"Legally Blonde"

Welcome back to Analyze Scripts, where a psychiatrist and a therapist analyze what Hollywood gets right and wrong about mental health. Today, we're analyzing the 2001 rom-com "Legally Blonde." Although some parts of this move (particularly the lack of diversity) haven't aged well, it was fun to revisit the '90s. We admire Elle's strong sense of self and the way she was able to use it to help others like Paulette. We enjoyed the way this movie tackled serious topics like sexual harrassment, imposter syndrome, and emotional abuse in the context of the broader comedy. We hope you enjoy!

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[00:10] Dr. Katrina Furey: Hi, I'm Dr. Katrina Fury, a psychiatrist.

[00:12] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And I'm Portia Pendleton, a licensed clinical social worker.

[00:16] Dr. Katrina Furey: And this is Analyze Scripts, a podcast where two shrinks analyze the depiction of mental health in movies and TV shows.

[00:23] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Our hope is that you learn some legit info about mental health while feeling like you're chatting with your girlfriend.

[00:28] Dr. Katrina Furey: There is so much misinformation out there and it drives us nuts.

[00:32] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And if someday we pay off our student loans or land a sponsorship, like.

[00:36] Dr. Katrina Furey: With a lay flat airline or a major beauty brand, even better.

[00:39] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: So sit back, relax, grab some popcorn.

[00:42] Dr. Katrina Furey: And your DSM Five and enjoy.

[00:55] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Hi, thanks for joining us today. We are going to recap a little bit before we get into the movie that we're covering, Legally Blonde. So stay tuned. We have so much Emmy news.

[01:06] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, we have a ton of Emmy news. The Emmy nominations came out last week and a lot of the shows that we have covered over the past few months were heavily nominated, including Succession, White Lotus, Yellow Jackets and Shrinking. So if you hadn't had a chance to listen to all those episodes, please go back and take a listen.

[01:25] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, I mean, I think none of them were surprised.

[01:27] Dr. Katrina Furey: No, but I was surprised. I mean, I wasn't surprised. Succession got 27 nominations. White Lotus got 23. White Lotus season two, which we're actually going to release an episode about next week. I thought that was like a great season, but I was a little surprised it got so heavily nominated. And I don't know if you notice, Portia, but in the supporting actor in a drama category, it's all White Lotus and Succession actors.

[01:54] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: That's it.

[01:54] Dr. Katrina Furey: No one else from anything else. And I was like, whoa, they're going to duke it out.

[01:58] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, they're all so good. So it's just like, how can you even I don't know. They're all good for different reasons, right?

[02:06] Dr. Katrina Furey: How do you pick one? And also the best supporting actress is very heavily White Lotus and Succession, including the two actresses whose names are escaping me right now, but they play the two native Italian girls in White Lotus season two. I was really glad that they got nominated. And our BFF, Jennifer Coolidge got a nomination. So that's exciting.

[02:26] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, really excited. And I was most excited to see Jessica Williams for shrinking, too.

[02:31] Dr. Katrina Furey: I hope she wins. Gabby, gabby.

[02:34] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Gabby character.

[02:35] Dr. Katrina Furey: We love her. We love her water bottles. We love her energy.

[02:39] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think people are also finding shrinking right now, like later. Yeah.

[02:43] Dr. Katrina Furey: So again, if you haven't listened to our episodes yet, I think we have like four episodes about shrinking because we tried to split it up and there.

[02:49] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Was so much to talk about.

[02:51] Dr. Katrina Furey: But it's also really funny. I thought Yellow Jackets might have gotten more nominations. I was a little I mean, again, great. They got nominated for outstanding drama. Melanie Linsky got nominated. But I know everyone was really pushing for Sophie Nielsen. I don't know if I'm saying her name correctly as Young Shauna. I didn't see her name there. That's kind of a bummer.

[03:11] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I don't know. Thinking about yellow jackets, like, not a lot of people I know have seen it. I think there's another person who I interact with who watched yellow jackets because I told them about it.

[03:23] Dr. Katrina Furey: Are you basically saying we're influencers?

[03:25] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Basically, I'm an influencer at the couch.

[03:28] Dr. Katrina Furey: Basically, if Showtime or HBO wants to sponsor us, feel free.

[03:31] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah. So I'm spreading the news. But I think that's the problem with that show. It's on Showtime, which, again, is like HBO Max or Max. But I don't think Showtime is as big. I feel like I'm using air quotes. Like, everyone has Max. Yeah, but not everyone has Showtime.

