Feature - Why Tiger King is a reflection of our poor relationship with women
When I considered writing a review for Tiger King, I thought, you beauty, another opportunity to laugh at Americans. I never expected I’d end up writing this review through a feminist lens.
I had a discussion with my housemate about the Netflix series and she told me about how she listened to the Joe Exotic: Tiger King podcast and learned there was a lot of detail left out of the show, especially around Carole Baskin’s backstory. She has had a history of horrific abuse and let’s not forget Don Lewis (her missing ex- husband) picked her up on the side of the road when was only 20 years old (he; 20 years her senior), telling her to hold a gun to his head.
Nevertheless, she is made out to be the show’s bona fide villain. Keep in mind, many other characters in Tiger King are criminals, cult leaders and drug cartel leaders – but wait, Carole Baskin is such a bitch?
The immense popularity of the controversial Netflix docuseries has lead to countless death threats and abuse for Baskin. The animal rights activist told Tampa Bay Times that she is now afraid to leave her house because of the way she has been depicted by streaming giant Netflix.
It’s clear why, in the narrative sense, Joe Exotic is the hero and Carole Baskin is the villain. Exotic’s exhibition of emotions, his eccentric highs and lows are far more entertaining than Carole Baskin’s aloof appearance.
America typically has a love-hate relationship with these egocentric male characters like Joe Exotic and Donald Trump, while women fall by the wayside. We idolise these men because they say what they think and don’t care about anyone else, but when women exhibit similar characteristics like Carole Baskin and Hilary Clinton have, they are admonished for it.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Joe Exotic. I would rather be friends with him than Carole Baskin, who, undoubtedly, seems like a wet blanket.
The difference is that women aren’t rewarded for the same outlandish behaviour. Women are conditioned to be submissive and quiet, too loud and that’s annoying, women are taught to play it safe.
I keep thinking to myself; maybe if Carole Baskin was just funnier I would like her more, maybe she just needs to be more of a loveable character. The thing is that it shouldn’t matter, she might not be as funny or as entertaining and maybe killed her husband - but we as the viewer shouldn’t be screaming from behind our screens to ‘Fucking kill that bitch!’
[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCgz9915wHw&w=854&h=480]
Aside from the leading narrative of Joe vs Carole, there is also an evident anti-female sentiment throughout the series. While it is not expressed within the structure of the documentary series itself, it’s reflected in the characters and how their stories are told.
One example is Doc Antle, who is essentially running a cult, where the only criteria is to be a hot, young woman with fake tits. Jeff Lowe is another example of a misogynistic character who lures in young women with his tiger cubs and even deliberately hires an attractive nanny, so he can have something to leer at.
The documentary doesn’t stay on these stories the way it should; it’s dismissed to make room for the theatrics of Joe Exotic and the tiger-enthusiast community. The documentary also, for the most part, frames these characters as animal lovers when it is clear that they have ulterior motives for looking after these animals, one of which is to manipulate women.
One thing Tiger King evidently lacked was that it never criticised the behaviours of its main characters. It’s up to the audience to come to this conclusion themselves. Not everyone, however, is able to critically reflect like this. Instead of seeing Joe Exotic shove a dildo in a blow-up doll resembling Carole Baskin as really appalling behaviour, it’s positioned in the docuseries as just a fun bit of b-roll, so the audience thinks, “Oh that Joe Exotic, what a kooky guy aha…”
This is also because Tiger King lacked a clear purpose. At the beginning it seemed to take an animal rights stance, then it was True Crime documentary about Carole Baskin killing her husband and then a ‘60 Minutes’ expose about Joe Exotic being wrongly accused of a crime.
It was a wild ride; just like a ride it started and finished in the same spot, with no real purpose but to provide a cheap thrill.
There was clearly a missed opportunity to take a stance on something - whether it be animal rights, American greed, how homosexuality has adapted to suit a Middle American context or how badly women are treated within these exotic animal communities. Had the documentary condemned the behaviours of these ego-centric men, the series would have been received very differently. Instead, the documentary has essentially made them heroes in the eyes of the public.
It’s concerning that a popular documentary like this has created a viscous sentiment towards Carole Baskin. It’s the kind of online bullying that might discourage women to stand up for themselves if surrounded by men, as they’re afraid that they will experience the same kind of ridicule.
It seems harmless, it’s the first level of the sexual harassment pyramid, but we all know where that eventually leads.
Tiger King is now streaming on Netflix.