The Minority Report

SVU - "Undercover"

2008-04-18T11:33:00.000-07:00

“Undercover” starts off with typical fare, but quickly shifts gears and make some surprising and welcome choices with race, casting and character.

The episode “Undercover” (original air date 4/15 – hope you got your taxes in!) starts with another typical minority casting issue. To try and meet quotas, these kinds of shows are full of incidental characters who can often be cast as minorities. It’s a great chance for any actor to work, but a tricky situation for black actors, as tonight’s episode shows.

During the cold open, a black cop haughtily tells Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) that the guy who committed the crime they’re investigating is standing over there and here’s the murder weapon. The cop is young and brash…and as Stabler kindly points out, doesn’t have a clue as to what he’s talking about. We can tell from the first seconds of the episode (and the pattern of every Law and Order episode) that the guy in question didn’t commit this crime and the young cop prematurely calls a weapon a murder weapon when there is no murder to speak of.

A moment later, cooler headed (and white) Stabler simply questions the “perp.” I guess this young (black) cop couldn’t think that far ahead. Do we blame his youth or his race? You decide. Ostensibly, someone did. We’re just not sure what that decision was.

Is this a huge transgression? No. But it continues a pattern. And as I’ve said before: it’s not that this kind of casting happens, it’s just, why so often?

And it begs questions. What was casting notice? Did the execs know that they were going to give this role to a minority? If so, then why? If they didn’t, what was it about this black actor that made them decide to use him? His acting ability or their limited scope of what kind of cop makes this kind of dumb mistake.

A bit of a Catch 22? Perhaps. But these patterns continue. And it’s only fair to the character, the actors and the public to figure out why.

And back and forth it goes as the episode goes on. The victim (who isn’t dead, but who has been raped) is black. Something to note: rape is by and large and intra-racial crime. Typically, a white rape victim will have been raped by a white rapist. A black rape victim will have been attacked by a black perp. And so on and so forth. We will see in this episode if a) the crime in the show follows this pattern and b) if the crime turns out to be an empathy-inducing crime of passion or if it was a senseless act like a gang initiation.

I will give the show points for giving the black victim nice black (foster) parents. They are well spoken, kind and love their daughter. In fact, the other members of her family are nice characters. They have their flaws and foibles, but they are pretty well layered and the acting is strong.

Ooh, a twist. At 14 minutes in, we learn that the alleged attacker is white. This is out of the norm and based on some other exposition, he sounds like a real piece of work. He sells drugs, the victim’s mother was his supplier and the victim was his go-between. The guy raped her to teach her mom a lesson when she tried to get clean.

Another fun surprise is that the prison warden where the victim’s mother is incarcerated is a woman. This is nice touch because it allows the warden to be very hard on the mother without it being as abusive as it would be if the warden were a man. A man being as tough on the mother as the warden is would make it more difficult for an audience to sympathize with the position the warden is it. And sympathy for more than one party is what makes this franchise work.

Now all we have to do is get the directors and producers to extend some sympathy themselves.

Guess Who

2008-02-13T00:31:00.001-08:00

I’ll admit. What I’m about to do isn’t fair. And I don’t mean unfair in the my-sister-took-my-cookie sort of way. I’m talking 2000 election results unfair.

I’m about to watch the 2005 Sony Pictures offering, Guess Who.

I watched the “original” version of this movie a couple of years ago. And felt good about myself for doing so.

I’m not expecting the same feeling to result from this movie.

Now, I love Ashton (see previous blog re: Just Married) and Bernie and that Zoe girl looks adorable. But the Spencer Tracy/Sidney Poiter/Katharine Hepburn film was important. A little cheesy at times. But important, thoughtful and clearly so.

This movie…isn’t.

But I’m giving it the chance to prove me wrong.

There’s a lot of potential for a comedy dealing with interracial relationships. I’m in an interracial marriage myself and there are really funny moments that come up. Involving hair, slang terms and accidental racism. It’s real stuff and that makes it a prime candidate for comedy.

Comedy is a great vehicle to discuss things that are important. To expose things that are tragic. To make something icky palatable enough for us to be able to think about and digest. There’s nothing wrong with making a comedic movie out of a heady, intelligent or thought-provoking topic.

The trailers I saw for Guess Who indicated that while the filmmakers might have been aware of this concept, they were saving their A material for a different picture.

But like I said, I could be wrong. This might not be nearly as steppen fetchit as it feels at first blush. It might have something to say.

And as I blog while I watch, I’ll let you know if it does.

***

Bernie Mac is left-handed!! (sorry for the distraction. But I’ve wanted to be left-handed for a while. In life, about 10-12 percent of the population is left-handed. But nearly 50 percent of characters on television and in movies are left handed, indicating there’s something intrinsically more creative about being a lefty. Course, back in the day, they thought it meant you were a witch. And you were as likely to get burned alive as you were cast in the next touring company of “Much Ado About Nothing.”)

The first thing is that this movie has done within in the first few minutes, is done a decent job of showing the ethnic makeup of a major metropolitan city. I’m not sure what city they’re in yet—they have may have indicated with the Golden Gate Bridge or Lady Liberty or the Sears Tower, but I’ve been writing and I can’t catch everything!

Either way, there are actually minorities on the street! In business suits no less. Working. Something that the creators of Friends, Seinfeld and every other sitcom should take a look at.

And look at that, another few minutes into Act I, we’ve got an interracial couple making out in the background. White guy, Asian girl. Okay, so it’s a little bit of a fetish, but it’s nice to see some IR love going on.

Oh, in case you care about plot and not just my mad ramblings, the set up is that Bernie Mac’s going to meet his daughter Teresa’s boyfriend the same weekend he and his wife are re-exchanging their wedding vows. Teresa’s told him what a great job her boyfriend Simon has. And we’ve just learned that Simon quit said job.

And they appear to be in NYC.

Quick note comparing this movie to the “original.” We just found out that Ashton and Zoe (Simon and Teresa) are engaged and he has yet to meet her parents. Which begs the question…why not? Couples don’t get engaged that quickly anymore. Why wouldn’t they have met at least once?

I live several states away from my parents and though my husband and I were well on our way to being engaged, we did take a perfunctory trip home so everyone could meet just for good measure. And since my husband’s parents live nearby, I’d hung out with them a ton.

Anyway, the point is, that in the original, the girl who’s going to marry Sidney is impulsive. A free spirit. She’s blithe and beguiling and got engaged impulsively. Her character explains why the fiancé and folks haven’t met.

It’s not so much an issue of race relations on film as it is sloppy writing.

Simon also expresses confusion over a photograph in Zoe’s apartment that he would have ostensibly seen everyday.

It makes for a funny joke, but doesn’t make any sense.

The writing matters. Even in a comedy. Even in a romp. And especially when you’re making material for an audience that’s hungry for it. Just because they’re starving doesn’t mean you feed them scraps.

Oh, and a designer who says “oodles” and “fabulous.” But wait…he’s not gay! Hooray for a joke about stereotypes.

So far, pretty good. I must say I’m pleasantly surprised.

What? They’re only going down to Jersey? And they never met?

We didn’t need the cabbie telling them it’s going to matter that Simon’s white.

Okay, we’re coming to the middle of Act II and another family member, the grandfather, mentions out loud and awkwardly that no one told him that Simon was white. When I introduced my (white) boyfriend to my family, no one said out loud and awkwardly that they hadn’t been briefed on the fact that he wasn’t black. I’m not saying it wouldn’t happen. But it definitely feels disingenuous.

The problem with this movie is that because it’s the year that it is, it’s very hard to hang your hat on the “I don’t want my daughter dating outside of the race” hook. Especially with a family that’s so very Cosby. It’s funnier to just go with the odd couple Meet-My-Folks thing.

There’s nothing about Bernie Mac’s family that’s particularly ethno-centric. They’re both white-collar employees in a nice neighborhood. There’s no African art on the walls. Neither of them is an African studies or Harlem Renaissance professor. They’re just normal folks who live in diverse New Jersey…and who shouldn’t be that upset that their daughter is dating out of the race.

