3 Red Flags “Don’t Worry Darling” Exposes About Narcissistic Cults In Love, Family, And Work
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There were many critics of the psychological thriller movie Don’t Worry Darling (2022) when it first came out, but I personally loved its depiction of how narcissistic cults operate and consider it one of the most horrifying movies ever made to portray the “awakening” (literally and figuratively) to the madness and methods of cults. In the movie Alice (played by Florence Pugh) and Jack Chambers (played by Harry Styles) are in a seemingly “utopian” and isolated community called Victory where the 1950’s housewife aesthetic and lifestyle thrives. Terrifying community “synchronization” activities among the women align them with the agendas of the cult, the beliefs of the cult are constantly instilled in them through propaganda to keep them obedient and docile wives, and most members of the cult appear to obey its rules – until there’s a “glitch in the matrix” and scapegoats of the cult like Margaret start realizing there’s more than meets the eye in this secret community. Not all is what it seems and as Alice begins to question the reality around her and raise questions about the community to the charming cult leader, Frank (played by Chris Pine), she is ultimately punished, gaslighted, and silenced in brutal ways. The movie also holds a shocking plot twist at the end that is jarring to viewers and leaves them with more questions than answers.
Who Is A Cult Leader?
When we think of cult leaders, we think of infamous predators like Jim Jones, the charismatic preacher who led his followers into mass suicide, or Charles Manson, the psychopathic leader of the Manson Family who passed himself off as the second coming of Jesus Christ. Yet cults can be far less visibly nefarious and blatantly violating – and they can exist across diverse contexts – not just doomsday and religious cults. Narcissistic cults can exist within the nuclear family, the harem of a narcissistic partner where “followers” are taught to compete for the attention of the cult leader, friendship groups or social circles, academic circles, sex cults (such as the New York-based NXIVM cult which encouraged sexual abuse and horrific bodily “branding”) toxic workplaces, the bubbles of political groups, the aggressive “fandoms” dedicated to celebrities who act as attack dogs for the celebrity they worship or even the “one-man” cult of an emotionally abusive romantic relationship.
When narcissistic or psychopathic leaders succeed in leading groups, they can easily take on cult-like features. The most powerful antidote to a cult? People who question the grandiosity, perceived omnipotence or omniscience, unethical practices, beliefs, and attitudes of the cult and the cult leaders. This is why those who resist cult-like groups tend to be punished, scapegoated, or made the black sheep. Here are three red flags you may have been targeted as a black sheep or scapegoat or might be part of a narcissistic cult in love, work, family, or friendship:
Content retrieved from: https://thoughtcatalog.com/shahida-arabi/2024/01/3-red-flags-dont-worry-darling-exposes-about-narcissistic-cults-in-love-family-and-work/.
