‘Babygirl’ Raises the Question: Is Menopause Sexy Now?
Even in a post-#MeToo climate, it’s doubtful that many of these films would have been made if the culture hadn’t rethought what menopause means and what it can look like. Menopause, clinically defined as a full year without a menstrual period, and perimenopause, the years of hormonal change that precede it, are in the midst of a transformation, with actresses proud to lend their names and wrinkle-free figures to their menopausal and perimenopausal adventures. Menstruation. Naomi Wattswho starred in the crazy 2013 age gap rom-com “Adore,” founded Stripes Beauty, a company that offers “holistic menopause solutions.” Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop sells Madame Ovary, a supplement to facilitate hormonal change. Halle Berry started Redbinan online community focused on menopause health.
It’s a truism that sex sells. And as these movies, shows, and companies suggest, menopause can be exciting right now.
“We are finally decoupling women’s sexuality from our fertile years,” said Shira Tarrant, professor of women’s, gender and sexuality studies.
But as Tarrant acknowledged, this chapter is incomplete. What exactly are those fertile years? Advances in reproductive technology have greatly increased their range. Actresses, including Kidman, regularly give birth to children after the age of forty.
Outside the bedroom, these on-screen objects often seem inscrutable. No character in these recent films reports a hormonal change or suffers from the normal embarrassment of hot flashes or “Crime Scene” period.. If this new vision is liberating, it is also very limited. Are you a thin, conventionally attractive, mostly white woman? Congratulations, you can live out your sex life for a little longer. In these films, limbs are graceful, and faces are soft. Chests are like military hairstyles, high and narrow. Thanks to advances in dermatology, cosmetics, and surgery, women can be sexy at almost any age. As long as we look 32 forever.
Sometimes, a less-than-perfect body appears on screen — Diane Keaton’s fleeting nude scene in the 2003 romantic comedy “Something’s Gotta Give,” and Emma Thompson’s open robe in 2022. “Good luck to you, Leo Grande.” -But gravity usually equates to non-porosity. This is the grisly essence of the 2024 horror-comedy “The Substance,” in which former Demi Moore star goes through viscous agony to retain her youth and beauty, giving birth (asexually) to a younger, sexier self.