In the end, the movie was fine and mostly forgettable. I still love Ashton. And Zoe seems like she’d be fun to have on set. (see my blog next December about the latest “Untitled Paramount Picture” for more on that).

This film’s biggest offense was its writing. Which was sloppy. A little on the nose at times and generally not inspiring.

At the end of the day, my only concern is less complaint and more confusion. Why tie it to Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. All that does is tick off people like me who appreciate the original for what it was. And teach the newer generation who hasn’t seen GWCTD that there is nothing to be gained from a serious discussion about race relations. That it’s okay to make racist jokes over the dinner table. That there might never have been a time when the subject of an interracial relationship was incredibly taboo and in fact, quite punishable.

On one hand, it’s great that more and more kids today are lovely shades of coffee with cream. Most of the people I know are in IR relationships. But to make such lighthearted conversation of a topic that people at one time were killed over just doesn’t do anything for anyone involved.

There’s nothing wrong with the movie that this movie is. A Meet the Folks for gentiles who are a few years younger than Ben Stiller. This is a fine movie to make. But to tie it to a classic like Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner is insulting to both films.

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner spent the movie discussing societal issues. Guess Who is spending the movie discussing through innuendo how long Simon can...go. Which is fine, but definitely not an homage to Hepburn, Poitier or Tracy.

Make the movie. Just don’t tie it to the first one.

Christina

2008-01-06T19:12:00.001-08:00

Seeing Christina Aguilera au natural and au baby bumpy made me think of something.

No, not the artistry and “bravery” of Demi Moore’s 1991 Vanity Fair cover to which Ms. Aguilera paid homage.

It made me think how fucking hard it is to be a woman.

Thanks to the magazine/advertising/media/entertainment industry, we’re told that not only should we look amazing and be impossibly thin during normal, non-stressful times in our lives; but we should also be preternaturally good-looking and poised when we’re carrying another human being inside of our bodies.

Pregnancy is hard.

And not just because now you have to chuck your cinched-in-the-middle -coats to find empire-waisted clothing to wear 24/7. But because your body is being taken over by another living creature.

I think in that delicate time, women should be forgiven their stretch marks, bad hair and swollen feet.

But far be it from these magazines to celebrate the true beauty of the miracle of life. Instead, they airbrush out lines on the skin, acne caused by hormonal changes, stray hairs caused by the same and probably even make the smile a little smilier when asking someone carrying an extra 20 pounds in front of them to pose sweetly.

The magazines have something right, though. Pregnancy is beautiful. But not because you can hide the flaws that occur on the body while you’re incubating life.

Pregnancy is beautiful because of what it signifies. The joining of two people into one person. A clean slate for them both.

Closer than sex, are mother and child in the womb. Though a man may be inside his lover; he never lives there. He stops by for a while and leaves. But the womb is a child’s home. The mother’s blood is their blood. The mother’s breath, the child’s breath. An intimate nine-month hug between mother and child. A connection that no one else will experience or understand.

It’s a fucking miracle.

Pregnancy is beautiful because it signifies hope. Hope that the new child will be unmarred. Hope that the parents can correct the wrongs done to them and give a new life a better chance at life. The chance at life at all. Hope that even though in this age of 50-percent-divorce rates and wild amounts of phychotheraputic medication, that maybe this time, with this child, it’ll be okay.

This is not to say that the magazines should highlight the physical manifestations of the stress of pregnancy. But ignoring them insults us all. It cheapens the amazing, wondrous, miraculous moments it took to get us all here. The moments it took to give us the chance to give someone else the chance and hope they make the most of it.

Shark: "In the Crosshairs"

2007-11-24T18:57:00.000-08:00

If this was an homage to the fact that we were all surprised that the DC snipers were shooters-of-color, they missed their chance. The show had a chance to discuss why perhaps different groups of people commit different types of crimes, but instead fell back on old stereotypes that firmly cemented fears and assumptions.

Episode starts with a mysterious shooter picking people off on a highway. The bullets used are traced back to a gang member. Because the shootings seem so random, the attorneys figure that it's a gang thing. In the gang the bullets are traced to, new members are inducted by shooting an innocent.

So they find the leader of the gang.

And of course he's a scary ass black man. Not only is he a scary ass black man, but they pull him off of a girl he's graphically banging when they arrest him (see the post on Traffic for more on that).

Now LA has plenty of gangs and yes, many of th gang members are black. But there's Latino gangs as well as Asian and White Power thugs. Either of those could have been represented by the producers of Shark, but they fell back on the scary ass black man. (SABM)

As they question the SABM, they find out that he is totally unrepentant for crimes he's committed or acts perpetrated on his behalf by gang members he's supplied with weapons and ammo.

Finally, the killer is revealed and he turns out to be a) while and b) killing with purpose.

Now, it's fine that the killer is white. My beef is with the motive.

On procedurals, when a crime is random, violent, without merit and terrifying, it's usually done by a minority.

When the crime is a crime of passion, somehow justifyable or there's just a momentary loss of judgement, the perpetrator is typically white.

Watch some shows, you'll see the pattern.

When the crime is done by a gang member for revenge or sport, the perp is of color.

When the crime is committed by some rich person for love, the perp is white.

The (white) perp is classy, articulate, schooled.

The SABM is thuggy, uses more slang than not and can't muster up a sense of decorum.

And thus was the case with this episode of Shark. The perp, we learn, has anger management issues and shot the first guy because he found out his wife was having an affair with him. Thus, he has a "real" reason. The love of his life betrayed him and he was exacting revenge.

This is in quite a contrast to the SABM that we met at the top of the episode who killed for sport.

And this distinction that is made over and over again by cop and lawyer shows is a scary thing.

Size Matters

2007-09-19T11:53:00.001-07:00

So, this isn’t really about minorities, but it is about a group of “my people.” It’s about women. Women slightly outnumber the men in the US and due to a desire to get through the rest of this blog and the clunkiness of Google in this particular search, I’m not going to throw up a specific number.

So women aren’t a minority, but they are treated as the lower class when it comes to men/women issues.

I’ll blow past the wage issue because I’m not well versed enough in it to know more than the basic “women earn less than men” bullet point. So feel free to fill in whatever reason floats your boat. I think there’s a lot to be said about women’s naturally less aggressive nature, the tendency of people at the top (men) to be more comfortable putting people like themselves at the top with them, and the fact that women take more time off than men to raise kids.

Interesting, though, that women outnumber the men on your average college campus.

But moving on to something I know more about and which will lead nicely into my rantings.

The roles for women in television and film are historically frustrating to annoying. A quick survey of the roles for which actresses were awarded the Academy Award show that we like our women oppressed and sexual. Female driven movies are few and far between. And television shows with strong and complex roles for women have only started to become part of the norm in the last couple of seasons.

It’s not news that the media holds women to an impossible standard. And at once claims to tout women looking like “real women” with curves and breasts and everything, while photoshopping the crap out of America Ferrera so she looks camera ready for her Glamour magazine close-up.

I remember being appalled back in 1998 or so. When NBC became the prime time leader with Friends and Will and Grace and watching the girls on those shows wither down to sticks as they became more popular. It’s like there was a direct and inverse correlation between the shows’ ratings and Jennifer Aniston’s body fat.

Even on the lowest key of levels, I was so sad to see how much weight one my favorite comediennes has lost since becoming a regular player on Saturday Night Live.

Men, again this isn’t news, aren’t held to the same standard. According to the powers that be, it’s totally reasonable for Jim Belushi to have an impossibly skinny, gorgeous wife. Same with Kevin James (who I totally love!). Lead actors in movies are allowed to be comedically cute enough. Floppy and mussy. Unkempt and untraditional. Not someone you’d ask into bed, but if they were there, you might not kick them out. While their lady friends have to be actually and terribly gorgeous.

