiz (or should I say America?) to make fun of people based on their looks and personal lives. So unfortunate. And it’s not only women. Michael Jackson comes to mind. Undoubtedly the greatest icon and entertainer of all-time, worshiped and loved in each and every corner of the world but in his own country people couldn’t see past his plastic surgeries and personal life.
i wish plastic surgery wasn’t the norm with so many aging actresses (and actors…Robert Redford had some eye work done). those who age naturally look terrific. Vanessa Redgrave for one. but so many want people to remember them from their prime. could this be why Doris Day avoids any lifetime achievement awards or tributes? several years ago Irene Dunne was one of the annual recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors. she never showed up. she was the only one not to attend. it had been several years since she had appeared in public.
keifer wrote: “Wrong. Everyone has the right to criticize public personalities. It goes with the territory.”
That’s what tabloid journalism tells you. That’s probably what you tell yourself to justify what you do (which still isn’t criticism… it’s humiliation and ridicule). But have you ever actually questioned that idea or have you just eat it up? If you’ve just bought into that idea without ever wondering if it’s actually true or right or fair, what that makes you? Is it something worth of respect that you join millions of people who’ve bought into something that isn’t really true or real.
“It comes with the territory” is a lie that’s been sold to a embarrassingly large number of people.
keifer wrote: “What if she had showed up with a face full of bad tattoos?”
So what? Her face. Her choice. None of my business nor anyone else’s.
keifer wrote: “Or with her boobs hanging out? Or wearing a hideous dress like Glenn Close? Do you think people would remain silent?”
Again, who cares about those things you mentioned? Big deal.
I don’t think people would remain silent but I hope they would be wise enough to do so.
keifer wrote: “Celebrities, by nature, are not exempt from ridicule and/or adulation. Especially when a woman does something BY CHOICE to her face that makes her look ridiculous.”
They should be just like the rest of people. Ridicule is not acceptable. Ever. Not in any situation.
But tell me, when one becomes a celebrity, does he or mostly she loses part of her humanity? That person becomes less human or no human at all? Then anything is acceptable? If you saw Kim Novak in person, would you tell her she’s butchered her face? If yes, what should we think of you?
“Especially when a woman…”? Exactly. Especially when a woman.
SO TRUE Dave! Shirley Temple and some of the legendary Hollywood icons left this past year including the incomparable Joan Fontaine to Peter O’Toole and Maximilian Schell (a great director too, nominated several times in foreign film) and Eleanor Parker.
I just wish they would be more creative at these shows. The whole hero clips throughout the show was just so lame, what was the point. Any one of us on this forum could have designed a better and more classy show that also reflected on old Hollywood and paid homage to those golden years. Perhaps Kim Novak, one of Hitchcock’s heroines speaking on Joan Fontaine to Mickey Rooney who was at the after parties to speak about Judy Garland his old time partner in crime. There are tons of old Hollywood still living and sadly you are right Dave, they do pander to the masses, but really who are the masses? Do we assume the masses who are watching this telecast are young teens and adults? I would dare to say most who watch are film lovers and remember these golden days of Hollywood. So sad they aren’t celebrated more in these telecasts.
In a year that saw Shirley Temple Black, one of the most iconic of Hollywood figures and a humanitarian and woman of great courage and achievement, to not have her own clip or tribute was odd. John Hughes got his own a few years ago.
Cyrus, you make some terrific points that resonate with me. I have no interest in defending the producers of the telecast year in year out, but they so want the audience and ratings, and so they fashion the content to suit their demographic chase. From the abhorrent Franco/Hathaway misfire, to what for me was Ellen’s weakest performance on an awards show. But others really liked her and the loose, audience shtick and selfies. It did nothing for me. Her opening monologue was lukewarm not on fire. I think they (producers of the show) are caught between the very different sensibilities of the members, the network execs and their hopeful audience. They will never be all things for all people. I would have loved for Steve Martin. Angela Lansbury to present and therefore have their moments of glory. Poitier with Anjelina was a highlight. I was really surprised at the lack of respect towards Liza.
I think it is quite disturbing how easily many are making fun of her facial appearance. It is quite disgusting to hear these comments.
As a physician, you cannot assume everyone has had plastic surgery or botox injected. Many times due to many different medical illnesses and particularly side effects of medication, it can give the angioedema appearance in the face, particularly is one is on corticosteroids for any sort of rheumatologic disease.
