06th Feb 2009
Bad Habits make Barbara Cry
The key thing to note about this 1954 film — the narrator is a total bitch. Implying that the popularity problem is obviously completely Barbara’s fault (and, indeed, that the entire need for better habits is based on being disliked by her peers) is pretty cruel. But I do love the implication that gossip is a well-known part of life (contrasted by some other mental hygiene films which claim gossiping is aberrant behavior), and Barbara better get her act together if she doesn’t want to be the subject of discussion.
Frankly, I have a lot of the bad habits Barbara does — at least the ones that apply to being disorganized, or hitting the snooze button. My solution was not to get better habits, but simply to not care much about The In Crowd said about me. There wasn’t much I could have done to counteract glasses and an aptitude for math anyway 
Barbara seems so awkward a the party, it’s almost painful to watch.
And “good habits approved by custom” I found singularly creepy. That narrator really is unpleasant. Is habitual criticism a good habit?
I’m with Buzz–that same line was disturbing. On the one hand, I can see that Barbara probably drove her parents crazy. On the other, except for the rudeness to her family, and the fact that she doesn’t like to read (?), who but she should care about her hair or fingernails? This movie raised some valid issues, but in the end it’s all about careful grooming of the self and clothing–very superficial.
I agree with Erica about the narrator’s voice–nasty, nasty, nasty.
This is terrible.. I have ADHD, and this is exactly how I am. If this is really what happened then, it’s like discrimination. The narator sounds terrible