So…I was not surprised, but I was upset when I watched the weigh-in of The Biggest Loser. My husband has really taken to this show and I like reality TV more than I (or my career as a scripted television writer) would like to let on, so I watched the two hour extravaganza with him.

The first hour is all very inspiring and makes me want to quit my day job so I can work out with logs and run through sand and lift my workout partner over my head and such.

The second hour is the weigh in. the contestants come in. The girls in a sports bra and spandex. The guys in loose fitting shorts and t-shirts.

SIGH.

So…on a show that’s ostensibly about getting healthy and feeling better about yourself, they put the girls in outfits that reveal just exactly how unhealthy they are. And let the guys hide their bulk from the cameras.

Now, before you tell me that the guys have to take off their shirts for the weigh in and what’s under their shirts can be pretty shocking, let me get there…

The girls are not only in belly revealing outfits, they’re in tight outfits. Outfits that cling to every indent and roll. Outfits that clearly let you see pretty much exactly what these ladies would look like without clothes at all. While the men enjoy moments of detailed physically anonymity—hiding in their baggy clothes that are much more forgiving.

The women have to stand for all intents and purposes in their underwear for the entire hour of the ceremony. While the men only have to take off their shirts for the couple of minutes of the weigh in. Then when the men step off the scale, they get to put their shirts back on and we forget exactly what they looked like under their clothes. While we’re told every second what’s going on with the women’s bodies.

The message that it sends is strange. The men can essentially look okay at their size—they’re hidden under dark, baggy clothes. They have the general shape of a guy, so they look okay. But the women are put on much more display and consequently made to feel much more shame for their shape. Especially in an age where women’s sexuality on TV is the only thing that will keep them there.

What would be the harm in putting the women in something more modest? Why do the guys get to hide their bellies, but the women’s are there to flop over their tight biker shorts for the whole hour? Their arms are exposed. Their bellies. Their thighs. All areas that as a woman, I can tell you I worry about constantly. The men get to hide. They get to be modest. The women are on display.

Like I said, when some of the guys take off their shirts, the effects of their lifestyle are startling and I’m not saying I want to stare at that for an hour either. I feel super self conscious with my body, I can only imagine what it must be like for the nearly 400 lb Rez. It’s not like guys are totally immune from the arrows of our society’s ridiculous beauty standards.

So why not treat both sexes with respect on the show? You can buy loose fitting, light weight workout wear. Something that would be modest, but not affect the weigh in weight. Or simply weigh the clothes before the weigh in and adjust the weight accordingly.

Putting the women in clothing that flatters—whatever size they are—is a more effective way to build those women’s self images and put them on a path toward healing and restoration. Rather than shaming them on national TV.

The show purports to be about being healthy, not about looking good. So neither the men nor the women should have to put that much skin on that much display. But I guess when it comes down to it, the show isn’t about the contestants at all, but about ratings and giving the public something to talk about in the morning. Whether that’s the workout or the sideshow factor, I suppose to the suits, it doesn’t much matter.

Traffic

2007-09-10T14:48:00.000-07:00

Rewatching this movie. Was really into it…until the 1:37:31 mark.

I guess the scene I’m about to tear into should be mitigated somewhat with the fact that Don Cheadle, Luis Guzman are good guys. Nice characters and great actors.

But at the 1:37:31 mark, we’re introduced up close and personally to the character who will probably resonate as the worst to our American sensibilities. And he’s black. And effing the s out of a white girl so she can score some drugs.

In a movie filled with people who are doing questionable things, you might ask why this guy stands out to me as worse than the others. Or why he is disserved by being black.

Let’s start with the fact that Americans are weird about sex. That’s a pretty subjective way of saying the equally subjective statement that we’re Puritanical hypocrites, but we are. Raunchy sex in movies typically illustrates the worst that someone can do or the lowest that someone can go.

If you take the psychology of serial killers at the prestigious USC film school, you’ll learn that serial killers are often impotent or at least struggle with the sexuality in some horrible way that leads them to kill.

Virgins survive in horror movies. Girls who have sex don’t.

It’s all over the language of the screen. Sex is bad. Even though rates of unplanned pregnancies and STDs continue to be on the rise in the US (among affluent communities at that) we still as a nation pretend that and enjoy art that acts as though sex is reserved for base people and creates base things.

So when we see Michael Douglas’s daughter having sex done to her by this muscular black man, we know that things aren’t just bad. They’re really f*cking bad.

The sex she had with her (white) boyfriend was a) implied and b) though it was in a drug-addled state, it was at least loving.

This black guy just does sex to her with no feeling. No inkling of emotion. Totally using her. The scene is shot from a horrible perspective angle that lets the viewer feel really up close and personal with a guy we’re supposed to dislike and who we’re pretty sure bad things are going to happen to…and we’re led to be okay with that.

Also add to this that all the people at the girl’s AA group were white. No minorities were there trying to better themselves. But she needs drugs. So off she goes to a poor black neighborhood where she gets laid for crack.

And we’re not led to dislike her for her addiction. She’s explained to the camera that she’s angry. We see her messed up nuclear family. So we feel sorry for her. We sympathize with the fact that she needs to medicate to find comfort. But the blacks on the street in at in her in fact in this scene, there’s no sympathy for them. They’re just street thugs who make faces as Douglas drives his Mercedes through Compton. The white girl is going to get out and get rescued. But Douglas, who’s character is in charge of arresting the nation’s drug problem, isn’t worried about anyone else.

And then, to make it clear just how far gone the girl is, when she passes out and is for all intents and purposes a corpse on the bed, the black guy climbs on top and goes at it again.

Also, at the 2:03 mark, we meet another man to whom the girl has ostensibly whored herself out to. He's white. We don't see him mount her. There's no creepy vaguely necrophiliac sex. The guy is apologetic for his actions and he's gone.

No one else in the movie is as base of a character as the black drug dealer. And as the movie purports, drugs are all over. Even in rich, uptight suburbia. So why go and enlist a bunch of black actors to portray the worst of the drug problem?

There’s any number of other things that could have communicated her downfall. She’s scored drugs from her rich white friends through the first hour and a half of the movie. Why she needs to go to a scary black neighborhood now is odd. Especially since the last time we saw her with her boyfriend, they were a sweet couple. Very very high, but sweet nonetheless. And he got her high just fine. Why not go back to him. call him and ask him to come get her? there’s nothing on film that would suggest that she couldn’t call her established boyfriend and she’s been in treatment, so she’s not making decisions out of her freebased haze.

So why a scary black neighborhood? Why not, I guess? No harm right? In reinforcing horrible stereotypes in a movie that seems to say that it’s tearing them down.

Does Don Cheadle make up for that? Does the black lawyer in the courtroom? Benico del Toro’s character trying to do good? The Latino judge? Maybe. And Soderberg does deserve credit for making these choices that can unnecessarily be called “progressive.” These are bold casting choices in an era where we still can’t have a black man and woman be leads in a romantic movie without it being labeled an “urban comedy.”

But the scene with a guy having sex to a nearly dead girl is more visceral. It makes your gut turn. There’s a physical sense tied to that emotion. And it’s the scene where something horrible happens to someone the movie has taught us to care about. So that’s going to be what sticks out to you. What you remember. The funny and charming banter that Cheadle and Guzman have in the car will fade. You won’t remember all the turns of phrase.

But you’ll remember how uncomfortable you felt when you saw nameless, voiceless black man remount a sweet, innocent girl that he’s just finished corrupting.

I got to 1:51:31 before I had to get back to work. will finish up any more chat about this flick when I get to finish the film.

Despite college enrollment data, apparently, Asians are dumb

2007-08-29T11:21:00.000-07:00

Not to turn this blog into anything that has to do with faith, but it amazes me that by the vocal scientific community, people who put any stock in faith (rather, Christianity) are often insulted and have their intellegence called into question.

