One Solution to the #OscarsSoWhite Problem

[LastShadow]

Honestly speaking, now that I think of it I agree with him. If your adaptation diverges significantly enough from the source material than it really should not have the right to call it self an adaptation. If Japan licensed a version of Spiderman that happens in Tokyo and with an all Japanese cast I honestly would not call that Spiderman.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Ma ... _series%29



You were saying?

For whatever it's worth, Marvel considers that a part of their canon. They included him (mecha and all) in their Spider-Verse event.

So, get fucked.

Booyah Supaidaman FTW (which BTW i originally learned from ready player one). Also in the various spider multi verse events, there is a spider woman, Black guy (miles morales), and other random assorted spider folk.

[Crown]

I would love to see a Venn diagram between the people who rage against 'culture appropriation' and at the same time demand white cultural staples be forcibly 'diversified' for 'reasons'.

Before you all lose your shit, let me just quote myself from a similar thread in Fantasy when the question was asked; "Should Batman be black?".

Should Batman be African-American? Fuck no.

Could Batman be African-American? Fuck yes.

The Dark Tower is coming to live action adaptation and Idris Elba has been cast as the gunslinger. I am equally parts hyped for this and bemused. I'm hyped because it's Idris Elba for crying out loud, the guys is a monster actor! But I'm bemused because as those who have read the series know that the Gunslinger is basically Clint Eastwood, but that one of his group, Susannah Dean, is a wheel chair bound 'Negro' woman (the term she prefers) who hates white guys. So that part of the story (and how they handle it) is now going to get interesting, it's either going to *poof* disappear or they're gonna do what, recast her as a wheel chair bound WASP woman who hates black guys? Could you imagine if they did that, they would basically be taking a job away from a black actress those racists!

[Broomstick]

Or she could be a wheel-chair bound negro woman who hates white people in conflict with a black gunslinger who likes white people/is not a bigot?

[Crown]

Or she could be a wheel-chair bound negro woman who hates white people in conflict with a black gunslinger who likes white people/is not a bigot?

Ooh, maybe should could call him uncle Tom too, pretty sure that won't cause any problems.

[TheFeniX]

Ooh, maybe should could call him uncle Tom too, pretty sure that won't cause any problems.

Good writing is good writing. I can't think of a single movie where the stigma of "we pissed off X group that hurt the bottom line" wasn't a cover for "we made a shitty AND insulting movie." Sam Jackson spends a lot of Die Hard yelling about how the Man shouldn't be trusted. Willis even calls him out at one point for being a racist, because McClain is presented as someone who is not racist in the least. No one blew up, except a whole lot of people in the movie.

Why not show the ugly realities of racism making someone else incredibly racist? Someone who chews the ass of the protagonist betraying their own while also being a sympathetic character? At least two minority actors could accomplish that. It would impossible for two white actors to do the same.

[Grumman]

Good writing is good writing. I can't think of a single movie where the stigma of "we pissed off X group that hurt the bottom line" wasn't a cover for "we made a shitty AND insulting movie." Sam Jackson spends a lot of Die Hard yelling about how the Man shouldn't be trusted. Willis even calls him out at one point for being a racist, because McClain is presented as someone who is not racist in the least. No one blew up, except a whole lot of people in the movie.

It helped that Zeus's racism motivated him to be a better person. Being the best person you can be is admirable, even if you're doing it out of spite.

[TheFeniX]

It helped that Zeus's racism motivated him to be a better person. Being the best person you can be is admirable, even if you're doing it out of spite.

True, but at one point Zeus says something to the effect of "sounds like a white man problem" in a situation where a madman is leaving bombs laying around and threatening to blow up a random school. I can understand his anger, but it did make him out to be a pretty big asshole.

McClain then lies to Zeus saying a bomb found in Chinatown was actually found in Harlem. Now, McClain is making an assumption that only threatening black lives would motivate Zeus, "non-white" not factoring in. But he's not far off base considering Zeus' previous comments.

I'm not saying I disagree with Zeus' world-view considering racism, but his motivations in the early parts of the movie are certainly racist on a level people would assume white viewers would be uncomfortable with. I think the movie would likely catch more flak if released today than it did in the 90s, even though Zeus comes off as an easy character to empathize with, even to viewers that the character wouldn't like. At least not until the end of the movie where it seems he's at least had a few shots taken at his world-view.

I just feel if you're going to make race an issue make it a fucking issue and don't be a little kid about it. If it doesn't matter, don't make it an issue. I feel like action in general (not just movies) is being so fucking watered-down lately, this by-the-book numbers game of executive checklist bullshit just makes it tired. "Let's not offend minorities by just not including minorities."

It's sort of funny to me because Zeus was such a fish out of water (his race really doesn't factor in much into the Die Hard plot). The times he's in trouble it's because he did something besides just "being black." He had the chance to be one big mess of a character and hugely insulting. But he wasn't, he was damned cool. The writers decided to take a shot at racism when it wasn't needed and it paid off.

He also barely rates as a side-kick. Much more partner/equal. And I really can't think of another character in his vein since and that's 20 years ago. Unless the character is played by Will Smith. MiB and Wild Wild West for two examples.

[Grumman]

It helped that Zeus's racism motivated him to be a better person. Being the best person you can be is admirable, even if you're doing it out of spite.

True, but at one point Zeus says something to the effect of "sounds like a white man problem" in a situation where a madman is leaving bombs laying around and threatening to blow up a random school. I can understand his anger, but it did make him out to be a pretty big asshole.

IIRC, the threat to blow up the school didn't come until later. And it's not like he was being asked to actually contribute to stopping Simon - he was being asked to perform tricks on command for some psycho when the last trick was "commit suicide by gangbanger."