Keith Girard
Lindsay Lohan is at a crossroads in her career. Is Oprah helping or hurting her chances of a full recovery?
No one seems to doubt Oprah’s good intentions, but some are questioning whether the reality show is putting Lohan back on the road to hell.
Of course, Oprah believes just the opposite. She’s claimed the reality show will help Lohan keep her act together and ultimately lead to renewed interest in her flagging career in Hollywood.
But others believe Oprah is secretly licking her chops at the ratings bonanza Lohan’s show will produce. Viewers will be drawn week-after-week to meltdowns, screaming fits, crying sessions and overall erratic behavior, waiting to see if the actress can pull her life together of fall into the abyss.
The trailer was the tip-off, according to critics. Whether by accident or design, it did not portray Lindsay in the best light. She was not only reduced to tears, but also drove Oprah to swear at her.
“You need to cut the bullsh*t,” the 60-year-old media mogul railed at the actress. But wait; isn’t bullsh*t exactly what Oprah wants? Otherwise, what’s the point of the show?
“Everyone is exploiting Lohan and she is not well enough to realize this,” Janina Kean, president and chief executive of High Watch Recovery Center, a rehab facility in Connecticut, told FOX411.
“Holding anyone in early sobriety under a microscope, with constant media attention could trigger another relapse,” he adds.
A literal viewing of the trailer might easily lead to that conclusion. But the set-up was too obvious. It played off Lindsay’s known attention deficit difficulties and flair for drama.
In the end, however, the trailer probably did just what it was intended to do; it set up a straw-man, or woman in this case, that Oprah and Lindsay will ultimately knock down as the series progresses.
It’s really the oldest trick in the book, and Oprah knows it chapter and verse. Create dramatic tension to draw viewers in, and ultimately lead them to a happy ending.
If it works out to be anything less, Oprah really will be the fiend that critics make her out to be. And, Lindsay will be another Judy Garland, without the talent.
Check out the trailer below, let us know your thoughts and follow TheImproper on Twitter for the latest in the Lindsay Lohan saga. “Lindsay,” the show, debuts this Sunday, Mar. 9.