[03:48] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, no, I could see that. But then with these awards, at least with the Oscars, I feel like a lot of times more obscure things do get a lot of nominations or end up winning. I don't know if it's that way for the Emmys. I'm not really hip to that insider info. I will say I was really happy to hear Vanderpump Rules got nominated. Just as a tangent, I thought, again, I love trash reality TV, but I do think this season was really good and they totally deserve it. And the editors got nominated, too, which I think is super well deserved.

[04:21] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And I wonder if that's, like a precedent.

[04:25] Dr. Katrina Furey: Oh, sorry, what were we going to say?

[04:27] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: No, just like editing reality TV. We see producers or writers or editors for all these fictional, amazing shows, but they're working hard, too.

[04:36] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah. And I think it is interesting that I feel like in the Bravo sphere, vanderpump Rules has always been seen as kind of like the little sister to maybe like The Housewives or all these other shows. But they got nominated, so I kind of feel like it's like the underdog coming out, which, again, kind of reminds me of Elle Woods being the underdog that no one saw coming.

[05:00] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah. That's a great segue.

[05:01] Dr. Katrina Furey: I like you. Thank you. It just came naturally.

[05:04] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: That's when you know it's better. So yeah. So, Legally Blonde, we're going to be discussing today, it came out in 2001.

[05:11] Dr. Katrina Furey: Wow.

[05:11] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: So it's pretty old.

[05:13] Dr. Katrina Furey: Just like us.

[05:14] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Just like us.

[05:15] Dr. Katrina Furey: Like me, at least.

[05:17] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Did you watch it when it came out?

[05:19] Dr. Katrina Furey: Oh, yeah.

[05:21] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Monumental. Yes.

[05:22] Dr. Katrina Furey: I've seen this movie a bazillions of times.

[05:25] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I've seen it on TV. Every time it's on, I think I just have it on in the background.

[05:28] Dr. Katrina Furey: You didn't go to, like, the movies with your friend? I didn't go to movies. So, again, I feel like I'm not that much older than you, but in this context, I am reminded that I am. And again I feel like am I the Paulette to your l? No.

[05:43] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Maybe if you can teach me how to Bendon's now. Yeah, I totally can, but no, I think those couple of years, though, matter based on where we were at during those years. I was in heightening, I was twelve. That makes a big difference for TV and shows at that time.

[06:03] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, for sure. I mean, I love watching this movie because I think it reminds me of my younger years seeing it with my friends from Dance. We all had those little heart necklaces, the knockoff Tiffany necklaces. I love the bubble letter font and all the colors. Yeah, exactly. Like all that stuff. It's really nostalgic in that way. But when I rewatched it in preparation for recording this, I was like, oh my gosh, Elle Woods is such an amazing character. I don't know what was your reaction to kind of rewatching it as an adult?

[06:39] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think when I've rewatched the movies that we've covered that are older, I continually am cringing at some of the.

[06:48] Dr. Katrina Furey: Things like diverse they are true. Or how some of the language, they.

[06:54] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Still say things that I'm just like, OOH yikes. And I will say some of the things that I've heard are words that they've used in Legally Blonde in The Hangover. They do edit them out.

[07:07] Dr. Katrina Furey: Like when you see a TV now, like, I'm thinking when Jennifer Cool just character says the R word, maybe.

[07:11] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yes. So when they're replaying on E, those parts are not on TV. So I did.

[07:18] Dr. Katrina Furey: Watch this.

[07:18] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Like I think I forget. Where Amazon Prime? I think I did too. And then it's the full movie with all the glory and I was just like I think it's because I'm being more analytical and nitty gritty and looking for things.

[07:32] Dr. Katrina Furey: Well now, Portia, we are like scholars of film. We are we're not only scholars of mental health and psychiatry, we are scholars of film and we're combining these interests. So of course we are watching it with an analytic lens.

[07:43] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: A little bit of a disappointment, to be honest.

[07:46] Dr. Katrina Furey: I noticed that too, with some of the language and also in terms of diversity, I think I saw like one black person and it was the student that Professor Stramo like, hit in the head with the pen. And I was like, really? The whole movie? The whole movie. That's the one black person, they get hit in the head with a pen. So I think that's speaking to exactly what you're saying.

