Tag: Hollywood

Who doesn’t love a good high school movie? It’s got a hero, but what we love is that the women are the real star. It is set in a young, relatable world, and some of these are so iconic that they have truly stood the test of time. Shanzeh Chaudhry ranks her favourite movies with strong female leads, for The Current.

1.Mean girls (2004)

Of course, I’m going to start with the most iconic and original teen movie of all time. This movie is one of the first that displays the realities of being a teenage girl in high school. It’s narrated from the perspective of a girl who’s been homeschooled till she moves and starts going to school. Her experience isn’t what she expected, and entering “Girl World” is not as easy as it looks. The process from the innocent new girl to shiny hard plastic is a journey of backbiting, stealing boyfriends, and lying about the health bars that help you “lose weight”. The movie shows the process of how corrupt the high school system is and the lengths girls would go to fit in. Personally, I feel like the movie tried its best to give an idea of the full high school experience, which was accomplished, as it is the most popular teen movie, 17 years later.

2.Shes the man (2006)

This movie was honestly so inspirational that I just had to add it to the list. It relates to the common sexist attitude and expectations towards females. A girl with a passionate love for football will go to all most any lengths (no matter how absurd) to prove that women can play football just as good as men, maybe even better. Even if it means posing as her twin brother and trying out for a university soccer team. Despite the message, it was just a generally funny and entertaining family movie. We watch our main character, Viola, juggle between her double life of being a university boy and being the “lady” that her mother and society expect her to be. It promotes feminism and inspires girls to stand against society’s expectations if it means doing something they’re passionate about.

3.A Cinderella story (2004)

We’ve all watched the Disney classic “Cinderella”. In the animated version of the film, the main message it was trying to put across was to always be kind despite evil in the world. This version is a bit more modern and relatable to girls in their teens. Our main character, Sam, lives with her evil stepmother and sisters after her father dies in an earthquake when she is eight years old. She works for her stepmother in her father’s diner to save up to go to her “Dream college, Princeton”. She has a secret texting relationship with an anonymous guy, who we soon find out is the glamorous high school football star Austin Aims. They both bond over their dream of going to Princeton and all their problems and concerns for their future. Sams bravery and patience, despite her struggles, are really motivational and admirable. This movie really is a lovely romance, with a touch of nostalgia that really hits home.

4.The Princess Diaries (2001)

‘Mia Thermopolis’ is your average high school teenager, who can’t speak in public to save her life and dreams of a car for her sixteenth birthday. Her life takes a twist when her long-lost grandmother shows up and turns out, she’s the Queen of a tiny country called “Genovia”. Which, yes, makes Mia a princess! After her father (the king) passed away a year before, Mia is the only rightful heir to the throne. All this information comes crashing into Mia’s life, changing it completely. Suddenly, the girls who would once make fun of her and the boy who practically didn’t even know she existed, started trying to weasel their way in her life. She has to go through a series of “Princess training courses” but most importantly, she has to decide if she’s going to take on the role of “Princess” and as “Future Queen of Genovia”. Mia’s sarcastic and witty personality definitely adds a comedic touch to the movie. It really seems like every girl’s dream; to wake up one normal day and find out you’re the princess of a whole country! We watch as Mia transforms from a regular introverted American girl to high-class royalty!

5.She’s All That (1999)

High school star, Zac Siler is forced to go to extreme lengths to protect his reputation after getting dumped by his cheerleader girlfriend. He makes a bet with his friends to turn Laney Boggs, “the introverted weird girl”, into prom queen in just six weeks. After a lot of convincing Zac finally get Laney to go out with him. What started off as a silly bet turned into a blossoming romance. We watch how slowly Laney opens up to the world and how Zac realises that popularity isn’t everything. It’s a classic case of opposites attract. They both show each other a different perspective. I personally love how we slowly see the characters develop and along the way spark a romance that they didn’t expect at all.