Which totally makes sense when you consider that Mr. Crick of the DNA-debunking duo Watson and Crick made a guest lecture appearance at UC Berekely. While he was speaking, he said that there was hard scientific evidence that overweight people are happier than skinny people. To prove his point, he showed the class a picture of a smiling Santa Claus and a vacant-eyed runway model.

Yeah.

So I shouldn't be surprised when articles like the one that this editorial reviews make it to the printing presses.

Read A Book

2007-08-24T14:50:00.000-07:00

Someday, I hope to make something that goes crazy viral. But until then. I give you the work of people who do.

The only thing I have to suggest is that it will be easy for people to say that this is an indictment on the black community only. But it's not. Though there's the liberal use of the n-word, this video, I think speaks to the frustration folks feel with everyone who chooses to embrace the lifestyle that commerical hip hop has put out there.

(And just for the record, more than half of hip hop albums are purchased by white teens.)

F you, Michael Vick (now with video!)

2007-08-23T18:18:00.001-07:00

Not because you tortured and killed innocent dogs who didn't deserve it. Not because you're a pompous jerk who thought he was above the law. Not even for the dumb move you did with the bottle of water on the plane.

(Thank you, though for paving the way for this commentary on said bottle of water)

But a great big F you for doing something that leads to headlines like this.

Now we have to listen to an inane debate about how *shockingly* black people don't all think the same. dunDunDUNNNNN!

The gist of this article is that some black people think that Vick is a dirty scumbag who gets what's coming to him. And other black people think that he's a jerk, but doesn't deserve to have his career taken away from him. And that some black people lie somewhere in between.

That's about as surprising as the fact that some people like a Hawaiian pizza while others prefer mushrooms and olives.

Seriously, white people. Anyone, please chime in and answer me this. Does the common white person honestly think that all black people think the exact same things? That we meet at some black people meeting to discuss how we feel about issues?

Or is it just journalists?

When Barack Obama announced that he was running for president, I naively hoped that we'd escape the banter about how some black people like him and some black people don't. I thought that was a given. But what do I know. I'm just a black person with black friends and family members who have a variety of opinions on issues and events.

The question of whether or not black people have different opinions on what to do with Michael Vick or whether or not all black people like Barack Obama is as inane as asking if all white people like Kenny Rogers or badminton.

Just to set the record straight. Black people are capable of forming their own opinions regardless of what race the person is.

Aren't we all breathing a little easier now.

Yeah, there will be some black people who think that Vick should get off because he's famous or cute or looked good in that commerical. But they'll think that because they're idiots, not because they're black.

Just like some black people will vote for Obama and some will not.

We are living in an age where people are so connected, yet we get news as though the reporters have never met an actual human being. The headlne "Vick case divides African-American leaders" is a no-duh as all those studies that come out and say "eating right and exercising makes you healther."

It's amazing how ridiculous the question seems when it's turned around. Does every white person like George Bush? Or does every white person like John Edwards? Does every woman like Hillary Clinton? Does every Southerner like grits? Does every New Englander like chowdah? Does every person in California smoke weed and go to protests? See, generalizations aren't hard to make. They're just not interesting.

Mayor Viallargosa is Latino...sometimes

2007-07-16T10:31:00.000-07:00

Here is an op-ed piece by Gregory Rodriguez in the Los Angeles Times about instances when the media choose to focus on a public figure's ethnicity.

Transformers (SPOILER INSIDE)

2007-07-11T11:34:00.000-07:00

So...the ONLY autobot to die is the black one??!

(okay, so i think more than one of the voice actors who played the transformers were black, BUT, Jazz is the only one who is clearly "black.")

And Jazz dies mostly as a result of his own hubris and arrogance?? And Megatron has no trouble killing him while he can't seem to best the others??!

F!

Also, when we meet Jazz, Optimus Prime tells us that the autobots learned to speak by listening to earth's radio and TV. Interesting then, that all the autobots EXCEPT JAZZ!!! speak like normal people. They sound intelligent. They make smart jokes. EXCEPT JAZZ!!! who sounds like he was ripped from the extras casting pool of Soul Plane.

*sigh*

Hereos (spoliers inside)

2007-05-23T10:50:00.000-07:00

Just in case you're planning on getting the DVD and watching the season later. Don't keep reading.

So...I'm finally catching up with my obligatory NBC lineup watching and surprise, surprise. The only black (I'll get to Micah in a second) Hero died last night. I'm sorry. Was killed. Because he was duped.

That's so like us.

I am a lukewarm heroes fan. I totally heart Adrian Pasdar. I like Hayden Pannitiere inspite of myself. I worked on a cartoon that Maclcom MacDowell did a voice for. And the sci-fi is character-based enough to keep me involved.

But watching DL die last night made me take a moment to think about NBC's love of putting show in NYC and then casting zero to few minorities to fill the roles.

Let's get Mohinder out of the way. Yeah, he's an Indian dude and a main character. BUT they gave him a more "appealing" British accent rather than a traditional Indian accent. Yes, the British were in charge there and there's a ton of Indian people in England, but would it have been so difficult to let him have a natural Indian accent? To be fair, he's so damn hot, I barely pay attention to what he says anyway. So why not give him an authentic accent.

Hiro has an "authentic" accent. Though they let it come and go to play for comedy, I think which is a wee insutling. And just to show that they grow out of their ethnicities, Hiro loses his accent in the future (and thank God, right??). And Ando dies.

There is no reason why any other the other Heroes couldn't be not white. Though Adrian Pasdar (I heart you, Mr. Natalie Maines!) is part Persian, I believe. But he's cast as just a nice upstanding white guy of supposed Italian descent.

Oh, back to DL.

So DL was killed by a white guy protecting a white woman. Is there no better cause for a black man, after all? In the scene, two white people determine his fate and he does precious little to stop them. The tableau is more uncomfortable than you might thing. Malcom holding DL at gunpoint and DL's lady at ransom. Ali Larter makes the decision that decides DL's fate. And DL just stands there. Then he kills Malcolm. But mainly to protect the white lady. Then he dies. Whew! Now the writers don't have to trouble with writing a black voice anymore.

Sadly, up until that, DL wasn't actually a bad character. They let him speak like a normal person. He was imprisoned, but falsely, I believe. So the show should be given some credit for that.

However. Things just aren't good enough here to throw away scenes like that. Even if DL had stood up for himself instead of just protecting his white bauble, that would have made a difference.

Okay, let's look at the main, shall we:
Claire - W
Hiro - Asian. Loses accent in the future.
Ando - Asian. Dies in the future.
Mr. Bennett - W
Mohinder - Indian. But speaks with British accent. While the rest of India (at least as portrayed when he went back) speaks with an Indian accent.
Jessica/Nikki - W
Peter Petrilli - W
Nathan Petrelli - W
Micah - half-black, but in servitude to white people.
Matt Parker - W
Issac Mendez - Latino, but dead. At the hands of a powerful white guy
The Hatian - Black, and powerful but in total servitude. dies in future.
Simone - half-black. now dead. accidentally killed by the latino--see, we just can't control ourselves. killed incidentally, b/c she fell in love with a white guy
Mom Petrelli - W
Elizabeth Parkman - W
Sylar - W

If you don't want to have to cast an all ethnic-family, fine. But why not Matt Parkman or his wife? Why not Jessica/Nikki. We barely see her extended famil. Why have Hiro lose his accent completely? Why whitewash Mohinder's accent? Why the minority on minority murder? Why make the Hatian nothing more than a servant?

Folks who know me know I don't walk around with a particular chip on my shoulder. At least not about this. :) But thinking critically about these things are important. The images we set up as being acceptible situations for minorities are important.

One of the worst things about the Duke/rape case recently--apart from boys being accused of a heinous crime they ostensibly did not commit--was what was caught on camera from that night. There were pictures of dozens of drunk, rich white boys watching a naked black girl writhe around on the floor. There was something so backward and horrible about that that I felt those stills were as hard to look at as photos of the rape--had it occurred--would have been.

