The new Netflix movie "Tall Girl" is about a 6'1 teenager named Jodi that has a hard time being tall in high school. She's constantly bullied, not looked at as pretty, never gets the tall good looking guy, and is very insecure about her height. As a 6-foot, 20-year-old, female, I felt that it was my duty to compare notes with the movie and actually living life as "the tall girl."
I felt that the movie really over-exaggerated the bullying that Jodi goes through in high school.
They made it seem like Jodi was an alien compared to everyone else. I come from a very small high school, and even though I am tall, I wasn't the only one in my high school that was towering over guys. There were a handful of tall girls and we were all going through the same thing. Yes, I had my fair share of bullying just like everyone else. My nickname was "momma long legs" pretty much all through high school.
Jodi is very shy and insecure about her height in the movie. She even looked up how much it would cost to get height reduction surgery (which I didn't know was a thing).
This is something I can't relate to. I've never been super insecure about my height, and I can thank my dad for that. When he was my age, he was really insecure about it and hated that he stood out. He always told me to be proud of who I am and where I come from. If he ever caught me trying to blend in with others or appear shorter, he would tell me to stand tall and proud. I'm a very confident person, so I didn't mind that I stood out and usually still do. I dress how I want and try new things because I know that people are going to stare no matter what.
The dating scene, on the other hand, is a different story. This is the only thing that is really frustrating when it comes to being a tall girl.
Not only is it awkward when you're taller than most guys when you walk into a room, but it's even more awkward when you're just larger than them in general. It's an odd feeling when you go somewhere and all the guys are looking up at you. This makes finding a guy even harder. Not only do you want someone smart and good looking, but they also have to be taller than the average male to even be considered for me. Hence why I'm single.
It was never really the bullying or the boys that bothered me. It was more of the expectations people put on me because I was tall.
I was automatically expected to be good at sports, or at least better than my teammates because of my height. Still to this day, I get asked if I am an athlete and people are shocked when I say "no." Obviously this is all just based off of my experience with being tall.
Jodi and I have been through some similar things, but I thought the movie over-exaggerated what it's like being tall in high school and could've made it more realistic.
