We've all seen how movies about women who have tragic demises become instant blockbusters and/or cult favorites, i.e. Gia and Factory Girl. However, I must say that I believe these women are very misunderstood. Gia was a beautiful model who just wanted to be accepted. Her personality, according to those that knew her, was magnetic. I don't agree with Hollywood's assumption that drugs led to her downfall because I feel PEOPLE led to her downfall. Just imagine being called beautiful, talented, and gorgeous all the time but having trouble finding love. Of course, someone would say "Well, I must not be all of those things because someone talented, beautiful, and gorgeous should have no problem finding love and acceptance." Nevertheless, the reality of that is women who are all of those things have it worse than anyone else who tries to find the same things because people are intimidated by their success, beauty, etc. It's almost as if you asked someone to look at the Mona Lisa and then describe it. I'm sure they would say marvelous things about it and be in complete awe of it. In contrast, if you asked them to hold it, I'm sure they would be scared and would probably find an excuse not to do so. That's what I think happened with Gia: people were too afraid to "hold" her and conversely she didn't know how to be "held." Therefore, she turned to things she knew would always be there: drugs, which inevitably led to her contracting AIDS and dying at a young age. But she was NOT a victim. She was simply someone trying to find a way to feel alive. I mean, does anyone care to wonder why Nikki Sixx did so many drugs during his Motley Crue days? NO! They just portray him as a young rock star living the life he was expected to live and take advantage of.
Gia Carangi
Now, the next woman I think Hollywood could have represented in a more positive manner is Edie Sedgwick. Edie Sedgwick is best known for being Andy Warhol's "superstar" since she starred in many of his films, many of which he is rumored to have refused to pay her for appearing in. She is also depicted as an airhead relying solely on Warhol for direction in these films, even though it's a well-known fact that Sedgwick was pretty intelligent.
In Factory Girl, Edie is portrayed as a woman who was fatally in love with Andy Warhol and couldn't help but let him mistreat her and use her because of that love. I think any "thinking" individual would find that representation problematic, especially since love should never be an excuse for allowing someone to treat you as if you are beneath them. In my opinion, Edie Sedgwick met her downfall when she blindly trusted someone she was told she could trust. At that time, Andy Warhol was changing art as the world knew it and there was an assumption that if you wanted to be the next big thing, you needed to be apart of the progressive movement Warhol was leading. Therefore, Edie probably assumed that someone so respected could not be so shifty. Plus, we must keep in mind that Andy Warhol wasn't an easy person to like. He even felt he was too famous to speak for himself in interviews so he often had others talk to reporters for him WHILE he stood by and listened. And we musn't forget that Valerie Solanas said she shot him because he claimed to have lost a manuscript she gave him. However, Solanas believed this "loss" was Warhol's attempt to steal her work and receive credit for it. But do we see representations of Warhol as being manipulative? NO! We see images of him being a man going after what he wants or being such a genius that those "envious" of him were compelled to shun him or, in Solanas' case, shoot him. As for Sedgwick, yes, she turned to drugs as well. But shouldn't the picture or portrayal of these women involve the unrealistic standards that society sets for women if they plan to make it in the entertainment industry. All people suffer, but suffering in an environment that doesn't allow you to be too fat, too sad, or too tired is extremely taxing on an individual.
My point is this: I admire Gia and Edie Sedgwick, but not because they were drug addicts, beautiful, and died young. I admire them, and think others should as well, because they were women who redefined modeling and entertainment by saying "Hey, we're young and beautiful, but we have problems just like everyone else. So, if we're messed up, you're messed up too!"
Edie Sedgwick Interview:
A Clip of Edie in "Poor Little Rich Girl," a film she made with Andy Warhol:
