Amy Schumer's 'I Feel Pretty' Is Incredibly Problematic

Source: STX films

I first heard about the trailer for Amy Schumer's new movie, I Feel Pretty, when a client talked to me about it this week.

As an eating disorder and body image therapist, I find this trailer incredibly distressing and problematic for a variety of reasons.

It opens with Schumer's character going shopping in a store, when the store clerk lets her know, "So sizing is a little limited here in the store, but you could probably find your size online." Schumer's character later suffers a head injury and then believes that she is now stunningly beautiful. This starts to positively impact her life.

On the surface, this trailer presents as an endearing comedy where the "positive" message to be gleaned is that "it's not the size of your body or your appearance that determines your success, relationships, etc., it's how confident you are."

However, beneath the facade of "body positivity" are a ton of fat-shaming jokes. In fact, Schumer's whole character is seen as a joke. Somehow, despite being a white, cis-gender, affluent, and many would say conventionally attractive woman, Schumer is presented in this film as the epitome of "unattractive" and cannot see herself as so, until she literally smacks her head against something.

The trailer features Schumer dancing and expressing how beautiful she is while rubbing her stomach, again with the "joke" being that she is unattractive or doesn't meet Hollywood's ideal of beautiful (I'm pretty sure most people on this planet don't!).

I'm not entirely surprised to see this kind of content from Schumer, as in past comedy specials she has made jokes about eating disorders, including equating bulimia with "a diet that she couldn't do." I get so angry when I hear jokes in the media about eating disorders, which are the deadliest mental illness.

The Impact

I work with individuals who intensely struggle with their body image and relationship to food. Seeing Schumer make a mockery of the idea that someone who is not a size 2 can be attractive and worthwhile is not a "joke" that I find funny.

Imagining people who are actually living in higher-weight bodies and are trying to fight the terrible cultural messages that they receive viewing this trailer or movie is a very upsetting thought.

People in higher-weight bodies are often depicted in the media as being "a joke." This messaging can contribute to internalized fat-phobia, which can have significant physical and mental health ramifications.

Ultimately, healing from body image issues, internalized fat-phobia, or an eating disorder is 100 percent possible. And improving body image is not necessary all about changing the way you see yourself; it's more related to learning to recognize your worth and value — which have nothing to do with your weight or appearance.

It's also about learning how to cope in a culture where we are bombarded with these unhelpful messages and fat-phobic attitudes all the time, and Schumer's movie is certainly adding to these toxic messages.