Big difference between being a bitch and being mentally ill. Mentally ill people can act like bitches and *beep* it doesn't mean they really are bad people.
I think her character was interesting and realistic and Christina Ricci played some of it well and some of it not. She was clearly suffering from,
Depression, Severe Anxiety, Body dismorphia/Eating disorder like binge eating, compulsive overeating, feeling guilty about eating anything at all yet still binging and not eating normally, A little narcissistic, mild borderline, Mild bipolar and major insecurities.
I could relate to her character *a lot* unfortunately. Which is why I know she deals with a lot of these mental disorders. I don't have narcissism but I know a lot about it. The rest I've delt with. So she did play it well most of the time. And she isn't supposed to be likable really. I think the reason she wasn't as charming as she was supposed to be was Allen wrote in more of her flaws in the scenes and only had two scenes that showed her charming side. But that was also sort of the point as Falk was already talking about the part in their relationship that was a big struggle. And it's VERY possible for a nice guy who is kind of lost, sensitive and very much in love with the good parts of someone who is sick to stick around.
Woody Allen is mentally ill. He has most of the issues I listed as well as different ones and probably has a lot of friends and knows a lot of women with the same issues. I wouldn't doubthe has had to stay in a mental hospital at a time in his life due to his severe fear of death, anxiety, depression, cynicism, OCD, neuroses, etc etc etc.
And the scenes that showed her "intelligent, sexy, spontaneous, quirky" etc ways were a bit too cliche. Like talking about Billie Holiday and old authors and singers it made her seem far too hipster really. Like pretentious hipsters. I feel she played the sick Amanda better than the charming Amanda. And most people with these issues have a VERY charming side that is usually the center of attention with a lot to talk about but the problem is they are addicted to love, attention and infatuation. And want life to be a bit of a fairy tale at all times.
One line that really hit me was when she said "I'd like to really give myself to someone one day. You know, where I'm the one hurt in the end." I saw this a long time ago and watched it again recently. It still hit me but in a different way. When I first saw it, I was that exact person. I always left the guys and yearned to have true love and be the one that is hurt if it's over but never was. Then I finally did fall in love, give myself completely and felt real heartbreak.
Her character is getting a lot of hate either because overall her personality and issues aren't likable or they think Ricci didn't do it well enough. I think she did it just fine overall but maybe there could have been an actress to do it better I just can't think of one right now from that time period--2003. But if you HATED HER then she played the mentally ill part of her great actually because those people, as bad as I feel for them because I can relate, it's obviously very difficult to handle.
I think she's gorgeous. And tons of guys think she is too. But also lots of guys have the nerve to call her "chubby or fat" before she lost a ton of weight and has kept it off. So I can see this being 50/50 in whether guys think she's one of those impossible girls with lots of issues who guys would still stick around because she is that sexy and charming. Either way beauty is in the eye of the beholder and if a guy is sexually attracted enough to a girl and infatuated enough with her you'd be surprised how long they will put up with her impossible antics. I would know. I have been surprised at how long guys have put up with mine because of how attracted to me they say they are and how "amazing I am underneath my issues."
At the beginning of the movie, she dropped a bunch of pill bottles out of her bag. I am guessing some of them were prozac and xanax due to her anxiety/panic attacks. She was prob on anti-depressants, but could have stopped taking her medication or it wasn't working for her anymore. Obviously.
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