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'Airbender' & 'Prince of Persia' were 'whitewashed'
- Thread starter The Main Event
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Htown said:
The Bond character changes all the time anyway, as long as the guy can pull it off, I don't care what they look like. Like this last dude is ugly as shit to me, but I like the movies still.
I don't want to see Will Smith as Captain America, it just looks stupid. White people don't have to worry about that happening though. The outrage from that move would be deafening.
Hell people made a huge fuss over the remake of the Honeymooners, when they cast black people in the roles.
Like I said, it doesn't fit the WWII origin. If you make it all take place "today", then fine.
But no way would World War II America put a black man as the center of their war propaganda efforts.
If you want to cast Will Smith as Isaiah Bradley, feel free, though.
But no way would World War II America put a black man as the center of their war propaganda efforts.
If you want to cast Will Smith as Isaiah Bradley, feel free, though.
Byakuya769
Member
I knew there would be a defense force.
Htown said:
Of course it would work. Using the mask to cover his ethnicity, captain american program using black people to experiment on, supporting the idea that black people's role in WW2 for the american side isn't given enough attention. It would work perfectly.
That's why they invented the clothes and the shield.
Dark Octave
Banned
Just like 21, I won't let it ruin my enjoyment of these movies, but it is kind of like a modern day blackface.
I'm sure there are tons of starving, well deserving and highly capable Middle Eastern and Asian American actors to fill those roles.
But I would never expect any different from Hollywood anyway.
I'm sure there are tons of starving, well deserving and highly capable Middle Eastern and Asian American actors to fill those roles.
But I would never expect any different from Hollywood anyway.
Byakuya769
Member
SmokyDave said:
.... and I knew you'd be on it.
Keylime
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Not that I want to repress any people of color from getting jobs, but certainly the general public is to blame for this "white washing" and not Hollywood, right?
I mean, they would cast colored actors if they thought it'd make them more money. It's a "shame on us" scenario for not being more agreeable. I'd have to assume focus testing shows that audiences respond better to white actors and they have "met the demand" by providing one.
Not to say that Hollywood couldn't take a stand on something like this, but any business is about money first.
I mean, they would cast colored actors if they thought it'd make them more money. It's a "shame on us" scenario for not being more agreeable. I'd have to assume focus testing shows that audiences respond better to white actors and they have "met the demand" by providing one.
Not to say that Hollywood couldn't take a stand on something like this, but any business is about money first.
I don't know about that. If focus testing was reliable, every film would make a profit. If movie execs and producers actually knew what people wanted, every film would make a profit. The fact there are so many flops tends to indicate that many people in charge of a films final appearance do not, in fact, know what people want.RubxQub said:
I think it might be a case of movie people assuming something about audiences that may not be true. Or at least not true outside of a small part of California.
Your perception of me might matter were your perceptions not so skewed.Byakuya769 said:
I quite like the suggestion of a black James Bond, I can think of an actor I'd like to see play him as well (David Oyelowo). The suggestions put forward by WrikaWrek for a black Captain America sound awesome and something I'd probably go and see. I'm not a very good member of the 'Racism In Cinema' defence force, am I?
Captain Pants
Killed by a goddamned Dredgeling
I guess I never saw Ang as being a specific race, he kinda looks white, and he has an american accent, so I don't have an issue with his casting. My deal with The Last Airbender is that it doesn't seem to have the same light hearted vibe that the cartoon had. The trailer looks way too serious.
Ninja Scooter said:
Or maybe people are well aware of the business aspects and feel that commercial aspirations doesn't necessarily have to be mutually exclusive to ethnic and racial representation in mass media?
This isn't some world ending event that demands the outrage of a thousand sons of the east or something like that, but it's kind of silly how people are defending this as something that should be glossed over, as if they're good judges of who's being represented in media.
The point people seem to miss is that a role that calls for a Persian or an Asian, can be a doorway for a Persian or an Asian actor to make it big. Into the mainstream of American media.
Casting a nobody actor into a huge role happens all the time, just most of the time that actor happens to be white.
Casting a nobody actor into a huge role happens all the time, just most of the time that actor happens to be white.
Byakuya769
Member
SmokyDave said:
Nah, you're perfect for it. You see there are those who don't care because they couldn't give a shit about if minorities get roles. Then there are those, like you, who think that race doesn't matter and that minorities should just stop complaining about it, proving the minorities to be the bigger issue; "because, hey.. I'd love to see a black Captain America
lol.. it will never happen...
Meier said:
Dead on. Though I'm always confused why they give clearly JAPANESE names to the characters... hmmm....
Actually, I can't (and won't) argue any of this. I guess you see my inaction as a passive form of action (or affirming the action of others) and you are correct. I don't feel bad about not giving a shit (there's just so much other stuff for me to worry about) but I do respect why my not giving a shit would annoy you.Byakuya769 said:
I'd still like to see a black James Bond though, might start a thread about that.
WrikaWrek said:
How they handle their budgeting and choose the business model is their concern, that doesn't make them immune to criticisms of their failings in representing minority groups. And the grander issue behind it all IS an issue of representing minority groups as well as being faithful to source materials; not necessarily both these concerns apply to PoP specifically.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
I was commenting on this the moment I saw an ad for "Prince of Persia starring Jake Gyllenhaal!" I just couldn't stop thinking about that Paul Mooney bit on Chappelle. :lol
Then again, in Hollywood, any asian can play any type of asian and Middle Eastern characters seem to commonly be Indian people.
