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The beauty queen draws mixed reactions from netizens for saying that the movie was like a ‘school project’
MANILA, Philippines – Binibining Pilipinas Universe 2014 MJ Lastimosa has responded to backlash after she said she didn’t enjoy the movie Barbie, saying that the online bullying has gone overboard.
In a thread posted on Tuesday evening, July 25, Lastimosa wrote that she was getting harassed for sharing her opinion on Greta Gerwig’s latest film about the beloved doll in a now-deleted series of tweets.
“Wait lang naman. Sobrang online bullying naman agad kayo,” she wrote. “Nakakatakot naman mag ka-opinion dito, minumura na ako ng iba sa ibang [social media accounts] ko only because I did not like a film?”
(Wait, the online bullying from you is too much. It’s scary to have an opinion here. I’m getting cussed out on social media only because I did not like a film?)
She continued that she also liked Gerwig’s other films such as Little Women and Lady Bird, so she can’t understand why she’s being attacked for not finding Barbie as good as the other movies.
“It’s just my opinion and it has nothing to do about the movie being feminist, which is the only part that I liked, [e]specially the speech of America Ferre[ra], parang dapat nga wala na si Will Ferrell dun (I think Will Ferrell shouldn’t have been in the movie). But it’s just me, you’re entitled to like and dislike a movie. It’s not that deep mare,” Lastimosa said.
The beauty queen then shared that she’s hesitant to respond to the criticisms in fear of another backlash, but she wanted to remind the public that her initial opinion wasn’t even harming anyone else.
“Wala akong inapakang tao. Natatakot din akong itweet to kasi magagalit nanaman kayo kasi dapat in unison ang opinion natin dito or else bobo na agad kami? Sorry na agad mga mare kalma na, masyado na kayong galit.”
(I didn’t step on anyone. I’m also afraid to tweet this because you might get mad, because everyone’s opinions here should be “in unison” or else we’re dumb? Sorry, please calm down because you’re too angry.)
Lastimosa’s tirade came after she was met with negative reaction from netizens after she previously tweeted that the film was “sobrang waley” (a miss) and that it was like “a school project film.”
Some responded to the deleted tweets by saying that Barbie was a feminist film, while several criticized Lastimosa’s ability to understand the movie’s empowering message, calling her “dumb.” Others also said that they expected her to be more eloquent in expressing her opinion on social media, especially that beauty queens are known for being eloquent with their views.
Other netizens have taken Lastimosa’s side, pointing out that Lastimosa was merely sharing her opinion on the movie, and that the outrage itself was misogynistic.
Barbie premiered in the Philippines on July 19 after the MTRCB approved it after its investigation of the movie’s supposed depiction of the nine-dash line.
The film, which features a stellar cast led by Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, currently holds a 90% fresh score in review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. According to Collider, it has also hit the $400-million mark at the global box office. – with additional reports from Pie Gonzaga/Rappler.com
Pie Gonzaga is a Rappler intern.