Time for Hathahaters to apologize
Hathaway’s performance as neurotic and narcissistic actress in Ocean’s 8 will win you over
Note: This article includes some spoilers for the movie Ocean’s 8.
There is a scene toward the end of The Princess Diaries in which Mia Thermopolis, the soon-to-be princess of Genovia played by Anne Hathaway, apologizes to her love interest by using M&Ms to write “sorry” on a pizza. The thought of chocolate candies on gooey cheese is enough to churn stomachs, but Mia’s is a sweet gesture — and one that we probably owe to the actress herself.
Hathaway hasn’t had it easy since playing Fantine in 2012’s Les Misérables, a film with a media tour that sparked the creation of the so-called Hathahaters.
They called out her earnest theatre-kid personality, claiming the “perception of her irritating-ness is pretty widespread.” She began her Oscar acceptance speech in 2013 with “It came true!” and they responded, “Why are you so annoying?”
If Hathaway’s greatest crime is caring too much, then she doesn’t deserve any of this treatment — and that belief boosts her already delightful performance in Ocean’s 8 as Daphne Kluger, a neurotic and narcissistic actress who wears the sixpound diamond necklace at the centre of the movie’s heist. Daphne pouts when things don’t go her way, and a simple mention of her Met Gala hosting duties is enough to send her into a tizzy. The often wide-eyed character is a clever parody of Hathaway’s perceived persona that doubles as a final nail in the Hathahate coffin.
One of the first women that Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock) and partner-in-crime Lou (Cate Blanchett) recruit for the job is the nearly bankrupt fashion designer Rose Weil (Helena Bonham Carter). She just has to dress Daphne for the Met Gala and persuade her to wear the $150 million necklace, they say, and all of Rose’s financial woes will be resolved.
Hathaway puts her Oscar-winning acting chops to good work when Daphne wears the necklace for the first time. She sits in front of a mirror following a mid-fitting tantrum and she strokes her collarbone while gazing at the reflection. Rose tells Daphne she has the best neck in the business.
Scenes like this lead viewers to doubt Daphne’s intelligence, which makes the big twist — and realization of why this movie isn’t called Ocean’s 7 — all the more fun. She reveals to Debbie and Lou’s recruits that she was in on the successful scheme, having deduced that something was up early on in the planning process.
We can all finally go back to treating Hathaway as we did in the pre-2013 era, when the term “Hathahaters” would have produced few, if any, Google search results.
Comrades, prep your apology pizzas.