[08:05] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, and then also, just like it was funny watching it on Greek Life, all the stuff on every fall now on TikTok, and I think it was a big disappointment. But the HBO Max sorority, it was supposed to be this big exposure of Alabama sororities and ended up not doing any of that. So I think everyone's interested in Greek life. And I think this again. I mean, legally, Bomb is like, really stereotypical Greek life.

[08:33] Dr. Katrina Furey: A lot of girls exercising, like they were depicted exercising constantly.

[08:37] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Dieting, dieting.

[08:39] Dr. Katrina Furey: They're all skinny, all same body type super cute, but I definitely noticed that too. And I wasn't in a sorority or anything, so I have no idea if that's really what Greek life is like or if that's like a fantasy. Probably a fantasy.

[08:52] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think it depends. At least I've heard that it also depends where you are, like, if you're in a sorority or fraternity in the Northeast, it is very different than, like, the south. From the south.

[09:02] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah.

[09:02] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Where I don't know. I also was not a participant in Greek life. I know of some people who have had wonderful experiences and some people who have had horrible experiences, and then rumors of, again, some stereotypical things happening with hazing or weight checks and stuff like that. So I don't know. I mean, I think, again, it depends where you go to school and the culture of that specific chapter there in.

[09:30] Dr. Katrina Furey: I mean, I liked the Delta News. I loved Elle's. Two little best friends. Again, it's like the comedy. Yes, the one who got banks. But it's a comedy. It's over the top. But I did feel like they were so supportive of her desire to go to law school, and they were helping her study, and they were all so excited when she opened her LSAT envelope.

[09:52] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Very lifting her up.

[09:54] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, I loved that. And I think also watching it now in this phase of my life, I just connected with her in every step of the way to get to law school, and I was like, this does hearken back to how hard it is to take the MCAs. Like, getting into medical school, finding yourself, a lot of it just made me feel really good. Yeah, exactly. My interviews for medical school were not.

[10:17] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: A tape you had to fly right?

[10:20] Dr. Katrina Furey: Or go to yeah. Back in the day before Zoom. Yeah. You had to gosh. I mean, I think I took the MCAT twice. It was really hard. I took an MCAT prep class that I won in a raffle. I never would have been able to afford that if I hadn't won in a raffle. And then yeah, you had to fly to each school to interview, and it was really scary. They were really interviewing you and expensive.

[10:43] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I mean, expensive to other parts of the country where you might get in and might need to go there or might not.

[10:51] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, it was expensive. I remember for applying for residency, I took up more student loans to be able to afford to fly around to the different places to interview. I mean, on the one hand, it's nice to get an actual feel for the place you're going to be living, the people you're going to be either going to school with or working with. On the other hand, having the Zoom interviews would have saved a ton of money.

[11:15] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah.

[11:16] Dr. Katrina Furey: But I guess you don't really get as much of a feel for culture. No, I couldn't. No, I could. I don't think it would have been really as received as well as at Harvard Law.

[11:26] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I did like the scene where it was like eight white males who were looking at her tape and I liked that they were like, let's give it a shot. This is so different.

[11:37] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, that never would happen in real life. But I thought they were really playing tongue in cheek in this desire to have a more diverse class. Again, kind of disappointing given how undiverse the movie was. I guess. Just interesting.

[11:54] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: It was really about, I think, when she got to Harvard, like, being literally blonde. Right? So even at the last scene of the movie when it's that they're all in their caps and gowns. It's like it's spanning everyone and there's like it's just brown hair, brown hair.

[12:08] Dr. Katrina Furey: Brown hair, brown hair, blonde. And I loved that Elle Woods had this sense of self confidence and assurance in her own sense of self.

[12:17] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Like, I can do this. What do you mean? I'm going to study hard. And she worked hard and she did.

[12:22] Dr. Katrina Furey: Do it, but I was just like, wow. I actually really admired that about her character. And I think you could totally hate this character because she obviously has a lot of privilege, a lot of money, these things. Like, she's not taking out student loans to apply to law school. But you don't hate her, I think, because she's also really kind and sweet and genuine and she is working hard. And I thought all the people around her who were so judgy were just, like, so mean. They're just so mean.

[12:50] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And in the context of like, they all also have a lot of money. It's like everyone in the same group. She's the nicest and sweetest and seems really kind and open and she's maybe more wealthy even than they are. But it's not like we're seeing a vast array of socioeconomic. Right?