So until it is confirmed from Kim Novak herself, I think people need to stop assuming. Leave her alone. What bothered me most about the Oscars was how little respect and care the community and these telecasts have for the history of the golden age of Hollywood. Could the producers have taken 1 minute to come up with a montage of Novak’s great work in Picnic and Vertigo? Could they have given her at least that? Moreover, you have another legend in the audience, Liza Minnelli and instead you have the host call her a man and make her get for 2 seconds awkwardly for a half-ass tribute to Wizard of Oz being sung by horrible pop singer Pink. Also, where was Angela Lansbury?! You let Sidney Poitier present director but not best picture, instead that distinction goes to the Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
This is such a deeply embedded issue. From young girls wanting to already change their appearance to ageing beauties; it is about being comfortable in your own skin. i get the pressures for women in tv and movies; but some seem more at the effect of the wish for eternal youth than others. What did Bob Hope or was it Johnny Carson quip in a monologue “It’s great to see some old faces out there, and some new faces on some old faces”
Ryan, looking forward to your piece on “The Great Beauty”.
One of my favorite parts of the film is the botox take-a-number scene.
It reminded me of the Katherine Helmond/Jim Broadbent plastic surgeon scenes in “Brazil”.
Very funny.
I guess I just don’t understand Hollywood and the whole plastic surgery thing. I’ll clarify my question, “Why would a beautiful woman (Kim Novak) undergo plastic surgery in the first place?” I just don’t get it. I agree that one should blame the surgeon for bad plastic surgery and not the “victim”. But, heh, these women voluntarily choose to have it and pay oodles of money to have it, knowing the outcome can be “less than desired”, and still do it anyway.
Plastic surgery used to be only for people who had actual deformities of nature and it was a truly kind operation for people who needed it. It wasn’t intended to be a fountain of youth for aging Hollywood actresses, but has become so.
Hi Simone – Thanks for asking – it was Charlotte Dawson
http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/national/charlotte-dawson-20140222-338n5.html
I so agree with you, Sasha. We live in a harsh and vulgar age. It’s the sign of our times that nobody uses the word “vulgar” any more. Bad behaviour, rudeness and cruelty have become the accepted norm.
Sorry but all this self I victimization is doing no good. This is a woman of means who doesn’t need to do anything to get roles or money. Yet she went and got surgery and invited ridicule by appearing on the biggest show of the year. Maybe sometimes it’s healthier to leave the blame on ourselves rather than others. Haven’t they taught you anything at the feminist self I empowerment school?
The good news, is that you can still see her beauty, beyond the unfortunate plastic surgery, and you can tell that she’s still a genuinely nice person.
There were six of us at the Oscar party I went to, all of us gay men. Two of us are serious Oscar watchers, while the other four chattered away all night, spouting continuous negative comments. Everyone was fair game, including Bill Murray, Lupita’s lack of boobs and of course Kim Novak. After much disparaging of female celebrities with facelifts, they had the nerve to criticize a woman (forget who) without any nip-n-tuck, in the process of aging naturally.
I watched the show again, by myself, and as I noticed and heard things I’d missed the first time, the nasty comments of these men kept coming back.
It’s sad that people are so unhappy that firing away like this (whether by pen or tongue) is such a great pleasure to them.
Thanks for writing this article, Sasha, and for inspiring a thread of the appreciation some of us have for film and its makers, past and present.
Also, by the way, the one person I was most looking forward to watching on the Oscar telecast was, indeed, Kim Novak. I’ve admired her work in film for years.
And she was a complete success and standout with Jimmy Stewart when presenting at the Oscar ceremonies in 1989.
So, it’s not that I hate Kim Novak. Far from it. Love the gal. But WHY did she butcher her face?
But WHY did she butcher her face?
It was the surgeon who butchered her face.
Have you never had a bad haircut? Did people ask you why you butchered your hair? Then you know what Kim Novak has had to live with permanently, for years.
Bad cosmetic surgery is an incompetent mistake. It’s something that went tragically wrong. Except it doesn’t grow out like hair. It apparently just gets stranger as the year go on. No doubt people are desperate to try to undo the mishaps, but most attempts to fix the damage just make it worse.
Thousands of actresses at the Oscars oon Sunday have had cosmetic surgery. I’m feel bad the ones who were not lucky. But I don’t blame them for what the doctors did.
Do you think she went to a doctor and asked him to butcher her? Do you think all the 100,000s pf thousands of people who die during surgery ask the the doctors to murder them while their under anesthesia?
