I’ve never put up a review of a show before, probably because I don’t like to consider myself a film critic. I barely want to label myself a food critic, even with the amount of free food I get to review.

That being said, I want to start incorporating more reviews of shows + films onto A Life in the Fashion Lane because there has been a drastic increase of mental health shows lately. A few months ago, I did an entire press tour surrounding 13 Reasons Why, and why I thought the show poorly portrayed teen suicide. You can see the list of shows I appeared on talking about the show on my As Seen On page!

I initially thought To The Bone was a TV show, so was surprised when I started watching to see that it’s actually a movie. Over the past 24 hours, I’ve spoken to a few friends and my intern about the movie, and I’m quite excited to say that I think the movie was fantastic. Unlike 13 Reasons Why, To The Bone properly portrayed anorexia. It didn’t steer away from the mission of the movie, and it didn’t glamorize the show at all. As someone who has suffered from an eating disorder, I watched and felt proud to have overcome what I battled. I cried while watching To The Bone. My friends said the same thing- the ones who have battled an eating disorder and the ones who haven’t. When I watched 13 Reasons Why, I felt like I was back in my high school body: insecure and occasionally suicidal. I cried because I felt too close to the topic. Watching To The Bone made me cringe, but not in a bad way. It made me realize how an eating disorder takes over your mind. It’s not something you can overcome overnight, or even overcome in your lifetime, unless you deal with intensive therapy and treatment.

I admire the fact that the show didn’t choose beautiful, thin, sexy characters. The cast was all real, normal-looking people who simply had eating disorders. It’s sensitive on the topic; and even puts a disclaimer at the beginning of the movie to warn sensitive teens who watch. I admire how the movie also properly portrayed how the people around you feel when battle an eating disorder. It’s just as hard on friends and family as it is on the person suffering.

13 Reasons Why made teens think that suicide isn’t the end. Suicide is the end of a life, and the way suicide was portrayed in that show made it seem like it’s sexy to die and miraculously come back.

At the end of To The Bone, you watch Eli (Lily Collins) walk back into recovery, which many people who have had substance abuse or eating issues can relate to. It’s not an overnight process, and it takes time and acceptance before you can completely recover. It’s up to you to decide when you’re ready to get better; not the people around you.

I’d love to hear what you thought about the show. Email me below!

Xo,

Alexa