“Have you ever fucked on cocaine Nick?”
That’s the question Catherine Tramell, Sharon Stone’s character asks Nick Curran, played by Michael Douglas, mere moments before the infamous cooch shot. You know the one. The iconic scene where the sultry Shaz Stone uncrosses her legs to expose the most famous cooch of the 90’s during an interrogation scene in Basic Instinct.
If haven’t seen the movie, I insist you watch it immediately. That scene perfectly captures the power and command of Catherine. She is strategically placed on one end of the room across from five male detectives in a bid to intimidate her and assert their collective authority over her. Instead she dominates with unwavering confidence and uses her body as a weapon. She remains in control the entire time making every man in the room weak and uncomfortable. But people don’t talk about the assertion and complex nature of the character. Or how the film tried to reignite the Hitchcock mystery genre. All anyone ever spoke about (and still talk about to this day) was the vag flash.
It comes as no surprise that 24 years on, the media still holds the female form to be superior over female substance. Recently, a photo on Instagram of Stone in a bikini made the rounds and was supposedly a newsworthy story. Granted, she looks smoking hot, but why should I now be paying attention to her because she looks great in swimwear? The only thing that photo did was persuade me to swap my Aero bar for a protein shake. (Not going to lie still had the Aero bar later that night).
I think it’s fantastic that Sharon is comfortable enough in her 57 year old skin to share that photo. Truly I do. But I want to hear about the things she has achieved fully clothed. And I want those great things to matter as much and be just as (if not more) newsworthy. For instance, did you know that Sharon Stone has been the Global Campaign Chair for 20 years for amfAR (American Foundation for Aids Research)?
When was the last time you saw a male actor aged over 50 posing nude, sharing his secrets to ageing gracefully? In fact, there aren’t really a whole bunch of male nudes at any age splashed on the covers of magazines.
If you look back at the history of pop culture, Hepburn, Monroe, Madonna, female icons started to become sexualised, but they had substance. There was a message conveyed. They had a voice.
What are the icons of today’s pop culture saying? The image that broke the internet was a greased up ass of a highly intelligent woman (anyone who can make millions of dollars from duck face selfies is highly intelligent). The Karadashians personify the total lack of substance in today’s pop culture.
In 2014 #askhermore was trending during awards season in a bid to make a woman’s substance more than what she was wearing. Instead of shit like, “How did you lose the baby weight?” maybe some questions like the ones the men got asked like, “How did you prepare for the role?”
That campaign made an impact and there was a definite shift in the conversation. People were talking and there was great awareness around the worth of a woman beyond the designer dress.
And just when you thought we were making progress, the media wants me to pay attention because 57 year old Sharon Stone looks great in a fucking bikini!
*SIGH*
Can we please have someone like Michelle Obama, Melinda Gates or Rosie Batty break the internet for some outstanding contribution to society? Let’s make a change.
Tell us who you think has made a contribution to your world.