When the media continues to put minority faces in subserviant tableaus. When the idea of a minority family being a main player on a television show still worries executives. When in a cast as big and expensive as the one I've discussed here, the minority faces are killed, subserviant or missing from main story lines...maybe I should have a bigger chip up there after all.

The Soup

2007-04-22T17:45:00.000-07:00

Well, not really The Soup. I heart The Soup.

And because I spend my time watching more important television like Boston Legal (expect a fairly detailed blog about BL later), The Soup is the conduit through which I get the important pop culture bullet points.

Normally The Soup makes me laugh and wonder if we had met in college, would Joel McHale have gone out with me at least once. Even if it was just a pity date or because he thought I might be an easy lay.

Today The Soup made me want to kill myself.

Not because of The Soup itself but because of three stories in a row that could have been part of a new segment called "Embarassing Ethnicities."

The first gem in this segment was a clip from the I Love New York reuinion show. Yes, the ILNY reunion show. Because the apocalypse isn't coming quite fast enough.

For those of you not fortunate enough to have seen ILNY, the show was a Bachelor-style competition featuring the skankiest of the Flavor of Love rejects, New York. She spent a season auditioning man-skanks who for some reason had an interest into entering her bacteria bin of a vanana and becoming Mr. New York.

Three men couldn't join the reunion show because one had "issues" (read: syphillis), one was on crutches and one was in jail.

The second clip was from an ILNY spin off, yes, an ILNY spin off, again because those show producers just can't wait to meet up with the whore of Bablyon. This show, whose name mercilessly escapes me, features black heavyweight Mo'Nique taking girls to charm school. Because if anyone knows charm, it's the 400lb Mo'Nique who feels it's appropriate to wear sequined midriffs and that she is perfectly qualified to host a beauty pageant.

Not that I'm down with society's strict standards, either. But there's a difference between having a few extra pounds on you and being able to be divided into four well-proportioned individual people and a family pet.

So the first item of business was Mo'Nique telling this cache of women to rid themselves of their ghetto fabulous nicknames.

Because if anyone's going to judge what one calls themselves. it's Mo'Nique...with an apostrophe.

But I didn't raise the razor to my wrists until I saw the promo for the show "HollyHood." This reality show follows the classy young men from 36Mafia as they pee on Jennifer Love Hewitt's lawn and try to make it in LaLaLand.

My hatred of 36Mafia started, as I'm sure it did for most people, at the Oscars 2006 when they acted like idiots and swore into the microphone at this black tie affiar. My husband tried to calm me and said "hey, they're excited." I've been excited before, but save for this one time in college when I was totally wasted and thought that if a guy made out with you that meant he was your boyfriend (thanks, mom and dad for not letting me date in hs, leading to all kinds of misunderstandings, and thanks to david for a great night and a heartbreaking morning), i succeeded in not looking like a jackass.

Maybe I shouldn't care that this is what "my people" are doing. it's just TV, right. I'd shrug it off if that were the case. Or if at least one of the following things hadn't happened.
- Me having to defend myself in a room full of executives and peers because I didn't get my job through the minority loophole.
- Me having to sit in a car and listen as a bunch of white girls decided to try their hands at saying the n-word for the first time and then bullying me for getting upset because "black people say it all the time."
- Me being told by more than one person "well, you're not really black" as a compliment because I talk the way I do and will listen to Less Than Jake before I'd pick up a JayZ CD.
- Me being called 'articulate."

The NAACP image awards are really missing the point by rewarding "good" television. Instead, they shoud hang these other shows in effigy. There should be letters and protests. Not against the individuals, they're just people after all, with some money waved in front of them. Who wouldn't do a little song and dance for that?

But though Tyler James Williams and Tracee Ellis Ross do good by portraying interesting, complex images of African-Americans, the other shows are the things people talk about in our trainwreck rubbernecking culture.

When you flip through the pages of US Weekly (and for crying out loud, why wouldn't you?), you don't read about the celebs who go to work, go home at night, take care of their families and have a glass of wine while unwinding before bed. You read about the bad kids. The ones with shaved heads, waxed private parts and exposed sex lives. Those are the celebs we talk about. Those are the seedy things we enjoy revelling in.

And it's the same with the aforementioned shows. I was in a room and the only black person (I think there was a Puerto Rican, but that was it when it came to "color") during the 36Mafia acceptance speech. When the guys started talking, there was tittering, laughter. But when it became clear that what they were doing was not a schtick, but some unfortunate aspect of who they are, the laughter stopped and the awkwardness rose. No one looked at me, but I saw them look at each other. Polite smiles and that look in their eyes that said, "well...."

Of course very few people would go so far as to say "well, that's how they are, you know." but when you see over and over images like the three clips from The Soup, it makes it hard to believe otherwise. It's easy to think yourself out of the situation. To say "well, I know that's not true." but that's the second thought that comes to most of us. The good news is that most of us go to the second thought.

Except, apparently, reality show producers.

Drive

2007-04-21T18:48:00.000-07:00

Just finished watching the season premier.

And really?

...The only two black characters are the first ones out of the race, were the only ones who couldn't figure out the clue and were all too easily duped by their fast talking white counterpart....

They even let the criminal Latino guy do better than that.

And the award for most ironic award goes to...

2007-03-15T16:37:00.000-07:00

Long before Mr. Washington opened his mouth about his Grey's Anatomy (a show i hate with a frightening intensity, but that's for another blog), I saw him having a cigar a few doors down from where I take a class.

I so wanted to pop into the store and buy something, anything just to get a little closer. Maybe see what he smelled like. Though at that moment, it was probably a cigar--a smell I'm not all that fond of.

Were that to happen today, I'd probably just shake my head and sigh. Like I'm doing now as I think of the rest of what I'm about to write.

The NAACP image awards were last week. Isaiah Washington accepted his award for best actor to a standing ovation.

I don't even know where to begin with this one. I supposed I should say that I don't think that what an actor does in their personal life should affect what we think of their performances. Actors do have an unfair burden since we as a voyeristic public pry into their personal lives and ask way too invasive questions in the name of escapism. When all that really matters is do they convince us on screen that they are who they're pretending to be. I don't think we should let whether or not they're married to this starlet or that affect how we view their work.

Unless they're getting an award for projecting an IMAGE of a group of people.

Ostensibly, the NAACP Image Awards are about more than just talent. More than being a pretty face that can cry on command and make us cry with them. They’re about sharing the burden that people of color share for the rest of us. At least that’s what you’d get from the name of the award ceremony. But apparently, the NAACP isn’t so concerned about that. And is easily duped.

For those that don’t remember or know the story, here’s what happened.

Basically, Isaiah got into a fight with Patrick Dempsey and in the course of doing so, called cast member TR Knight the f-word. Then, on the red carpet at the Golden Globes, said, in front of his cast members, “I never called TR a f---.” Then a few days later, he issued an apology for calling TR that name and went to “rehab” which is apparently the new black. Last year, it was pregnancy, this year it’s celeb rehab. Whatever.

My husband, who is white, has let me in on a few secrets of whiteness. One of them being how much more often the n-word comes up in conversation than it really should and how it does seem to bring with it a sense of power.

I watched this happen on afternoon. I was on the way to a bible study of all places and was with three (white) friends of mine. One of them said of the n-word “if the rappers can say it, why can’t I?” And I sighed heavily and steeled myself for a long ride.

I told her that just because some rappers (who are ultimately having their music produced by white people at the record labels) say it doesn’t mean that every single black person wants to say it or ever does. Besides, why would want to say it in the first place. Sure, people in England say “c*nt” a lot, but I’m not sitting on my side of the pond saying “Oh, if only I could say the word c*nt over a pint. Then life would be complete.”

And so, I said she shouldn’t want to say the n-word, either. She told me that she’d never in fact said “nigger.”

Then she said it. About five times.

And as she kept saying it. I could feel the power that she felt from using it. By the time she said it the last time, she was practically smiling and said it with the casualness with which one might say “toast.”

