Ryan Patrick O'Hara
Veteran
Well my point is, this topic is fun right now, but if you dig to deep trying to really accomplish anything you're gonna hit some buried high voltage cables.
Bechdel test for women in film
- Thread starter Batutta
- Start date
Well my point is, this topic is fun right now, but if you dig to deep trying to really accomplish anything you're gonna hit some buried high voltage cables.
Batutta
Major Contributor
And it wasn't presented as anything more...It's just an interesting exercise to show how male and white dominated Hollywood films are. Yes, that reflects demographics, but the curious thing is that by trying to include strong female and minority characters they end up making things worse, because then you end up with impossibly idealized Mary Sue's and magical negroes, characters with no flaws that are boring. You could make the case we need WEAKER minority and women characters, ones with compelling, human flaws. Another note is that the market for big budget Hollywood films is getting so much more international, with films now routinely outgrossing overseas what they did domestically, that at some point I think it's going to effect the stories being told...Someone in another forum in reference to the original women test said research shows girls don't mind watching girls or boys, but boys only like watching boys, so which is the safer bet? To extend that, the rest of the world doesn't mind watching white dominated films, but whites aren't as comfortable watching films dominated by other ethnicities. Of course, that's changing, and there are recent exceptions (Crouching Tiger, Slumdog Millionare).
Ryan Patrick O'Hara
Veteran
Although I agree on some points, I'd love to take counterpoint, but I feel I'd be the first one electrocuted. Either way, it's food for thought. 
Nektonic
Veteran
I'd love to see Crouching Tiger, Hidden Slumdog Millionaire. Or how about Crouching Slumdog, Millionaire Dragon? What's Danny Boyle and Ang Lee up to these days?
Is that a new item on the menu at Popeye's Chicken?
Mark Harris
Pain in the ass
I was going to go another direction with that, but...
Ryan Patrick O'Hara
Veteran
'Geek' is a bit more subjective than 'White, Black, Gay, Asian, etc'. To really identify as a 'geek' in the 'classical' manner, you kinda have to be stereotypical-ish or share common traits. Ya know? I'm not saying geeks have to be stereotypical, but most of us on this site can be considered a geek in one way or another. Since geek is character traits, it's hard for a geek to be non-geeky. Where as a black man or white man can be a geek, a hero, a villian, a dumbass, an asshole, and etc. We can be anything and defy stereotypes.
HAHA. Nice.
On that note, If I wasn't already drinking beer at noontime, I'd argue the drunk Irishman doesn't get a fair shake in cinema. But I'll let that go for another day
HAHA. Nice.
On that note, If I wasn't already drinking beer at noontime, I'd argue the drunk Irishman doesn't get a fair shake in cinema. But I'll let that go for another day
Batutta
Major Contributor
Just trying to keep things light, as it was heading in a bad direction.
Nektonic
Veteran
In my next script I think I might have a character that is part Asian, part black, that is the reincarnated spirit of a Spartan warrior who in the present day was raised by Jewish foster parents. I'll describe this character in the script as a heroically villainous dumb-asshole, but he always gets the chicks.
How about the stereotypical action hero?
1. Can the action hero take out a hundred enemy troops with a single clip of ammo, all while not getting hit?
2. Can the action hero sneak around undetected, only to trip up an alarm at the exact moment the writer wants them too?
3. Does the action hero utter an abundance of witty one-liners, usually spoken after dispatching an opponent in a clever or hilarious way?
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Richard J. Johnson
Joystick Member
great find
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Nathyn
Low Budget Ninja
Yes and the irony is when looking at certain film with minority cast and leads, including the Will Smith films and Wesley Snipes movies, they make money and white people do go to see them. So it's not coming from the people it's a top down thing. I teach a class called "The Sociology of Hip Hop" and you'll be amazed at how much control goes into everything you hear or see. Everything is calculated. Meaning you only see what they want you to see. So it's coming from their POV not yours or mine. I could go into a lot more but this isn't the place for it, but there is a lot being pushed on us that we don't really know about. I can go into the mind control stuff that goes on overseas too via media imported from America.
But this is an archetype, which is a bit different and this archetype can indeed be any race or sex.
-Nate
Batutta
Major Contributor
Get used to crispy, crunchy and blackened where you're going.
Nathyn
Low Budget Ninja
Nathyn
Low Budget Ninja
No, 355 made it was the doctor but she wasn't Lesbian (maybe bi). But I mean not one brother or sister? That Jewish army made it through but they were all white chicks too. I mean it literally seemed like they were intentionally (which parts of me kind of believe they were) saying, hey let's show a black person, but let's make sure they're not around until the end. I mean at least Captain America had a black sidekick at one point. He was kind of useless, but he talked tough and hit people when needed. LOL. And to this day Marvel still doesn't do much with the Blade, Powerman or Black Panther characters in the realm of their books. These are the most poorly written characters going. And what happened to Night Thrasher. EVERYONE LOVED NIGHT THRASHER. A black guy with a berserker rage like Wolverine who fought crime on a skateboard. Come on! The concept alone sells it. LOL.
And the sister dies right as he's about to pledge his undying love to her. WTF? Is this a Steven Seagal movie. LOL. And of course he goes out to kick some butt. But this kind of stuff is suppose to happen at the start of a series or maybe even the middle, but the end? I mean the very freaking end. Don't let me get into Marvel Comic black superhero book they didn't even bother to color or he DC wouldn't allow the black writer to use Batman, Superman or Wonder Woman when he started writing the JLA books (keep in mind Supes, Bats and Wondy are the key JLA members). And he's a beloved writer. It's so crazy.
There even a history of racism in Sci-fi (includling comics), which is sad when you think about what sci-fi is. And even writers of sci-fi when questioned about the lack of ethnics, their answer is "I don't know any (insert race) so I don't think I can write for them." But you don't know any vampires, aliens, demons or cyborgs, but you do a damn good job writng for them. LOL, OMG. I could go on all day on this topic alone from a writing standpoint. And I'll let me go on record as saying, I like to see those Asian guys kicking butt and I'll never admit how good Joy Luck Club actually was. LOL.
-Nate
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Blaine
Mr. Hollywood
This makes me think of James Patterson. While I've enjoyed the Alex Cross movies: Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider, I just couldn't make it through the books. It felt like a white man writing the black lead character so I looked up Patterson and low and behold, it was a white man writing the black lead character. Now, I'm not saying that a white man can't write black characters OR that a black man can't write white characters because the obviously can. I'm just saying that sometimes things feel OFF, like they did for me in Patterson's books.