[13:10] Dr. Katrina Furey: We have Warner Huntington II and Vivian Kensington from Connecticut, of course. But yeah, I mean, I think also the currency at Harvard Law is probably intellect in your brain, maybe rather than money. Although probably everyone does have a lot of money for the most part.

[13:29] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: It comes like legacies and stuff like that.

[13:31] Dr. Katrina Furey: Like Warner Huntington II with all of his senator brothers and stuff. But yeah, I mean, that scene where she just gets there and they're going around introducing each other and everyone's like, not even humble bragging, just bragging about all their stuff. I was like, oh, my God. I have been in situations like this where everyone's introducing yourself and you're talking about like, this is what I did, and this is what I did, and this is what I did and it's so uncomfortable.

[14:03] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: What is your take with mental health in this movie?

[14:09] Dr. Katrina Furey: I guess I'm thinking about mental health. I mean, stress comes to mind. Like the stress of getting into law school and then trying to fit in and trying to succeed. I feel like the dynamic between L and Paulette, played by Jennifer Coolidge, is really sweet. And I almost feel like Paulette draws from Elle's own sense of self assuredness and security to take some major steps in her life, whereas before meeting, they kind of help each other. And I just really liked that. And then I think the sexual harassment with Professor Callahan but what about your take?

[14:48] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I was thinking of it in terms of relationships and young relationships transition. So Elle is so convinced that Warner is going to propose to her.

[14:58] Dr. Katrina Furey: She's so in love with him and that puppy.

[15:01] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Their whole life planned out together, and everyone thinks that it's going to happen. And then he breaks up with her and it's like her whole world, because it is her whole world collapses, turned on its head, and it's like she doesn't know what to do with herself. She's lost. And then she makes this decision, which ultimately is excellent for her, but initially it's just she's following him. I'm going to go to Harvard Law School just to try to get back with my boyfriend kind of a little out there. And not everyone can do that.

[15:30] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right.

[15:31] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But I think that just speaks to being young and lost and how much a breakup can impact you.

[15:38] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, exactly. And I think we see that and maybe some of us have even experienced that in our own lives around that time frame. Like in your early twenty s. I think we talked about this and I can't remember which episode recently, but I think everything everywhere all at once. That time in your life can be so confusing and hard and really emotional because you don't really know what's next. And it sounds like for L, she was so attached to him, admiring him and being his wife and just being 100% supportive of him that she was really devastated when he kicked her to the curb. What did you think about Werner Huntington II?

[16:18] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I just can't stand him. I love that he called. I didn't love it, but like Pooh Bear. And then she saw that he was also calling his ex now fiance.

[16:30] Dr. Katrina Furey: Same thing.

[16:30] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Pooh Bear. And then he wants her back after she wins the case because she's like enough now for his family. Right. She's like serious. That was kind of her attempt. The whole movie is to be serious and for him to value me. So I think he's just like a narcissist, scummy, entitled, bratty riddle.

[16:51] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, but I think actually portrays some really classic signs of a narcissistic partner exactly like you're describing. Like having the same pet name for each of your girlfriends, like they're interchangeable. And then wanting to go back to the shinier winning object when the other one isn't shining and winning anymore. These are actually really classic signs of someone with narcissistic traits, wouldn't you say?

[17:16] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, I think also I would guess and you never want to predict this, but that if he had married Vivian or Elle that he probably would cheat on that with younger assistants, people with.

[17:30] Dr. Katrina Furey: Less power, like Professor Callahan. Yeah, exactly. What did you think about that dynamic between L and Professor Callahan?

[17:38] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think for such a silly movie, I think it really was an important part and it was serious and it happens. And I think that they portrayed it really well within the comedy context, right.

[17:53] Dr. Katrina Furey: Within the context of the movie and the spirit of the movie.

[17:57] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And then Vivian thinking that that's how she was getting all of these opportunities and she might not have been wrong in another context. And then she's horrified to find out that it was unwanted and then really kind of lets her see L differently and then they kind of become friends.

[18:15] Dr. Katrina Furey: I feel like Elle is so forgiving. I don't know if I would have been so buddy buddy with Vivian after everything she did to me.

[18:22] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Like right.

[18:23] Dr. Katrina Furey: Cruel, mean, like with the party. That's what I mean is they they do a good job of depicting all these, like, fancy smarty pants at Harvard. They were so mean to her. Like, everyone was so judgmental. I think I resonated with that because I remember I went to college in Boston and I didn't grow up there. And when I got there, I have this vivid memory portrait of riding the t the subway in Boston wearing like a hot pink skirt and a lime green shirt. Right. I'm like 17, going to college, and everyone else on the subway is in black. And I just remember looking around being.

