Tuesday - January 12, 2010

Avatar hit by accusations of racism.  Some folks just have to see race in everything.

The guy who made Avatar is a liberal for gosh sake.  Seems like even a sci-fi pitcher-show is now seen by some in terms of race.
Can’t they just watch and enjoy (or if not leave the theater) without seeing the dreaded ‘R’ word?  Guess not.  It’s a movie. It’s fantasy. It’s make believe.  But some just have to sniff around till they find the evidence they have planted in their heads.

James Cameron’s $1 billion sci-fi epic Avatar has been hit by accusations of racism.

By Anita Singh, Showbusiness Editor
Telegraph

Critics claims the story of a white US Marine who saves an alien race perpetuates the “white Messiah fable” and suggests that non-whites are primitives incapable of helping themselves.

Hundreds of blogs, YouTube videos and Twitter postings have sprung up on the subject since the film’s release three weeks ago, with one writer dubbing the 3-D extravaganza “a racial fantasy par excellence”.

Avatar is set on a distant planet populated by the Na’vi, an eco-conscious, blue-skinned alien tribe with no understanding of modern technology. A disabled Marine, played by the Australian actor Sam Worthington, is sent to infiltrate the tribe but soon “goes native” and leads them in a defence of their homeland against the white invaders.

He also falls in love with an alien woman, who rejects a Na’vi suitor and becomes his wife. The main Na’vi characters are played by black actors, including Zoe Saldana and Laz Alonso.

David Brooks, a columnist writing in the New York Times, said: “Avatar is a racial fantasy par excellence ... It rests on the stereotype that white people are rationalist and technocratic while colonial victims are spiritual and athletic. It rests on the assumption that non-whites need the White Messiah to lead their crusades. It rests on the assumption that illiteracy is the path to grace.

“It also creates a sort of two-edged cultural imperialism. Natives can either have their history shaped by cruel imperialists or benevolent ones, but either way, they are going to be supporting actors in our journey to self-admiration.”

The ruthless treatment of the Na’vi has been interpreted as a metaphor for the plight of American Indians. Brooks said Avatar followed a long tradition of “white Messiah” movies which began in the 1970s with A Man Called Horse, starring Richard Harris as an English aristocrat who is captured by a Sioux Indian tribe and becomes their leader, and which includes Kevin Costner’s Dances With Wolves and the Tom Cruise film, The Last Samurai.

Robinne Lee, a black actress who appeared opposite Will Smith in the film Seven Pounds, is also among Avatar’s detractors.

Likening the film to Pocahontas – “the Indian woman leads the white man into the wilderness, and he learns the way of the people and becomes the saviour” – she said: “It’s really upsetting in many ways. It would be nice if we could save ourselves.”

Annalee Newitz, editor-in-chief of io9.com, a sci-fi website, said: “The main white characters realise that they are complicit in a system which is destroying aliens, aka people of colour ... then go beyond assimilation and become leaders of the people they once oppressed. When will whites stop making these movies and start thinking about race in a new way?” Cameron strongly denied any racist intent. He said that his film “asks us to open our eyes and truly see others, respecting them even though they are different, in the hope that we may find a way to prevent conflict and live more harmoniously on this world. I hardly think that is a racist message.”

The controversy has done little to dent Avatar’s remarkable run at the box office. It took just 17 days to pass $1 billion in ticket sales – a new record – and to become the second highest grossing film of all time behind Titanic, also

AVATAR SOURCE

Posted by peiper     on 01/12/2010 at 12:08 PM   
Filed Under: • Hollywood • MOVIES • Stoopid-People •  
• Comments (7) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

DISCLAIMER

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere

It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.

Copyright © 2004-2015 Domain Owner