Then again, in Hollywood, any asian can play any type of asian and Middle Eastern characters seem to commonly be Indian people.
SuperAngelo64
Banned
Meier said:
Ugh, really?!
I'm done with this thread.
Davidion said:
Wait a minute here. You can criticize them, yes! But you cannot hold them responsible for something they aren't responsible for.
One thing we can argue though is about misrepresentation, which there exists a lot of in the media. But that isn't about casting, it's about writing.
It's far more important to discuss the far reaching misrepresentation of say Islam in the media and in movies, than it is to throw a tantrum about a movie adaptation of a kids show, that is about as historically factual as Dragon Ball GT, taking liberties about the casting.
A better way to put it is, if a studio in Finland was about to spend 200 million dollars in this movie, and it had the exact same cast, nobody would say shit.
But because it's hollywood then everybody has a sense of entitlement.
Parallax Scroll
Banned
Something about various Marvel characters turning black
Complex Shadow
Cudi Lame
oh i forgot they should use the colour yellow to represent chinese people and make sure white people have blond hair and blue eyes right?Meier said:
get you ass-facts strait before you post them.
I defenitely sympatize with the economic aspects of it, as if you're spending 200m plus on a movie you certainly want to make sure you get your money back. They're not charities.
It's a very sensitive and grey area but hey, at the end of the day whites own the studios, the country is overwhelmingly white and they're free to do do what they fucking want.
Whatever you think of tyler Perry at least he went and formed his studio and now catering to a neglected demographic.
It's a very sensitive and grey area but hey, at the end of the day whites own the studios, the country is overwhelmingly white and they're free to do do what they fucking want.
Whatever you think of tyler Perry at least he went and formed his studio and now catering to a neglected demographic.
karasu said:Imagine the cast of A Song of Fire & Ice. Now imagine they're all black.
Ohhhhh!
?!? How many threads do you see about Finnish movies of any kind?
Don't know what Song of ice and fire is, but unless it doesn't make any sense i don't see any problem.
It was an hypothetical example.
Hence the usage of "white." They are obviously Japanese -- no one would assume otherwise. Your quote literally confirms that anime characters are "white" in their origins. All one has to do is look at their facial features and hair color, this isn't rocket science.Amakusa said:
I literally have no clue what you're saying. Learn to communicate more effectively.shadowcomplex said:
WrikaWrek said:
Yes. The bigger you are, the more visible you are, the more influential you are, the more responsible you have to be. There is just about NO industry where this holds true than media.
Any business/industry that reaches a critical mass of public exposure to the extent that Hollywood has, defines cultures. The scale and reach of their product absolutely substantiates why this is an issue in the first place.
And let me expound that I don't feel like this should be an call to "JUMP WHITEY". The lack of media representation is a particularly sore spot for Asians (I'll not drill into that unless we go there). Is Paramount/Hollywood in general committing some hell-forsaken rules that deserves incendiary rage and retaliation? I sure don't think so. However, they are manifesting what's seen by many as a shortcoming in our social dialogue and quite frankly, complaints outlined in the article have not been unreasonable, or even particularly scathing. I mean, I'm wondering if people paid attention to the fact that all of this expression of disappointment, culminated in complaints and all of a letter-writing campaign. Were we expected to just keep our mouths shut and act like good boys and girls? Would that be a more reasonable response to what many see as media underrepresentation?
This would be what makes comments from people in thread to "stop complaining" especially myopic and arguably more irritable than the original subject for some others here.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
No, not really. "All of the characters being white" only has unfortunate implications to other white people. People from white dominated countries perceive anime characters as white because that's what they are used to.Meier said:
http://www.matt-thorn.com/mangagaku/faceoftheother.html
SuperAngelo64
Banned
Okay, I lied, I did come back to this thread.
Yes. You're correct. However they're probably not the Aryans you're thinking of. The term 'Aryan' was heavily distorted in the 1800's by English speaking countries to mean someone who fits the Nordic white archetype.
When historical texts speak of "Aryans" they're referring to the Indo-Iranian languages and people. This doesn't mean that the Persians at one point had blonde hair and pale blue eyes. However, they may harbor features people perceive as 'white' since the majority of races in Mesopotamia are technically Caucasoids.
You really think the facial features of anime characters look more white than Japanese?!
Seriously?
LRB1983 said:
Yes. You're correct. However they're probably not the Aryans you're thinking of. The term 'Aryan' was heavily distorted in the 1800's by English speaking countries to mean someone who fits the Nordic white archetype.
When historical texts speak of "Aryans" they're referring to the Indo-Iranian languages and people. This doesn't mean that the Persians at one point had blonde hair and pale blue eyes. However, they may harbor features people perceive as 'white' since the majority of races in Mesopotamia are technically Caucasoids.
Meier said:
You really think the facial features of anime characters look more white than Japanese?!
Seriously?
Complex Shadow
Cudi Lame
Meier said:
really?
i give.
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