[18:55] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Like, that's also just like so accurate for New York and Boston. We're drab like northeast, cold, not friendly, wear a lot of black and neutral.

[19:08] Dr. Katrina Furey: And I remember getting on the subway, paint my little fair and saying hi to every single person because I come from the south where you say hi to people and everyone's looking at me like, I'm going to ask them for money or I want something from them. I have this vivid core memory of this experience. And so seeing L, like, arrive to Harvard, I was like, yes, that's what it feels like. Luckily, no one ever told me or invited me to a costume party that wasn't a costume party. Like, how embarrassing.

[19:35] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: So Elle takes it such in stride.

[19:37] Dr. Katrina Furey: I know.

[19:38] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And she obviously is embarrassed and hurt. And then she's like, okay, well, you know, I look hot. And she did, and you all are lame and I'm going to go talk to Warner in my little bunny outfit.

[19:49] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah. Then she goes to get her laptop again. I loved the colorful MacBooks, right? Like, I always wanted one of those.

[19:57] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I remember in middle school having the big computer lab and they were all clear and you could see in it, and we had game boys that were clear and it was all a clear.

[20:08] Dr. Katrina Furey: Those little phones with the cords and.

[20:12] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Then the blow up furniture, everything was clear. We want to clear.

[20:15] Dr. Katrina Furey: And you could see the inside. Right. I wonder if that appeals to us as therapists. Right. Like, really wanting to see the inside of things, how do these things work and things like that.

[20:28] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Weird. Anyway.

[20:29] Dr. Katrina Furey: Weird.

[20:30] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But so I also, you know, we could talk a little bit about of mental health with Paulete and her ex husband.

[20:35] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yes.

[20:36] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: He seems with not using therapy words, like kind of an ahole. Yeah, that you're right.

[20:42] Dr. Katrina Furey: That is not a diagnostic term.

[20:43] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Not, but definitely powerful. Paulette seems, like, intimidated by him when they go to pick up the dog. It's like immediately after being gone for so long, they're back in the same exact dynamic, which feels abusive.

[20:57] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right. At least emotionally, on the surface, if not worse.

[21:01] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And she kind of backs down. And then L comes in with her legal L one jargon, using, like, pulling.

[21:08] Dr. Katrina Furey: It anywhere you can. Right.

[21:10] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And he gets the dog, and it's great. Yes. And that was really a win for Paulette. But just, again, in a comedy tough scene, though, like, a lot there within this funny context because I'm taking the **** dog. Like, that's an iconic line. But it's like, again, it seems like it's an abusive relationship. Paul seems very scared and disempowered victim in that space.

[21:33] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right. She's, like, tripping over her words. She's having a hard time making eye contact with him. You can tell she's so nervous. And then, like, Elle comes in again, like, putting on her lawyer hat and using whatever word she can think of to help her. And I feel like that was almost the first time she realized her power. Like, I can do this. I can help someone. And that feels really good. And I think similar to the scenes with Professor Callahan after he comes on to her, this movie does actually a pretty nice job of addressing these really tough, serious topics that do arise in the course of a woman's life really well.

[22:11] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah. And then, too, this is where it's a little gray. So, Emmett, who's Luke Wilson? He's never her teacher.

[22:22] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right. I think he's a third year.

[22:25] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: He writes for the paper.

[22:26] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah. But then he also seems like maybe a lawyer already. I think he represent her. Maybe he's, like, fresh out of law.

[22:35] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: School, and he doesn't clerk. He works for Callahan, and he's just, like, around Harvard, because I think Callahan's, like, firm is probably there.

[22:46] Dr. Katrina Furey: Well, I don't know how that works.

[22:48] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But it felt like I think if I'm being really critical, I was maybe.

[22:52] Dr. Katrina Furey: Like, there's a little power dynamic there too. Yeah, no, I can see what you're saying, that he's older, he's already employed, he can help her.

[23:04] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I didn't see him right.

[23:06] Dr. Katrina Furey: I didn't see him take advantage of that. Right. Whereas we see Callahan purposefully knows what he's doing and puts his knee or not his knee, his hand on her knee in an attempt to try to take advantage of her. And again, unfortunately, that happens. And again, for Elle to know that that was wrong and to stick up for herself takes a lot of self confidence when you're in a vulnerable position like that.

