Sarah Jessica Parker's Ugliness at Work

ENTERTAINMENT - What is ugly? What do we consider ugly? Is there a line that is crossed that becomes ugliness?

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" but you could argue so is ugliness.

So what then is Sarah Jessica Parker, one of the four stars of Sex and the City?

Is she ugly or beautiful?

Some people argue that she is hot. Others say she is ugly. Some even go so far as to say Sarah Jessica Parker looks like a horse. (And there is definitely some similarities.)

Obviously she's not "drop dead gorgeous". Perhaps on the skinny side of average would be more accurate. The wart (or whatever that thing is) on her chin isn't helping either. She could easily play the Wicked Witch of the West with ease.

I must admit she seems to have a two-face problem... sometimes she looks good, other times pretty disgusting. Its a bit like the Seinfeld episode with the woman who keeps going back and forth between beautiful and ugly depending on the lighting conditions.



There's also the episode of The Office where they argue whether Hillary Swank is hot or not. Evidently Hillary Swank also suffers from two-facedness.

I think in this case its a matter of makeup. Sarah Jessica Parker has become very reliant on makeup to make her look presentable. Not necessarily beautiful, because her face is so long and angular that you'd really have to like that look in the first place to appreciate her face.

Or do you?

Many of us have no doubt seen the Dove commercial by now which demonstrates the combined effects of hair/makeup, lighting and photoshop:



So in the case of Sarah Jessica Parker it is clear that makeup is her friend, but it really can do only so much for her. If anything she would be better off putting on an extra 20 lbs so her cheeks don't look so gaunt.

She does have a rather long face so in that respect she is undoubtably horse like.

But what if you like horses? They're a handsome beast. Majestic... it just doesn't work on the face of a woman that well. The long face, the droopy nose, that gauntness of her cheeks, that wart on her chin.

She's also super skinny and short. See Stuck Up Little Bitches at Work. You'll pardon me if I prefer a woman who has more meat, muscle and a healthy dose of body fat.

But for fans of Sex and the City however perhaps it is because she's imperfect that some fans like her so much. Her character is spunky, thoughtful and well acted. Nobody can say Sarah Jessica Parker can't act. She's an excellent actress.

But she's not beautiful. She's average. Just like the majority of us. And while our perceptions of beauty are continually distorted in the 21st century (no thanks to photoshop, Hollywood and the beauty industry) she's also more real.

Its the same reason why the beauty industry no longer hires models for their commercials as much as they used to... the focus these days is on hiring funny actresses based on their popularity. Its a two-prong effect: #1. Actresses look realistic and they're easier to work with on a commercial set because they have acting experience. So even though they're acting its perceived as being more real because its not an airbrushed supermodel. #2. The product benefits from the actress's popularity.

Take "Angela" from the popular TV show The Office: She isn't particularly attractive. She's just a skinny blonde known more for her hair and sour disposition... and yet here she is in Clairol Nice 'n Easy commercials.



Then there's the heroin chic look... skinny and gaunt Carre Otis used to look or any number of other so-called supermodels which the fashion industry claims is beautiful, but in reality they're 10 lbs away from being a skeletal corpse.

Call me a traditionalist but I'd prefer the Marilyn Monroe or Pam Grier look.