Doctors screw up. So sure, blame the patients.
[completely unrelated: I look forward to talking with you about The Great Beauty in a couple of weeks when I write about it, keifer.]
@ daveinprogress – “One of Australia’s leading fashion celebrities took her own life two weeks ago.”
Who is this person? This is tragically sad.
J.A.H.
“She can do whatever she wants with it”
Right. I agree.
“. . . and nobody has the right to criticize her for it.”
Wrong. Everyone has the right to criticize public personalities. It goes with the territory.
What if she had showed up with a face full of bad tattoos?
Or with her boobs hanging out?
Or wearing a hideous dress like Glenn Close?
Do you think people would remain silent?
Celebrities, by nature, are not exempt from ridicule and/or adulation. Especially when a woman does something BY CHOICE to her face that makes her look ridiculous.
Great post, Sasha! Thank you for writing it!
keifer said: “They were criticizing what SHE HAD DONE TO HER FACE!”
And you think that makes it better? It is her face and no one else’s. She can do whatever she wants with it and nobody has the right to criticize her for it.
Oh, and btw, people weren’t criticizing her. They were ridiculing her. They were humiliating her. They were mocking her.
Shirley Manson from the band Garbage talked about this very same issue a while ago in defence of Madonna: “The tabloids complain about her looking old, and people laugh at her for that. Then Madonna goes and fixes her face, and they laugh at her for that. Even thought they begrudgingly say she looks amazing, they’ll still laugh at her for trying to look young. Then she steps out, looking amazing, and the tabloids go and blow up a picture of her aging hand. Nobody’s doing that to George Clooney, blowing up pictures of his hands! I look at these magazines, and I want to say to them, What’s your point? That she’s aged? Does that surprise you? Or is your ‘point’ an attempt to undercut what she’s achieved? I think it is, even if it’s on a subconscious level. And you probably wouldn’t turn down those hands if they were grabbing you under the table, you fucking idiots.”
^^^ Many of those actresses listed may have “natural” looks, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t had plastic surgery/cosmetic enhancement. Some have had very good, conservative work that maintains their youthful looks, including Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Angelina Jolie, Charlize Theron, Helen Mirren to name a few.
I for one would only bang Marty from THE SEARCHERS, out of all the characters in the Sight&Sound Top 10.
Manuel, I’ll add the beautiful:
Frances McDormand
Charlotte Rampling
Helen Mirren
Eva Marie Saint
So lets make a list of actresses with natural looks:
Meryl Streep
Cate Blanchett
Rachel Weisz
Naomi Watts
Liv Ullmann
Glenn Close
Sigoruney Weaver
Julianne Moore
Olivia Williams
Judi Dench
Maggie Smith
Angelina Jolie
Kate Winslet
Charlize Theron
Tilda Swinton
Michelle Yeoh
Gong Li
While I don’t agree with the decision many women make to start carving themselves up, it is a symptom of another social issue entirely. Yes, the internet is a rough place to play if you choose to take it seriously, but at the end of the day, Kim Novak is still Kim Novak, and those who mock her. especially on the internet, are still …nobody.
Bill Murray looks older (at the red carpet) than he really is. He looked like 80something.
^^ I agree. When I saw him, I was like — WOW, what happened? I attribute it to alcohol.
WHOAAA. What a second.
No one is criticizing Kim Novak’s contribution to film. That’s cemented in celluloid.
But she’s a public personality who has basically lived a private life.
No one was criticizing her age or what she wore or her contribution to film.
They were criticizing what SHE HAD DONE TO HER FACE!
Heh, you’re in the media game. You chose to do that to yourself. You paid thousands of dollars to achieve an artificial youthful (albeit very ugly) appearance. You chose to walk out on that stage. And you actually thought you looked good?
Had she not had the plastic surgery, everyone would be concentrating on her work in films . . . not the Donald Duck lips. Ditto for Goldie Hawn.
Sasha, more than 40 million people watched the Oscars on Sunday. The televised event is broadcast in dozens of countries throughout the world. Not just in the USA. Every year it is said the an estimated 1 BILLION people watch it.
I understand it must be great to be an American and watch this all-American midiatic event, but there is more to Earth than just your empire/country.
I, for one, couldn’t care less about Novak’s butchered face. In fact, I wouldn’t notice it if it weren’t for the controversy on the internet. Lots of artists have plastic surgery that not always go well. It’s become normal. People should be more polite and be more sensible. But they aren’t. They will never be, not when they are protected by a computer screen.