I read a quote that described hearing that word as a black person was like experience a flashback you didn’t even know was part of your memory. This shared nightmare that you forgot you had.

I say all of that to say that the only word that has ever given me a since of power. The only word that I could say that would really put someone in their place (because, let’s face it, “peckerwood”—not that stinging) is “faggot.”

I’ve said maybe once or twice. Not to someone, I was relating a story. And I probably said it the second time because of the power I felt saying it the first time.

Then I stopped and never said it again.

I couldn’t and can’t bring myself to say out loud a word that I know carries the weight, disgust and hate of the n-word. I know too well how that feels and I won’t put that on someone.

Isaiah Washington knows the weight of such words. And not only did that not stop him from saying it in a moment of anger (which might be excusable if he’d just apologized) but from joking about it later and saying it again, into a microphone, in a public place, in front of everyone who got pissed at him for saying it before, totally unapologetically.

And then only really apologizing when his contract was in trouble.

This is not the kind of image of a black man I would think that the voting members of the NAACP across the country would want perpetuated via their award ceremony. And Dr. Presont Burke isn’t so layed of a character, so unbelievable of a story vehicle that Washington’s portrayal of him trumps his lack of tact and his tarnishing of the image.

His comments were indicative of the kind of bigotry black Americans have fought so long to have taken out of the public discourse. His blatant denial and flippant attitude about said comments at the Golden Globe Awards were embarrassing, pointless and showed that Mr. Washington has little to no concern for any image he is putting forth.

It’d be like giving Tim Hardaway a Humanitas for his “honesty.”

I'm expanding

2007-01-23T12:01:00.000-08:00

So this news story isn't about POC on screen, but it is in part about POC and it's one of many many articles that regularly appear in print that ever so subtly perpetuate unfortunate thoughts and feelings toward certain elements of the population.

It's possible this article has been shortened to fit on msn.com's space allotted for today's news stories. I hope so, otherwise, the AP has a reporter who's really falling down on the job. Without any analysis of why minorities (and since they go through the trouble of pointing out blacks, I will, too) live longer in prison, there's a latent idea that maybe it's not so bad that so many minority faces are behind bars. It's analogus to the "but Africa wasn't any better" arguement that people throw out when they feel uncomfortable with a conversation about slavery.

I have no idea why life expectancy is longer. It probably has something to do with getting three (healthy enough) meals a day, regular exercise and limited access to smoking, drinking and fast food as well as more access to medical help than one might get on the outside when one has no medical insurance. That's just a guess, but I think it's a pretty reasonable one. But if anything like that were the case, then the onus would be on the public to actually do something. And why do something when we can just lock people up. After all, it's not like life on the streets is any better, right?

MIchael Richards

2006-11-20T17:37:00.000-08:00

I saw Michael Richards perform not too long ago. My husband and I went down to the Improv on a whim, just to catch whatever acts were going up that night. We were delighted to see that he was one of them.

Richards wasn't the headliner, but it was clear that the red light flashing at the back of the room wasn't for him. He definitely took the most time out of any of the comics who appeared that night and it was absolutely worth it.

There's been a shift in style from comics of a few decades past to the ones of today. Neither style is better or worse, but I will always hold a torch for the more longwinded, story-oriented jokes of yesterdecade. Comics today tend to be more rapid fire, quicker anecdotes. Set ups are shorter, punch lines come faster. In the world of 3-joke a page sitcoms, the talent behind them understandably follows suit in their performances.

But Richards was different. His routine was heavier. Not serious, just weighty. With very real points being made. The bulk of his bit had to do with pet dogs and zoos and it was hilarious! Every time I take my dog for a walk, I think of his routine and laugh again.

But something went terribly terribly wrong. Both last night on stage and somewhere in history that allows the lack of backlash we've seen since the video of Richards nearly threatening some black kids in his crowd hit the internet.

After Mel Gibson was arrested, you couldn't log on to more than two or three web pages without seeing another retelling of the "sugartits" incident. The columnists were on fire, sending out missives about Mel, his alcoholism and his unforgiveable anti-Semitism.

Random searches through the day today turned up one, maybe two links to anyone who seems to be moved to action by Richard's outburst.

In case you missed it, here it is.

This is bad enough, but what’s worse is the number of people I’ve heard today who have said “it’s not that bad.” Or “black comedians do this all the time.”

One, it IS that bad. Two, black comedians do not do this all the time. And if they did, I can promise you, the people who are affirming that it happens do not frequent the kinds of clubs where it would.

There is a difference between telling a joke and splashing your venom all over the stage. The latter is not funny. It’s not comedy. It’s sad.

It’s interesting that more than one person has defended Richards today. But when Mel Gibson made the same kind of comments about Jews, no one would dare defend him. Is it b/c we're more comfortable defending people who while they may not "be white" could at least pass in most circumstances.
In addition to the “it’s not that bad”s, I’ve also been reminded today (again by more than one person) about how if Richards’ comments were out of turn, well, it’s just that blacks bring the comments on themselves by being so violent and loving rape and broken homes the way they do. It’s the blacks’ faults for filling up the prisons and getting AIDS and failing the math and science portions of standardized tests.

To those people, let me remind you. POOR PEOPLE make up the majority of people in prison. POOR STUDENTS do worse on standardized tests. POVERTY creates situations where people are more likely to have children born out of wedlock. It’s not being black that does any of these things. And if you believe that it is a person’s race that determines their proclivity for violence, you are on a very slippery slope and I suggest you take a careful step off.

It’s an economic situation that breeds suffering and heartache and desperation. You will find the same kinds of prison/unmarried families/low scores on tests in most poor communities, not black ones. There are in fact, more genetic differences among people of one race than there are differences between the races themselves. Consider the kids who grew up with me. In the nice suburb with the man-made lakes and expensive vacations. We were all doing fine. Black, white, whatever.

And whether you’re one to believe it or not, there are institutions in place that keep minorities poor. White families were allowed to own property and get an education generations before it could become the norm for blacks. I don’t have to go too far back in my family tree to find relatives in forced labor. Things like that makes a difference.

I have a white friend who was arrested for shoplifting, yet when we would go to a high end store together, I was the one gets the extra looks.

I’ve been spat at. I’ve had teachers question me at length to explain why I like classical music as opposed to hip hop. I’ve had more than one person try to set me up with someone and when I ask what they're like they say, "well, he's black."

I had a college counselor tell me that it was good I was black, so I didn't have to be smart to go to college. Never mind that I’d taken all advanced/college level courses and had a 4.0 GPA.

I’ve been called the n-word to my face just for walking into a grocery store. (This was just 4 years ago, btw) words cannot describe how horrible and humiliating that feels. To walk into a reputable place of business, hear that, then look over to find a group of guys cracking up at the little nigger girl who just walked in....and who promptly walked out again.

The word is not funny. It never has been. It never will be. And yes, there are black people who say it. Yes, black comedians. I don’t think it’s funny when they use it either. Though if anyone is going to handle the word, I’d rather it be someone in the family that someone outside of it. And I’ve had more than one white person tell me that’s unfair. Well, I say to them. Too bad. You have everything else. You’re the majority. You have the wealth. The power. The control. Let us have this.

Ideally, we would take the word, teach our children how awful it is and protect it. Keep it out of the hands of those who seek to do us harm through its use. Michael Richards was not trying to make a poignant statement the other night. He pulled a unique and decisive weapon out of his arsenal to make himself feel like the big man. The guy on the stage with the microphone and the power. And that’s not comedy. That’s sad

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

2006-11-05T21:14:00.000-08:00

Fair warning, there are spoilers ahead. Not that these spoilers carry the same weight as telling you what the twist is at the end of the next M. Night Shamalyan movie that you totally couldn’t see coming, but I will give away bits of the movie nonetheless.

First thing first. You must see this movie.

Sacha (and yes, I will take the liberty of calling Mr. Baron Cohen by his given name) continues to do a great job at what he does so wonderfully. Making us cringe and laugh in the same breath at the wonder, folly and embarrassment of the human condition. And at rednecks.