[23:29] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, because he could cut her right from the internship immediately and mess with her career.

[23:35] Dr. Katrina Furey: Exactly. And unfortunately, it does happen. And I thought it was nice to see the other characters sort of come to her defense. I would have liked to see more consequences for Professor Callahan. Didn't seem like there was a whole heck of a lot.

[23:53] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: And also not surprising, I know tenured probably that's I think a magical word in academia for kind of doing whatever. Great movie. I did want to comment a little bit on. We spoke about it earlier, but a lot of unhelpful gross body stuff, and especially just like the whole court case being around a Delta new sister who didn't want to tell people that she had lipo.

[24:26] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right?

[24:26] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But she's like this workout guru who can make change a woman's body like that. And Elle's like, I took her class and I lost three pounds, and it's like, hey, you probably were dehydrated after.

[24:37] Dr. Katrina Furey: You went from a six to a four.

[24:39] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Right? So just, again, really appropriate for the times. And we've moved it's, what, 22 years later? I'm not great at math. I'm not good at math.

[24:54] Dr. Katrina Furey: I feel like we've moved a little bit in the right direction, but still not that far. And now, especially with, like, Ozempic, I feel like we're sliding back decades. But you're right. I mean, this does depict Brooke, played by Allie Larder, being unwilling to give her ally.

[25:10] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: She'd rather go to jail, right, than.

[25:12] Dr. Katrina Furey: Lose her reputation and say that she needed liposuction to look the way she.

[25:16] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Looks, which is so current. 100% celebrities refuting the fact that they have had plastic surgery, that they're on Ozembic, that they have guests, personal chefs, personal trainers who are at their beck and call 24/7. They're also editing their pictures like it's just like we know that. And I think I talked about this in an earlier episode, but I'm going to bring it up again, because it's interesting is that they've done studies where even if you know that a picture has been edited, like on Instagram, now it'll say edited with blah, blah, blah filter. It doesn't matter in our brain, we still will then compare. We still will feel dissatisfied. So we can take all these steps forward with even acknowledging, okay, I've had work done. If I say that and you still are comparing yourself to me and still feeling dissatisfied, you still feel bad, right? Like, it doesn't matter that, you know, I've had work done, which is just so interesting.

[26:07] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, I think also because you still want to look like that and maybe you're even sad that you don't have the means to have the work done right if you wanted to have it.

[26:17] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah. So, I mean, I think all these companies, Meta, TikTok, Instagram are all trying to do things to help body image. They always have filt leave. You can't say some things online, they block hashtags, they will let you know with a filter. But at the end of the day, it's so hard to it's not about that. It's about changing how we interpret bodies.

[26:40] Dr. Katrina Furey: Right. What our society thinks is important.

[26:42] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Correct. At the inner level, it's like we value beauty, we value thinness, we value wealth, we value all these things that are not attainable for some people, for most people. And that message, though, has been around for so long, and I don't know what it's going to take to have it reduced.

[27:03] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, I don't know. And I wonder if I'm sure other cultures, other countries experience this too.

[27:08] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Absolutely.

[27:09] Dr. Katrina Furey: By the way, we have so many international listeners that if you want to DM us and let us know what it's like in your neck of the woods, that'd be cool. But I'm sure other countries and other cultures face this issue too. But I feel like in America, you're right. We really focus on the Britney Spears body type. Even now. Even now that is like or maybe now it's more the Kardashian body type. But it's still unattainable. Right. The beauty standards are always unattainable.

[27:37] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: It's just hard to police it. There's a creator online who's really controversial. I believe they have come out and said that they have anorexia and they are very emaciated and they do lives and they're known, they're very popular. They have twitch and all that stuff.

[27:56] Dr. Katrina Furey: Do you feel comfortable saying who it is or not?

[27:58] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think it's eugenie. Eugena? Yeah. I mean, I think people know she's very popular and I think also because she's like fascinating because she looks very sick. But it's this moral, I guess, ethical question of, like what she's doing is not illegal. Right? You can't livestream on drugs, you can't livestream doing speeding in a car. You can't livestream naked. Yeah. There's all these things that you can't do that maybe necessarily aren't illegal but are harmful for others to see. So it's really just this ethical question of, like well, her live streaming, I might say, is doing more harm than some other things. But what would you call then? Why isn't she allowed to be in her body broadcasting? Because she's not talking about anything. She's not talking about ed content, she's.

