The Most-Watched Thriller On Netflix Stirs Controversy for Depicting “Grooming”
Jade Halley Bartlett‘s feature film debut Miller’s Girl has stirred up quite the controversy since its initial release earlier this year. The film, starring Jenna Ortega and Martin Freeman, involves a student developing a crush on her English teacher and seducing him. While it does sound like your average porn set-up, this is actually a thriller about power dynamics, or at least that’s Barlett’s intention. Now that the film has hit Netflix, the steamy erotic thriller is skyrocketing up the charts.
In the film, “A young woman and her writing teacher develop a flirtatious dynamic that comes to a head after a midterm assignment underscores their power imbalance.“
With the film hitting Netflix, Freeman recently defended the creative choices, particularly regarding the age gap between his and Ortega’s characters (he is playing a 49-year-old and she an 18-year-old). He told The Times in an interview that negative comments about Miller’s Girl were “a shame” as he saw the film as “grown up and nuanced”. He added that neither the film nor the characters endorse this behavior, telling The Times, “It’s not saying, ‘Isn’t this great?’” He then said, “Are we going to have a go at Liam Neeson for being in a film about the Holocaust?” in reference to Liam Neeson playing the lead role in Schindler’s List.
While portrayal does not at all mean endorsement, that last part of the quote is a slippery slope to engage with. Freeman’s quote has only stirred the discourse pot as viewers have discovered the film for themselves on Netflix and shared their thoughts about the age gap.
You can see a few of the mixed responses to the film below:
Miller’s Girl is out now on Netflix.
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