One might say that this movie is offensive to people who live in Borat’s area of the world. As Borat walks us through his town, we see the village rapist and watch Borat make out with his sister who is also the “number four” prostitute in the village. The town is dilapidated and poor and Borat couldn’t be more proud of his roots.

But the thing is, we know this is a joke. We know that no matter where you go in the world, a man educated enough to produce a documentary would not be proud to stick his tongue into his sibling. We know that no town is proud of their local rapists. We know that while people may mix up English verb tenses in other countries, at least they have the respect to learn another language in the first place.

We are not really shocked until Borat comes to America and we see parts of our heartland for what it is.

For those of you who follow the show, it will come as no surprise that Borat makes people very uncomfortable and it’s effing hilarious when he does it. For those of you who don’t follow his show, stop reading this blog and rent Da Ali G Show immediately, watch it, then pick up where you left off.

But this blog isn’t about how great Sacha Baron Cohen’s acting skills are, it’s about minority representation in TV and film.

What Sacha is great at as a performer, is getting people to be frightfully honest. Most of the time this scares us because that honesty leads them to gleefully shout phrases like “throw the Jew down the well” and tell a cameraman that they want to hang all the gays from gallows.

Most of the time, the honesty we see from Baron Cohen’s show is great because it’s nothing like us. It’s a reflection on other people in other places who are stuck in some other time. But there’s a great moment in Borat that forces us to realize we’re not all that different. Maybe we don’t say things out loud in front of strangers, but the nastiness is inside of us nonetheless.

About 30 minutes into the movie, Borat and his producer are on the road to California and they drive through Atlanta. We see a close up of a sign reading “Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.” And there is an audible “oh shit” from the audience.

We’ve all heard the comedic bit about how MLK streets are always in the worst neighborhoods. Dangerous places that Dr. King tried to prevent from taking root. And from what we know of Borat, we’re pretty sure that he’s about to get his ass capped.

And that includes me. A woman of color who tries to avoid selling out my own people. But even my hackles were up and I was afraid for Sacha.

Borat and his producer drive up next to three or four black guys playing craps on the street. He, very much unafraid, gets out of the car and engages the young men who clearly have no idea what to make of this man.

And they turn out to be the nicest people in the movie.

Sure they’re casually dressed and definitely speak in what has been affectionately termed “African American English.” But they’re really nice guys who take Borat in for the few minutes he allows them. They treat him nicely and try to help him out in the ways that he asks. They don’t threaten him, they aren’t shown talking crap about him behind his back. They don’t make scary ass political statements about immigrants or gays. They’re just cool guys who want to help their new friend have some fun.

We all knew what we were expecting. A few scenes later, Borat gets booed out of a rodeo by frightening and nationalistic Texans. Most likely, everyone on the theater thought the same would happen with these black guys, but maybe with a glock and the shouting of the n-word. But it didn’t.

For the first time in a while, the black folks weren’t the scariest people in a movie, but they were still sincere and interesting characters. They weren’t squeaky-clean boys, but they weren’t hard-core thugs out for blood. They were just guys trying to live in the same country as the white folks at the rodeo who cheered when Borat said “And may George W. Bush drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq!

God bless you SBC. And God bless America.

Angelia Jolie in Brownface

2006-10-10T14:27:00.000-07:00

Angelina in brownface

First, Angelina isn't that outstanding of an actress that she's more worthy than all actresses of color to play this role. Who knows what the politics/scheduling/money situation of this casting decision was, but surely there was someone qualified who was available.

Second, this is the type of movie that will probably have a lot of awards buzz around it. And Jolie's part will likely be that part that gets the attention. Especially since most of the awards for actresses are given out for roles that are submissive, overly sexual or oppressed in someway. So here we have a strong female role that would have been such a wonderful opportunity for an actress of color. Even a little bit of color. But no, the role goes to Ms. Jolie in bronzer and a wig.

I've been amazed at the people who have said, "oh, it's no big deal. where are you going to find a half-black or black-mixed race actress anyway?" well, there's:
Halle Berry
Thandie Newton
Jennifer Beals
Lisa Bonet
Rosario Dawson
Jasime Guy
Sabrinna LeBeauf
Michael Michele
Tia Mowry
Tamara Mowry
Tracee Ellis Ross
Sophie Okonedo
Sydney Tamalia Poitier
Rain Pryor
Maya Rudolph
Rachel True
Persia White

Just to name a few. Not to mention all the young hopefulls out here who would love a chance at a movie like this.

Good, meaty roles for women are already few and far between. Good, meaty roles for black women are even more disparate.

The problem is that even if she pulls this role off--and she's good enough to do that. That doesn't make this a good decision. Chances are, that the attention will go to her for being able to embody another race, another culture, rather than focusing on why the powers that be decided to deny this role to an different actress who physically fit the part better.

Hell, the production could have saved some money on the full-body bronzer. That stuff's expensive!

Nip/Tuck

2006-10-09T16:04:00.000-07:00

I had to go away from Nip/Tuck last season because it went a bit crazy and took the salaciousness that makes it fun waaaaay the heck too far. But I'm back now and it's great!

Several issues to discuss. 1) Sanaa Lathan 2) Peter Dinklage 3) Scientology 4) Julian McMahon.

Allow me to work my way backwards.

Julian McMahon might be the most gorgeous person ever to live. Ever. Holy freaking crap that man is good looking.

Okay, now that everyone's thrown up a little bit, let me move on to the stuff that matters...or at least the stuff that this blog is about.

3) Scientology. Now religions don't really fall into the POC category, except maybe for Jewish folks. But then really only the orthodox since they're the only ones you can really spot in a crowd.

But Scientology has been in the news and such lately, and religion is a "diversity" issue, so I will take a few sentences to talk about it.

I'm fairly impressed with what they're doing with this storyline. Now, I'm not a Scientologist, but I am religious. And thanks to great folks like James Dobson, I hear about how my faith is a load of bigoty crap all the time. It gets tiring.

I don't agree with Scientology on so very many levels, but I do respect people who honestly hold on to their beliefs. There was a guy in my boxing class who outed himself as a scientologist after the class spent about 20 minutes talking about what a load of crap that 'church' is. He didn't make a stink, he didn't talk badly about anyone else, he simply said that Scientology worked for him. The conversation stopped pretty much altogether but it was very eye opening.

It's easy to make fun of, lambast and ridicule things we don't know about. Ideas we don't agree with. The South Park Scientology episode is wonderful and terrible for this reason. It's great because it's ballsy. Whenever I watch the show, I'm always impressed with what they don't mind skewering and sometimes, I'm even given things to think about. I'm sure their main focus is to be funny and crude, but Parker and Stone can't help but make decent commentary.

Terrible is the wrong word to describe the fault with that South Park episode. The problem with it is that it gives too many people an easy way to hate strangers. It makes fun of their beliefs without presenting a fair telling of the other side and so off go the rest of us non scientologists laughing and laughing and laughing, knowing that we can confidently shun those who believe in thetans and e-meters and never have to give them a second thought because, c'mon look how messed up their religions is.

Nip/Tuck is doing all of us a favor. Instead of giving us a cop out excuse to continue thinking the religion is full of crap. We see how one can become interested in such a group. Last week's episode had a great scene where Matt realizes he's about to be kidnapped and runs to the safety of his Scientology brothers who form a protective circle around him, not unlike deer sheltering their young from a lion.

The men are strong and Matt is scared. No words are exchanged, but the boy is protected. He feels safe and like he belongs. Who doesn't want to feel that from time to time.

Life is hard and all of us go through periods where we would love for someone to come along beside us, hold our hands for a while and tell us it's going to be okay. That happens rarely enough to make all of us suseptible to whatever may be lurking at work, or in Matt's case, at the gym, lying in wait for us to need help.

