Cuties is a French film, directed and written by Maïmouna Doucouré, detailing the coming-of-age story of a traditionally-Muslim Senegalese girl who faces the internal struggle of whether to stay true to her roots or fall into internet culture.
The film won a directorial award at the Sundance Film Festival but, when Netflix picked it up for streaming, they absolutely fumbled the marketing.
What was intended to spark a conversation about the hypersexualization of young girls by doing so in a comedic manner has backfired on Netflix, and critics of the film and the streaming service are calling on the masses to cancel their subscriptions, citing that Netflix is supporting pedophilia by continuing to host it.
This morning, "#CancelNetflix" was one of the main trends on Twitter, with people showing off their terminated subscriptions, all over Cuties. Netflix has been accused of sexualizing eleven-year-old girls on the poster of the film, something that was not considered during the film's initial run in France and at Sundance.
Maïmouna Doucouré, the movie's director, said that she has received numerous death threats since Netflix picked up Cuties. She was only informed of Netflix's marketing campaign with the sexualized poster after it was revealed to the public, focusing on the theatrical release in France.
Have you seen the film? Do you think it warrants this sort of reception?
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