One of Australia’s leading fashion celebrities took her own life two weeks ago. She had experienced a devastating period of cyber bullying and although she utilised social media and stood up to the trolls, it traumatised her and having already made one attempt on her own life, she then seemed to be getting back to normal life. She withdrew from twitter etc, but as part and parcel of not only her industry but social life, she continued to engage in social media. I appreciate there are lots of reasons and factors inherent to suicide. The lady had lost a plum judging role on Australia’s Next Top Model, her representation ended, and she was borrowing money from friends to stay afloat, thanks to work drying up. Social media bullying is dire. It has been a direct factor in countless teens taking their own life. The woman i mentioned was 47.
I agree–I find the comments on Novak utterly distasteful and reflect more poorly on the superficial posters than on Ms. Novak herself. Cosmetic surgery can’t outrun all of the aging process, and it seems to me completely her business to decide how she wishes to present herself to the world. I admired the brio with which she participated in the Oscar ceremony, and the lovely and somewhat chivalric interplay between her and Matt McC (he seemed kind and respectful towards her–perhaps showed himself more a likable human there than in the mis-gauged acceptance speech–though, if I were in the running for an Oscar, you can believe I would have prepared carefully, even knowing I might not ever deliver the speech). She showed an enthusiasm for this industry and for a life I hope she has enjoyed. While perhaps not the most natural or skilled actress, she did affecting work in the 1950s and had a beauty that time cannot wither.
You can’t expect people on social media to shut up about a case like Kim Novak. It’s not always pleasant to read, but she did this to herself. Throwing verbal abuse at someone for the way they look, is never to be applauded exactly, but it makes a difference that we’re talking about someone who actively brought this on to herself, paying hundreds of thousand of dollars in the process (probably).
I don’t feel sorry for her for having to deal with all of this post-Oscar garbage, I feel sorry for her for being so completely misguided in her life choices.
I can’t really see why the media or Hollywood should be blamed for this. In the end it is her decision or any other actors decision for that matter.
So you are not satisfied with your appearance. You take botox, fine. Now deal with the consequences. You are a celebrity and earn more than the majority of the population. Expect that the media will write about you and ridicule you for this decision. It’s part of the job.
+1 @Redemption
Also, Kim’s the star of arguably the greatest film ever made. So she has that bullet in the chamber for all her haters.
I am aghast at the ugly comments in the social media about Kim Novak’s facial appearance on the Oscars. To those people, I say pray that you live to be 81 years old, and if you do, you think your body and perhaps your mind is going to be in tip top shape? Kim was one of the biggest stars of the 50’s and 60’s (do your homework), starring in such hit films as Vertigo, Pal Joey, Picnic, and The Man With the Golden Arm. She made Columbia Pictures plenty of money. She is a legend, treat her as one-give her the same reverance as you would give your mother. That’s it dammit!
I still say women (and men) can age naturally and beautifully. But it appears this preoccupation with face lifts and nips and tucks is more of a Hollywood (and perhaps California in general) phenomenon.
When I visit Los Angeles, I’m astounded by all the cartoon female faces I see. Even the bad facelifts are a kind of badge of honor. It’s sad, really. Because no one is FORCED to alter their face because of aging. It is a choice. I think criticizing Kim Novak and Goldie Hawn was fair game. They chose to have that work done. And they simply look like freaks because of the bad work.
For me, women (and men) are simply good looking if they appear healthy, no matter what their age. There’s a sparkle and shine to people who simply take care of themselves (without artificially altering their looks).
Of course, my family was pointing out Kim Novak’s face. How could you not? We all have HD TVs, giving us the opportunity to scrutinize celebrities in our homes just as the media and industry do in print and online. Goldie too, who has had obvious work done. And even Sally Field, who looked great. What made me sad was two things: 1. Kim Novak was not properly introduced. At the Cannes film festival she received a standing ovation in the closing ceremony. No one cared about her appearance (not there, not at the TCM Festival). At the Oscars, the producers should have shown a quick clip from Vertigo, introduced the film as one of the greatest movies of all time with one of the greatest female roles, and then bring her onstage. Then, noobs watching would have a clearer idea who she was. 2. I found it rather ironic that Kim was met with such a restrained response from the audience. Especially since as you go down that front row of celebrities, it’d be pretty difficult to find a star who hasn’t had plastic surgery and dabbled in facial fillers and botox. They were probably all horrified because they saw themselves in Kim 10-20 years down the line. Hypocrites.