Ellen DeGeneres, a staple of daytime American talk show culture, has said that she is ending her show after 19 seasons following allegations of toxic workplace, which DeGeneres says “destroyed” her. However, she insisted her decision to bring the curtain down on the daytime show named after her has nothing to do with allegations in the past year of a toxic workplace environment there, including bullying, racial discrimination and sexual harassment.

“When you’re a creative person, you constantly need to be challenged. And as great as this show is, and as fun as it is, it’s just not a challenge anymore,” DeGeneres told The Hollywood Reporter.

Earlier, in 2020 when complaints from staffers working on the show came out, DeGeneres acknowledged there were problems and pledged to do better.

“It almost impacted the show,” Ellen said. “It was very hurtful to me. I mean, very. But if I was quitting the show because of that, I wouldn’t have come back this season.”

Read more – Ellen DeGeneres sparks outrage for joking quarantine ‘feels like jail’

DeGeneres is believed to have been considering ending the show for several years. In a 2018 New York Times profile, Ellen had revealed that her actress wife, Portia de Rossi, had been encouraging her to move on from the 180-shows-a-year gig, while her comedian brother, along with executives at Warner Bros., had urged her to continue. In the end, DeGeneres signed on for three more seasons but had decided that this contract — which would take her well beyond 3,000 shows, and a stunning 2,400 celebrity interviews — would be her last.

She is scheduled for a television interview with Oprah Winfrey on Thursday to talk about ending the program.

The final episode is scheduled for the spring of 2022.

The 63-year-old host, writer, producer, actress and comedian won dozens of Emmy awards for the show and has been a pioneer of the LGBTQ community in America since she came out as gay in 1997. That revelation shocked America and nearly doomed her career.

Matt Damon has said that it would be “awesome” if his best friend Ben Affleck and his ex-beau Jennifer Lopez are really back together.

When asked on the Today show about Ben and Lopez’s latest photographs, Damon at first said: “There’s not enough liquor in the world for you to get me to say something about that.”

However, he later admitted that like the rest of the world, he too, would love to see the exes give their relationship a chance again.

“I love them both,” said the Oscar winner. “I hope it’s true. That would be awesome.”

Earlier this week, the Daily Mail published photos which showed Affleck, 48, and Lopez, 51, heading to the airport in Montana together and then arriving in Los Angeles. According to details, the two celebrities — who broke off their very public engagement back in 2004 — attended a party together at a luxury ski resort in Montana. It is believed that Affleck owns a chalet there. Reports have also claimed that the two spent “about a week” together at the club and “were alone” during their stay.

While it was earlier reported that the two were just reconnecting as old friends after Lopez’s recent breakup with Alex Rodriguez, the Montana trip has sparked rumours that the two are perhaps more than “just friends”. It has been reported that the two reconnected over email when Affleck reached out to J Lo while she was in the Dominican Republic, writing that she looked beautiful in her recent photographs for Shotgun Wedding. The pair reportedly continued communications over the next couple of weeks.

Affleck and Lopez were engaged in 2002 and dubbed “Bennifer.” Their relationship appeared to hit the rocks in 2003 when they postponed their wedding and ultimately broke up in January 2004. After their split, Lopez married Marc Anthony in 2004 with the couple welcoming twins in 2008. On the other hand, Affleck married Garner in 2005 and the two welcomed three children together. Lopez later divorced Anthony in 2014, while Affleck and Garner divorced in 2018.

Meanwhile, Rodriguez is said to be “shocked” with Lopez and Affleck’s photographs, as he reportedly believed that he and Lopez would get back together after a break.

“A-Rod is shocked that J Lo has moved on,” reported E! News. “He truly thought they would be able to make it work and reconnect. He has been reaching out to J Lo trying to meet with her and she has been very short with him.”

The report, quoting a source, further said that Rodriguez is “saddened” by Lopez’s vacation with Affleck, so much so that he’s reached out to her to let her know “he’s upset.”

However, Jennifer is “not interested in rekindling anything with A-Rod and is done”.