Sequels

Sequels are a funny thing. After reading an article on EW.com last week about the 15 best sequels, I've been thinking about them. They're hit or miss. Because of this, they cannot be generalized: I can't say every sequel is great, or that every threequel sucks, or vice versa.

Because of the prevalence of Shrek 4 commercials, I'm finding myself debating whether I should rush to see it because of this very problem-- Shrek 2 was awesome in my book, but Shrek 3 was god awful. Really, I have no desire to watch it again. (I have a problem with it primarily because of how they had to explain their jokes. Wasn't that what was so awesome with the first two? You could watch them over and over and catch new, hilarious things every time?) And what about Spider-man? Spiderman 2 was bomb. Three? Not as much. It wasn't the worst movie of all time, but it tried too hard. There were too many villians and too many threads of storyline, too many attempts to be funny and failing (That dance scene, anyone? Yeah, I can't watch it without feeling really uncomfortable and I don't know who can.) Terminator 2 was awesome, the third was a joke (the fourth was not too bad, however, IMO.) The Mummy 2 was cool but I actually walked out of the most recent one (and I NEVER do that). X2 was by far my favorite X-Men movie, while The Last Stand just didn't have the magic and Wolverine was simply embarrassing.

But think of Oceans' 11, 12, and 13! Twelve sucked and 13 rocked. An example of redemption! And what about Indiana Jones? The Last Crusade was much, much better than Temple of Doom (though I still love that movie-- don't judge me.)

But then there are few movie series that just keep getting better, like Lord of the Rings. The second was great, the third was even better. The Dark Knight kicked ass. Star Wars (the original trilogy-- I can't even talk about the prequel trilogy) was amazing and classic (Happy Star Wars Day btw: May the Fourth be with you!) I even think Pirates of the Caribbean did a pretty good job. But is there such thing as too much? There's too much Star Wars now, following Episodes 1,2, and 3 and everything Clone Wars, and they're trying to make another Pirates.

I think the only thing generalizable about sequels is that every animated Disney sequel is to be avoided. Other than that, the only way to find out is to check out new sequels/threequels/prequels for ourselves.

http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20355856_20365577,00.html

The Magical World of Race and Gender

I'm sure your time in college has provided you with many opportunities to hear criticisms of Disney and the messages sent. I think some of these arguments have validity. Why is it that so many women need a man to save them or to find happiness? Is it appropriate to have these women in stereotypical roles, like a housecleaner? The idea of being a princess is the goal to be achieved in many films, and this can be dangerous to girls who grow up learning that gowns, jewelry, and the need for a prince are important things. There is a possibility that it could cause girls to desire impossible or unhealthy body images. Studies have shown that women who aspire to classic feminine beliefs are at risk: less likely to use contraception, more depression, less interest in sports and physical activity. The white princesses give this impression, of demureness and fragile, while women of color are highly sexualized (for example, The Hunchback of Notre Dame's Esmerelda, Aladdin's Jasmine). The princes depicted in many of the films are overly handsome, sensitive, smart, and dare I say perfect? It's such an ideal that is uncommon and probably unachieveable. It sets impossibly high standards for boys to achieve and for girls to desire. It can create false hopes in regards to romance or at least for the romanticized worlds that exist in Disney movies.

Why is it that in Aladdin, a movie set in the Middle East, the main characters have been Americanized while the bad guys have accents? The "evil" hyenas in The Lion King had street-wise African-American dialects too. Why did the primates act black in The Jungle Book? If Tarzan was set in Africa, why was there not a single black person? And Dumbo. I couldn't believe how the black crows were depicted when I looked back on the film recently. Seriously, I can't even describe it, just watch it. And in Peter Pan, Tiger Lily's father was uncivilized and savage.

I'm not going to discount that Disney has been making progress in the last few years. The movies of the 90's depected stronger women and various cultures, but there were still many mistakes that are embarrassing, such as the depiction of ethnicities in Aladdin that I alluded to earlier, or Tarzan's white-person party. At first I'm pleased with the character of Belle in Beauty and the Beast, but upon closer inspection, her intelligence and individuality begins to disappate as she falls further for the Beast. She becomes foolish in her decisions to trust the rageful and abusive Beast. Pocahontas provides us a positive story of ignoring skin color and cultural differences, but her independence and strength that becomes clear by her choice to stay with her people is diluted in her apparent desire to be with her man. Mulan is my favorite example of progress, because it positively portrays a different culture and encourages people (particularly women) to be strong in the face of adversity and suppression, but even in that film it finishes with the idea that she needs to find a man ("Great, she brings home a sword. If you ask me, she should have brought home a man!" And of course he shows up right then.)