[28:51] Dr. Katrina Furey: Not talking about food at all.

[28:53] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: So it's like is that the reason that it's fine?

[28:56] Dr. Katrina Furey: It's a really ethical gray line.

[28:59] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But I think bodies continue to be political. And I went to a training where it's like living in a larger body is like being a part of political warfare. And it is. So this movie definitely does not help offer that. Body diversity.

[29:18] Dr. Katrina Furey: No, it doesn't. And I noticed that, too, like, right away. And I also think, though, maybe to end on a positive note, the one nice thing it offered was like at the end when she had just been sexually harassed by Professor Callahan, she was going to say goodbye to Paulette. She was really, really tearful, then turns around Professor Stromwell, who was there, like, getting her highlights. And I thought that was kind of like a nice model for her to see that you can be smart and a lawyer and still get your highlights.

[29:52] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Right.

[29:52] Dr. Katrina Furey: And when she said, if you're going to let your whole career go for this one, man, you're not who I thought you were. And again, I'm like, well, you were kind of mean to her first, too. You kicked her out. But I guess we can brush that aside. But I thought that was kind of a nice model to show. And I think that is important, maybe, especially for women to embrace that you can have all these different facets of your identity. And I know that's something that I don't know if I'd say I struggle with, I wouldn't use the word struggle, but definitely like this impostor syndrome. When you're at a fancy schmancy institution, you're like, well, can I still wear color or will you take me less seriously? Right. I think we've talked about that with this podcast. I'm a little nervous, like, will people think I'm not as smart or will they laugh at me or as serious or like, I know what I'm talking about. So, in that way, I did really appreciate that part of the movie.

[30:48] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: Yeah, I think it's great. Again, there's so many lawyers out there who have been inspired by L Woods.

[30:55] Dr. Katrina Furey: I wanted to look up the statistics, like, was there a surge in law school admissions afterwards?

[31:00] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think a lot of people saw being really feminine in the field and then were able to see themselves. Which is why it's so important, right, to broadcast diversity. Because if you see yourself or somebody who looks like you doing something, you're more likely to do it.

[31:13] Dr. Katrina Furey: And so, to wrap up getting back to the Emmys, so Reese Witherspoon has had a really great career. She's played so many diverse roles. She had a career before this, but I do think this really catapulted her star. And now she has her own production company, hello Sunshine, which a couple of those shows, I think the Daisy Jones in the 6th and Tiny Beautiful Things were also nominated for Emmys. And she was saying this was my goal with starting this production company, was to highlight female voices and movies and TV shows from the female perspective. Because I think given in her career, thinking back to that movie Fear with Mark Wahlberg, she's come out and said there was a scene on a roller or a Ferris wheel or something. I don't know if you saw that movie Portia that she was really uncomfortable with, but she didn't feel like she had a voice to say anything. So I think that's really cool that people are again, she has a ton of privilege to be able to do that, but that the people with the privilege are doing it to try to pave the way for future generations.

[32:18] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: But stay tuned, because we'll also be covering Reese in the Morning show, which is a serious, more serious role for her. So stay tuned.

[32:28] Dr. Katrina Furey: Yeah, and then we'll see you again next Monday with White Lotus Season two to sort of wrap up our Jennifer Coolidge July. And as always, if you could please rate, review and subscribe. We have gotten a lot of new listeners and subscribers, so we really appreciate it, but please take a minute to rate and review. If you want to support the show, you can find us on Instagram at Analyze Scripts TikTok at Analyze Scripts podcast. And now we're on threads. Yeah, I don't know what the name is, though.

[32:56] Portia Pendleton, LCSW: I think it's just Analyze scripts.

[32:58] Dr. Katrina Furey: Okay, great. You can tell which one of us manages the social media, and we'll see you next time. Take care. Bye.

[33:10] Dr. Katrina Furey: This podcast and its contents are a copyright of analyzed scripts. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited.

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[33:25] Dr. Katrina Furey: All stories and characters discussed are fictional in nature. No identification with actual persons, living or deceased places, buildings, or products is intended or should be inferred. This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The podcast and its contents do not constitute professional mental health or medical advice. Listeners might consider consulting a mental health provider if they need assistance with any mental health problems or concerns. As always, please call 911 or go directly to your nearest emergency room for any psychiatric emergencies. Thanks for listening and see you next time.

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