As religious person, I'm torn. The Christian in me wants for Matt to find a group that feels less like a cult. And the human in me totally understands what he's going through and kinda wishes I could join him. I'd love a circle of people waiting for me to be hurt so that they could heal me.

And so I'm challenged. My beliefs aren't shaken and I still hold to the values I believe to be true. But thanks to this telling of his story, I'm a little less cynical about those who choose otherwise.

2) Peter Dinklage

I thought the show was going to get by without discussing Dinklage's character's dwarfism. They did not. But the discussion was short and proved a point. Sean brings up Mr. Sawyer's "condition" as an insult. Saying that since he probably has a hard time with the ladies because he's small and that's why he was preying on Julia. Sawyer quickly schools him and we all feel a little bad because secretly, we were wondering the same thing.

But then Sawyer has a conversation with Julia where he discusses his dwarfism and says that his parents always hated it. It's sad and touching and we're forced to realize that for the most part, we haven't noticed Sawyer's height. Dinklage is a fine actor, sweet and tender in this role. He's so many things that his height doesn't matter, and when it's brought up in these scripts, it serves a purpose. It doesn't define the character like so often happens when someone is outside of the mold on TV. And it allows us to look at ourselves and our prejudices, which always makes for good TV.

3) Sanaa Lathan

I find Sanaa to be very intersting. I first saw her in Love and Basketball. She's never struck me as an overly friendly person, but her performances are always weighty even when the script isn't.

As a black woman, I'm thrilled about Sanaa's role on Nip/Tuck this season. She plays a surgeon/business owner/criminal/gold digger/former escort...yes, that's a lot of slashes, but aren't we all just a ton of slashes.

She is winning the heart of one Christian Troy and trying to fend off her sketchy past. She's trying to do right by herself, but it's hard. And her cold, but meaningful acting style makes us feel for her even if we're a bit put off at the same time. There's something behind her eyes, and she's gonna make you work to see it.

This is exactly the kind of role that needs to be doled out to minorities more often. Her race is mentioned in passing (Christian says something about "brown sugar.") but it doesn't define her as a person. She speaks with her accent which is both refined, ethnic, powerful and womanly. She's married to a white guy in the show--the interracialness of their marraige is never brought up--probably overshadowed by his testicle transplant. She plays a top notch escort con-woman and men of all kinds fall for her beauty. There is no discussion at the bar when she picks up a client about how he's fulfilling a fettish. They find her beautiful and that's all there is.

Nip/Tuck does a great job with its casting....well, there is that Cuban gang stuff going on...i should watch those episodes again...But in this Miami, evil suits everyone in top tier designer labels. Good and bad are equally distributed among all races, disfigurations and conditions so that characters can explore what people actually are and not what box they check on voter registration forms.

Hollywoodland

2006-09-26T09:47:00.000-07:00

To me, the mark of a good movie is how much I think about it after I've left the theater, days have passed and what happens when it pops back into my mind. With those criteria in mind, I really liked Hollywoodland.

To be fair, I'm no movie critic. I didn't study film in school and when I go to the movies, I really enjoy getting lost in the story (if I can) and letting myself go on the journey with the characters.

The above did not happen with Cars. It did happen with Hollywoodland.

Of course, getting lost in Adrian Brody's eyes is pretty damn easy and with his surprisingly sexy good looks. Wow. Halle Berry was one lucky Oscar presenter.

Movies like this are faced with a unique challenge. They're set in an era where minorities were excluded from everyday life and if they did show up, they were servants or being abused in some way. Many films do this unabashedly and I'm sure the conversation in the casting room is unfortunately shallow.

Another annoying thing period movies often do is use there eras as excuses for referring to minorities derrogatively. They'll drop in whatever racial epithets they feel like in the name of authenticity, but such words usually just pull the reader out of the story and make cognisant audiences squirm uncomfortably for a scene or two.

But HWL handled the minority issue very well. Set in the upper tiers of Hollywood society, there was a singular type of person the film focused on--leaving little room for darker faces. So I was surprised the first time we see a servant in the movie to see that she's white.

Now, of the two servants who have under-five/featured extra roles, the white maid was the only one with lines. Later, we see a black servant. She has no lines and we only see her from the back.

This is both merciful and curious.

On one hand, it's nice that she didn't speak. Often with roles like this, the black person is made to be shuffling and truckling and a close cousin to Mr. Fetchit. The fact that the black maid didn't talk made her seem almost more in control of her life than the white maid who has an exchange with Brody.

However, if she had lines, it would have been an opportunity for her to deliver them as a well spoken, strong woman and not just a maid. Why weren't the parts swtiched? Who knows. Is it really that big of a deal? In this film, not really, but it is something to think about.

Right after I get done thinking about Adrian. :) (whose ethnicity, incidentally, plays not part in the movie. as in this case, it shouldn't.)

Two Weeks Notice

2006-09-14T15:57:00.000-07:00

This movie falls into the same "why are you watching this" camp as Just Married. But Two Weeks Notice did gross bout $120 million worldwide. And $120 million can't be wrong.

I'll get it out of the way and say that I Love Hugh Grant. Yes, he's skeezy and slimy and definitely uses that disarming eye flutter thing to make you think he's better than he is. But he's freaking sexy and looks better and better every year. (and sure he paid for it, but he paid for it with a Black girl!!)

Like so many movies set in New York City, Two Weeks Notice has one minority in it. Filmmakers and television producers a like have decided that this is an accurate representation of the city. Which is strange when you consider that the actual ethnic makeup of NYC looks more like this.

(scroll down the wikipedia page. you'll find the info. and a whole lot more. never stop learning.)

So Two Weeks Notice employs one minority in their cast. And oh, so appropriately, it is a lesser version of the magical black person. Dorian Missick plays Tony, Grant's chauffeur who lives at home with his mother and expects her to have dinner waiting for him when he gets home.

But he's also a great chess player and uses his skills to show Grant how to woo the stubborn Bullock...Too bad he can't use those skills to help himself. Such a burden.

And thus is the plight of the magical black person. See a listing of other notable films who employ this tactic here: http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:GchS2LSUp1MJ:www.amazon.com/The-Magical-Black-Person-Genre/lm/J1R7ZNBTA8RR+magical+black+person&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1

Thank you Spike Lee for giving us this term. I believe he originally said "super duper magical black person." This is a black person who has a skill or talent that is used almost exclusively to benefit a white person, while the black person is held back by fate or their own folly.

Now, Two Weeks Notice isn't an "important" film and thus the inclusion of a MBP probably didn't affect that many people who saw and/or analyzed this film. But it is lazy filmmaking. And it gives other films to write these vaguely shuffling bit parts in for actors of color and get away with it with no scrutiny.

Just Married

2006-09-14T15:49:00.000-07:00

Just Married

Yes, I know. I should probably never have rented it. But as far as a simple movie with some easy laughs go..it's not so bad. And the one black character in it isn't nearly as offensive as the one black character in Two Weeks Notice.

There are two noticeable minorities in JM. One is Juan, an Asian house manager who lives and works at Brittney Murphy's parents. The other is Ashton Kutcher's coworker.

Juan is a bit of a caricature and really dances all over the offensive line. I think the sting of his Asian stereotype is mitigated by the fact that he has very few lines. So few in fact that by the time you think "holy crap! did they just have that guy say that like that?!" he's off screen and Murphey is getting hit in the head with something.

Kutcher's coworker, played by Alex Thomas, is great. He is an example of exaclty what a character who is a minority needs to be. A guy. Who happens to be a minority. And that's it. He doesn't have some crazy accent. He doesn't talk about 'the man.' He doesn't use reflexive, self loathing eptithets. He dosen't, as far as we know in this story, hate women, have too much sex with them, crave more sex with them, cheat on them. He works hard, dresses well and is tough but fair with Kutcher when he starts screwing up on the job.

Too often even small parts like this are overplayed so that racial stereotpyes are the source of the humor. Or at least a major part of the humor. Instead of letting the humor come from the conflict between characters or in the story itself.