Crash into me [and I'll come into you]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7in-9E3ImQ

One of the Dave Matthews Band's best and most popular songs is called Crash into Me. It's cute how many people think it is a love song, because it really isn't. As my cousin finely put it one day, "It's a stalker song!" and he's quite right: if you listen closely to the lyrics, you might realize that it is totally voyeuristic. In the VH1 Soundstage, Dave Matthews himself admitted this. It's about a guy who is crazy about this girl, watches and fantasizes about her.

Don't believe me? Think about these lyrics:
"Hike up your skirt a little more and show your world to me
A boy's dream...a boy's dream
I watch you there through the window and I stare
As you wear nothing but you wear it so well
Tied up and twisted the way I'd like to be
For you, for me, come crash into me"

Hmm...only a little bit creepy.

Spartacus

Last week, I watched a few episodes of the Starz! show Spartacus, and though I knew that there would be nudity (both female and male) and sex scenes, I was a little surprised about how unfair this was. What I mean is that the proportion of female nudity to male nudity was a phenomenal ratio, for you would see boobies and more every single episode while there were only a couple of nude shots of the men the half-dozen or more episodes I watched. "There's something for everyone (as the show's PR people said in an article I read a while back)" my ass. Or their asses, I suppose. The show aims to show women as powerful and smart, but considering how often they are undressing and having sex with the men, I can't help but conclude they are included in the show as little more than objects of a sexual nature, since they do little to advance the plot (other than Spartacus' wife being a damsel in distress). This show is no better than any skanky ad that uses sex to sell and I wasn't impressed. Next time, Starz! needs to do a better job of including respectable female characters if they want to have a larger demographic.

Pushing up the daisies.

I have the title lowercased and reworded on purpose, it is not a typo. It's a play on the fact that the wonderful, whimsical television show was cancelled far too early into its run. Perhaps the writers' strike was to blame. After all, it cut the first season in half and put the show on hiatus for months. Then the second season was cancelled halfway through, despite decent ratings. Why is it that good, unique shows like this get cancelled so early, but every time a medical drama/cop show comes around, everyone watches it like it's the new best thing? Aren't there a million and a half of those? Not to mention prime-time soap operas like Gossip Girls and 90210 are dumber than the remote people use to turn them on. If only more clever things stuck around, I wouldn't be so bitter.

The Amazing Spider-Plan

No offense meant to all those living under rocks, but by now everyone should have heard about the new reboot of the Spider-Man franchise. For those rock-dwellers, or those who need a refresher, here's one of the breaking articles on the news from back in January: http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2010/01/spider-man-film-gets-reboot-sam-raimi-tobey-maguire-out.html. I read just today that Percy Jackson's Logan Lerman is almost definitely going to be the next Peter Parker. It's a good thing I think he's cute.

I'm pretty pissed about this. Okay, I'll be the first to admit that Spider-Man 3 was not as good as the first two, but I would have been more than willing to line up at the theatre for a Spider-Man 4 if they wanted to make one. So would millions of others. After all, the Spider-Man movie franchise has been one of the most successful in movie history! Critics and audiences have adored it. It is a big money maker if I've ever seen one.

So why are they remaking it? Why mess with a good thing? I understand Tobey's getting older and all that, but it's not like he's got wrinkles. Part of the whole deal of going to a movie is the knowledge that the movie is not real. It doesn't need to be perfect. Moreover, I think it is WAY too soon to start over. The reboot is scheduled for 2012! No wonder the world is set to end that year, it probably has something to do with the crazy, unnecessary remake slated for release. I can understand waiting a few years and then starting again, but the Tobey/Riami version is still going to be fresh in everyone's minds. Comparisons will flourish, and this movie is going to struggle under the pressure, just watch.

Don't get me wrong, I'll probably be at the theatre the week the new Spider-Man comes out, seeing if it's any good like half of America, but I really don't think it is a good idea. As my dad just said, "What's wrong with it the way it was?"

Jackson Katz

When I saw Jackson Katz speak, I kept thinking to myself over and over how great it was how insistent he was that stuff like violence against women was a men’s issue, and I think he’s absolutely right. For years, men have gotten by ignoring problems like this when the reason for them stems from people just like them, not the easy-to-ignore minority cultures. As he was clear about, not all men are violent, but many are, and that’s part of the reason why so few people are willing to step forward and admit that there is something wrong with that part of society. I find it frustrating, though, to sit and watch a speaker like Jackson Katz say all of these true things and realize that I am rather unable to make changes myself because I am a woman; he explained how women try to stand up for what is right, but are ignored. It is necessary now for men to do that, and it seems that it is time for women to sit on the sideline with our fingers crossed.