Right smack in the middle of our faces, noses are an emotionally loaded body part. So much identity — ethnicity, beauty, familial likeness, perceived personality even — is held in the humble proboscis.
Last week’s kerfuffle over actor Bradley Cooper’s prosthetically enhanced nose in the upcoming Netflix film “Maestro” is a reminder of both the significance and sensitivity of the facial feature.
Cooper, who is not Jewish, wore the prosthetic to portray the legendary American conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein, who was Jewish. Critics took issue with the size of the nose, comparing it to images of Bernstein and finding it too pronounced. Hollywood Reporter journalist Daniel Fineberg called it “problematic” and “ethnic cosplay,” a widely shared opinion.
Bernstein’s children were quick to respond in support of the artistic choice, releasing a statement on social media that said: “It happens to be true that Leonard Bernstein had a nice, big nose. Bradley chose makeup to amplify his resemblance and we are perfectly fine with that. We are also certain our Dad would have been fine with it as well.”
The Anti-Defamation League also released a statement saying the use of the prosthetic nose was not antisemitic, but acknowledging the history of propaganda films portraying Jews as “evil caricatures with large, hooked noses.”
There are a lot of concerns and complaints around many aspects of cultural representation, such as characters or biopic subjects who are queer, trans or disabled being portrayed by straight, cisgender or able-bodied actors. There has been criticism over Hugh Grant playing a CGI-enabled Oompa Loompa in the upcoming movie “Wonka,” taking work away from dwarf actors. These are legitimate concerns and important conversations to have.
As a counterpoint, Nicole Kidman famously wore a large nose prosthetic to play Virginia Woolf in “The Hours” and there was no outcry. Now, neither the actor nor the novelist she played are Jewish but, even if there had been ethnic traversing involved, in 2002 when that film came out we weren’t as widely aware of these kinds of appropriation issues.
Whether or not the prosthetic nose helped Cooper get into character and/or will help audiences see him as the maestro, it’s clear the nose is a powerful part of our identity.
Which brings us to how certain nose shapes, typically Caucasian ones, have been idealized over time.
“Back in the ’80s and ’90s there was only one nose people thought was beautiful,” said Toronto plastic surgeon Dr. Jamil Asaria, fellowship director of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and head of the clinic FACE Toronto. He’s referring to the pert little “ski jump” nose where “bumps were turned into slopes,” which was the common request received by plastic surgeons at the time.
“Patients today are asking for a much larger variety of styles,” he said.
Then, rhinoplasty was divided into “regular” and “ethnic,” which meant non-Caucasian. Thankfully, Asaria said, “the world is so different now.” For one thing, “people are so blended ethnically, most don’t fall into a single category.” As well, the preferred esthetic has changed to become more customized and individual. More and more frequently, Asaria is hearing clients say, “I still want to look like me.”
“We aren’t sculpting your nose into a new shape; we are making smaller, subtler changes to height, bridge, width, nostril size and shape, and rotation.”
What matters in modern facial esthetics are proportion and balance. Smaller noses are not necessarily more attractive. “Based on other features, your nose may be a little bigger than the average, but on your face that works well,” said Asaria. “A smaller nose is not going to work well.”
He points out that a good nose job can increase someone’s confidence, but changes, if they are wrong, can really make you feel “not you” anymore. “Your nose is in the centre of your face. If you don’t like it you are going to be staring at it forever.”
Jennifer Grey, still best known as the star of the 1987 megahit “Dirty Dancing,” has spoken about regretting the two rhinoplasties she got in the early ’90s, and believes the results curtailed her Hollywood career.
Similarly, last year, model Bella Hadid said she regrets the nose job she had at the age of 14. Hadid is considered one of the most beautiful women in the world; her face has been found to hew closely to “ideal” ratios for facial symmetry. But, she told Vogue, “I wish I had kept the nose of my ancestors. I think I would have grown into it.”
Noses do contain the stories of our families and ancestries, as well as our insecurities and desires. Moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach to them is a beautiful thing.