Reminds me of some of the posts Frank Conniff made:
“Really enjoying all the #Oscars tweets about how old Kim Novak is. Yes, it’s such a moral failing on her part.”
“Is everybody going to snark about how old Sidney Poitier is? Oh, I forgot, he’s a man. #Oscars”
In my household, the physical attribute we were all mocking was John Travolta’s hair, not Kim Novak’s face. But then, Novak had something valuable to say. Travolta had to say one name and didn’t get it right.
I was so happy to see her, I could give a rats ass how she looked. To me she is and always will be a star.
Here’s the bright side: Considering Sunday was the first time Meryl Streep tweeted, perhaps there’s a strong likelihood that Ms. Novak doesn’t have time for Twitter (or the Internet in general).
Glad to see her at the Oscars. Maybe next time she gets recognized with a Governors’ Award.
I did not expect Kim Novak to look twentysomething. Vetigo is one of my favorite film because of her. She is outstanding in a dual role. And we believe in both.
I was happy to see her at the Oscar.
The reason I was literally shocked by Kim Novaks bizarre plastic face is that you don´t see anything like this here (in old Europe). This is probably really a problem of Hollywood where (to quote Truman Capote) the opposite of youth is death. I feel happy for those who can afford to age with dignity.
the internet is the modern day version of the coliseums of Rome where people sit at their computers and enjoy talking about and watching the destruction of another fellow human being. Because I did not watch the Oscars, I did not see the state of Ms. Novak’s face. But according to my twitter feed, and some comments posted here at AD, I knew she did something that the masses did not approve of, especially the 60% that has never heard of her until she walked across that stage.
As useful as the internet is, it’s completely fucked. it’s a psych ward without a doctor or nurse or dudes with the straight jackets. A sick free for all and it’s only going to get worse.
I knew she did something that the masses did not approve of, especially the 60% that has never heard of her until she walked across that stage.
https://twitter.com/filmystic/status/440311082393939968
Good of you to bring this up.
My disappointment with Novak is I wish she’d worn a better outfit. 🙂
The same Kim Novak made a very special appearance at the TCM Film Festival during a moving interview with Robert Osborne. If you want to see a great star, take a look at that.
I’m not sure it would be fair to blame Hollywood for aging actresses who decide to get work done, or at least in this case relating to Novac. Her last film was in 1991 and for the most part she has remained out of the public eye, so this isn’t a “I need to get work done to continue to get acting jobs” situation. In this case I think it was Novac having a hard time accepting aging, and she made the decision for her own reasons. Public criticism is one of very few drawbacks to being a celebrity, I’m sure they can handle it. It’s situations like this that may dissuade young actresses today from doing the same when they get older. Novac was a total babe in Vertigo and I don’t think any less of her because of her appearance today.
started in the hall, in a way. I expected a grand response from the attendees, but, correct me if I’m mistaken, but their response was surprisingly muted. could it be that the people there were shocked at Novak showing her age?
Vertigo is still a classic. One of hitchcocks best.
And the worst part that these beauties pressured to go under the knife, have the means to live healthy lives with personal chefs and trainers with the occasional non-invasive procedures (spa treatments, facials and the best anti-aging creams out there) and in the end they wouldn’t really need more than that – clean living, taking care of their bodies – to age gracefully. Just look at the likes of Christy Turlington ( http://theprimebook.wordpress.com/2012/03/03/the-prime-book-meets-christy-turlington-burns/ ) ! Still a ravishing beauty at 45.
Having said that, if a lady feels better with plastic surgery, it is her decision about her body and we should all respect it…problem is when it isn’t really a personal decision but one subsconciously forced on her by a youth-obsessed (male-centric) industry.
I can’t help but let out an annoyed laugh whenever I see fiftysixtysomething leading man with a love interest played by a twentythirtysomething actress. I wouldn’t mind it one bit , would I not know for a fact that the industry tends to cringe at the same concept when the roles are reversed.
This X a million.
Thank you for this, Sasha.
what I find amazing is people is discussing Novak or Hawn’s looks, and no one is wondering why Bill Murray looks older (at the red carpet) than he really is. He looked like 80something.
Maybe we are scared he’s going through some health problem?
great write-up Sasha! I would let the beautiful memories of Kim Novak in one of my favorite movies of all time, Vertigo, to be the lasting impression that will stay in my mind for all of eternity.